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Published on: November 1, 2019
Exposure to a maternal cafeteria diet changes open-field behaviour in the developing offspring
Abigail Speight1, William G Davey1, Emily McKenna1
1School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, University of Nottingham, Sutton Bonington, Loughborough LE12 5RD, UK.
Insights
Lactational overfeeding with a cafeteria diet (CD) in Wistar rats increased offspring locomotor activity and reduced anxiety in the open-field test. Maternal licking/grooming behavior may contribute to these developmental changes in adolescent offspring.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Biology
- Behavioral Science
Background:
- The early postnatal period is critical for behavioral system development in rodents.
- The impact of maternal high-energy diets during lactation on offspring behavior is not well understood.
- Cafeteria diets (CD) are high in sugars and fats, leading to overconsumption.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the behavioral effects of maternal cafeteria diet (CD) feeding during lactation on offspring in early adolescence.
- To assess exploration and anxiety-related behaviors in offspring exposed to the open-field and elevated plus-maze.
- To examine maternal behaviors in dams fed a CD during lactation.
Main Methods:
- Wistar dams were fed a cafeteria diet (CD) during lactation.
- Offspring were tested at 23 days old in the open-field and elevated plus-maze.
- Maternal behaviors, including licking/grooming, were assessed on postnatal day 9.
Main Results:
- Offspring from CD-fed dams exhibited increased locomotor activity in the open-field test.
- These offspring showed reduced latency to enter the inner zone and spent more time there, indicating reduced anxiety in this context.
- Anxiety-related behavior was not significantly altered in the elevated plus-maze.
- Increased maternal licking/grooming was observed in CD-fed dams.
Conclusions:
- Lactational overfeeding with a cafeteria diet impacts the behavioral development of early adolescent rats.
- The observed anxiolytic-like effect in the open-field test may be partly mediated by increased maternal care.
- Dietary interventions during lactation can have lasting effects on offspring behavior.
Abstract:
The early postnatal period is a sensitive period in rodents as behavioural systems are developing and maturing during this time. However, little is currently known about the behavioural effects of feeding a hyper-energetic cafeteria diet (CD) during the lactational period when offspring behaviour is tested during early adolescence. To this end, 23days old offspring from dams (Wistar) fed on CD during lactation were tested in either the open-field or the elevated plus-maze for exploration and anxiety-related behaviour. On postnatal day 9, maternal behaviour and non-maternal behaviour of the dam was assessed. It was hypothesized that lactational CD feeding would reduce anxiety in the offspring. CD-fed dams had a higher energy intake, due to an overconsumption of sugars and fats. When offspring from these dams were exposed to the open field after weaning, their locomotor activity was increased. They entered the more aversive inner zone of the open-field after a shorter latency, made more entries into and spent more time in the inner zone. Anxiety-related behaviour was not affected upon exposure to the elevated plus maze, suggesting anxiolysis in the open-field only. Increased maternal licking/grooming behaviour could possibly contribute to the anxiolytic phenotype as observed in the offspring from the CD group. In conclusion, we demonstrate that lactational overfeeding impacts on the development of behaviour in the early adolescent rat.
