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Dietary magnesium deficiency affects gut microbiota and anxiety-like behaviour in C57BL/6N mice
Bettina Pyndt Jørgensen1, Gudrun Winther2, Pernille Kihl1
11Section of Experimental Animal Models,Department of Veterinary Disease Biology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences,University of Copenhagen,Frederiksberg C,Denmark.
Objective:
Magnesium deficiency has been associated with anxiety in humans, and rodent studies have demonstrated the gut microbiota to impact behaviour.
Methods:
We investigated the impact of 6 weeks of dietary magnesium deficiency on gut microbiota composition and anxiety-like behaviour and whether there was a link between the two. A total of 20 C57BL/6 mice, fed either a standard diet or a magnesium-deficient diet for 6 weeks, were tested using the light-dark box anxiety test. Gut microbiota composition was analysed by denaturation gradient gel electrophoresis.
Results:
We demonstrated that the gut microbiota composition correlated significantly with the behaviour of dietary unchallenged mice. A magnesium-deficient diet altered the gut microbiota, and was associated with altered anxiety-like behaviour, measured by decreased latency to enter the light box.
Conclusion:
Magnesium deficiency altered behavior. The duration of magnesium deficiency is suggested to influence behaviour in the evaluated test.
