Page 88 - GTM-4-1

Global Translational Medicine

ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLE
Morphological signs of neurodegenerative and

inflammatory processes in the brain of rats on a
high-calorie diet

Tatyana E. Kuznetsova, Tatyana A. Mityukova* , Anastasia A. Basalai , and
Olga Y. Poluliakh
Department of Laboratory of Biomedical Technologies and Medical Rehabilitation, Institute of
Physiology, National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, Minsk, Republic of Belarus

Abstract
Much attention has been focused on studying the effects of obesity, particularly on
the central nervous system (CNS). This study investigated the histoarchitecture of the
prefrontal cortex (PFC) and hippocampus as well as the behavioral characteristics
in male and female Wistar rats with diet-induced visceral obesity. The influence of a
high-calorie diet on male and female rats reveals sex-specific changes in glial cells
*Corresponding author: and the peculiarities of neurodegenerative processes in the PFC and hippocampal
Tatyana A. Mityukova regions. In the context of visceral obesity, signs of depression were observed in male
(mityukovat@gmail.com)
rats, whereas female rats showed no such signs. These results confirm the sex-specific
Citation: Kuznetsova TE, effect of visceral obesity on the CNS.
Mityukova TA, Basalai AA,
Poluliakh OY. Morphological
signs of neurodegenerative and Keywords: High-calorie diet; Visceral obesity; Rats; Prefrontal cortex; Hippocampus; Signs
inflammatory processes in the brain
of rats on a high-calorie diet. Global of inflammation and neurodegeneration
Transl Med. 2025:4(1):80-89.
doi: 10.36922/gtm.5000
Received: September 30, 2024
1. Introduction
1st revised: November 21, 2024
Disorders of complex behavioral responses are usually associated with pathological
2nd revised: December 6, 2024
processes involving the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and hippocampus. The PFC plays an
3rd revised: December 30, 2024 important role in the formation of adaptive behavior. In both humans and animals,
Accepted: January 2, 2025 it is known to be involved in adaptation to changing environmental conditions,
information processing and decision-making for survival in natural and social
Published online: January 21,
1,2
2025 environments, and learning ability. In addition, this brain region is implicated in
the regulation of eating behavior in humans. High activity in the PFC is thought to
Copyright: © 2025 Author(s).
This is an Open Access article facilitate conscious control over food intake and make healthy dietary choices. The
distributed under the terms of the hippocampus, on the other hand, is responsible for spatial orientation, learning, and
Creative Commons Attribution memory. Many studies support its important role in cognitive processes. Its high
3
License, permitting distribution,
and reproduction in any medium, synaptic plasticity makes the hippocampus particularly sensitive to environmental
provided the original work is influences, including lifestyle and nutrition. Hippocampal neurons are known to
properly cited. selectively transmit different types of information to targeted brain regions related
Publisher’s Note: AccScience to behavior. Moreover, the hippocampus interacts with subcortical areas and the
Publishing remains neutral with PFC, playing a key role in executive functions. These interactions translate learning
regard to jurisdictional claims in
published maps and institutional into behavior, and dysfunction of the hippocampus can lead not only to memory
affiliations. impairments but also to executive dysfunctions. 3

Volume 4 Issue 1 (2025) 80 doi: 10.36922/gtm.5000