Maternal high-fat diet during pregnancy and lactation provokes depressive-like behavior and influences the irisin/brain-derived neurotrophic factor axis and inflammatory factors in male and female offspring in rats.

A balanced maternal diet is necessary for the proper health and development of offspring. Recent clinical and preclinical studies have strongly indicated that maternal exposure to a high-fat diet (HFD) can have an irreversible impact on the structure and function of the offspring's brain and affect the immune system, which may predispose the offspring to brain disorders, including depression. The irisin/brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) axis is a pathway that influences several neurobehavioral mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of mental disorders. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the influence of a maternal HFD during pregnancy and lactation on depressive-like behavior, serum irisin concentration and hippocampal levels of irisin, BDNF and inflammatory factors (interleukin-1α, interleukin-6 and tumor necrosis factor-α) in adolescent and adult male and female offspring. The main findings indicate that offspring exposed to a maternal HFD are characterized by an increased immobility time in the forced swimming test at both stages of life. Our results showed that a maternal HFD decreased serum and hippocampal irisin levels in females on postnatal day (PND) 28 and decreased the level of interleukin-1α at postnatal days 28 and 63 in the hippocampus. Interestingly, significant age-dependent changes were observed in irisin, BDNF and interleukin levels. To summarize, our study indicates that a maternal HFD during pregnancy and lactation provokes depressive-like behaviour in the offspring. However, despite the observed changes in the levels of irisin and IL-1α in females, further investigations are required to identify the underlying molecular mechanism associated with depressive-like behavior in the offspring of HFD-fed dams.