Medium chain triglyceride diet reduces anxiety-like behaviors and enhances social competitiveness in rats. 2018

Fiona Hollis, and Ellen Siobhan Mitchell, and Carles Canto, and Dongmei Wang, and Carmen Sandi
Brain Mind Institute, School of Life Sciences, Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland.

Medium-chain triglycerides (MCT) are emerging as unique dietary supplements that are potentially relevant for the amelioration of brain dysfunctions. MCT are converted into ketones and free medium chain fatty acids that, in the brain, are highly effective energy sources to mitochondria and potentially less harmful than glucose metabolism to neurons. Given the recently established link between mitochondrial dysfunction and high anxiety and depression, we performed this study to investigate the effectiveness of an MCT-enriched diet to ameliorate anxiety- and depression-related behaviors in rats. Male rats were distributed into groups, according to their anxiety-like behaviors in the elevated plus maze. Each group was given either MCT-supplemented diet or an isocaloric control diet for fifteen days. Starting from the eighth day of diet, rats were exposed to different behavioral tests. MCT-fed rats exhibited reduced anxiety-like behaviors and enhanced social competitiveness, while their coping responses in the forced swim test were not affected by the treatment. When evaluated at the end of the two-week MCT diet, mitochondrial respiration was reduced in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) while unchanged in the nucleus accumbens. In the mPFC, enzymes related to glycolysis and oxidative phosphorylation were also decreased by MCT diet, while proteins controlling glucose and glutamate transport were increased. Altogether, our findings strongly suggest the effectiveness of MCT diet to exert anxiolytic effects. In the brain, our results point to the mPFC as a brain region in which MCT supplementation improves transport and control of energy substrates.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008297 Male Males
D008928 Mitochondria Semiautonomous, self-reproducing organelles that occur in the cytoplasm of all cells of most, but not all, eukaryotes. Each mitochondrion is surrounded by a double limiting membrane. The inner membrane is highly invaginated, and its projections are called cristae. Mitochondria are the sites of the reactions of oxidative phosphorylation, which result in the formation of ATP. They contain distinctive RIBOSOMES, transfer RNAs (RNA, TRANSFER); AMINO ACYL T RNA SYNTHETASES; and elongation and termination factors. Mitochondria depend upon genes within the nucleus of the cells in which they reside for many essential messenger RNAs (RNA, MESSENGER). Mitochondria are believed to have arisen from aerobic bacteria that established a symbiotic relationship with primitive protoeukaryotes. (King & Stansfield, A Dictionary of Genetics, 4th ed) Mitochondrial Contraction,Mitochondrion,Contraction, Mitochondrial,Contractions, Mitochondrial,Mitochondrial Contractions
D001921 Brain The part of CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM that is contained within the skull (CRANIUM). Arising from the NEURAL TUBE, the embryonic brain is comprised of three major parts including PROSENCEPHALON (the forebrain); MESENCEPHALON (the midbrain); and RHOMBENCEPHALON (the hindbrain). The developed brain consists of CEREBRUM; CEREBELLUM; and other structures in the BRAIN STEM. Encephalon
D003163 Competitive Behavior The direct struggle between individuals for environmental necessities or for a common goal. Behavior, Competitive,Behaviors, Competitive,Competitive Behaviors
D004032 Diet Regular course of eating and drinking adopted by a person or animal. Diets
D004291 Dominance-Subordination Relationship between individuals when one individual threatens or becomes aggressive and the other individual remains passive or attempts to escape. Dominance Subordination,Dominance-Subordinations
D000818 Animals Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA. Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D001007 Anxiety Feelings or emotions of dread, apprehension, and impending disaster but not disabling as with ANXIETY DISORDERS. Angst,Anxiousness,Hypervigilance,Nervousness,Social Anxiety,Anxieties, Social,Anxiety, Social,Social Anxieties
D014280 Triglycerides An ester formed from GLYCEROL and three fatty acid groups. Triacylglycerol,Triacylglycerols,Triglyceride
D016037 Single-Blind Method A method in which either the observer(s) or the subject(s) is kept ignorant of the group to which the subjects are assigned. Single-Masked Study,Single-Blind Study,Single-Masked Method,Method, Single-Blind,Method, Single-Masked,Methods, Single-Blind,Methods, Single-Masked,Single Blind Method,Single Blind Study,Single Masked Method,Single Masked Study,Single-Blind Methods,Single-Blind Studies,Single-Masked Methods,Single-Masked Studies,Studies, Single-Blind,Studies, Single-Masked,Study, Single-Blind,Study, Single-Masked

Related Publications

Fiona Hollis, and Ellen Siobhan Mitchell, and Carles Canto, and Dongmei Wang, and Carmen Sandi
January 1984, International journal of obesity,
Fiona Hollis, and Ellen Siobhan Mitchell, and Carles Canto, and Dongmei Wang, and Carmen Sandi
June 1973, Journal of pediatric surgery,
Fiona Hollis, and Ellen Siobhan Mitchell, and Carles Canto, and Dongmei Wang, and Carmen Sandi
December 1986, Archives of disease in childhood,
Fiona Hollis, and Ellen Siobhan Mitchell, and Carles Canto, and Dongmei Wang, and Carmen Sandi
July 1988, Archives of disease in childhood,
Fiona Hollis, and Ellen Siobhan Mitchell, and Carles Canto, and Dongmei Wang, and Carmen Sandi
April 2008, Journal of nutritional science and vitaminology,
Fiona Hollis, and Ellen Siobhan Mitchell, and Carles Canto, and Dongmei Wang, and Carmen Sandi
February 1985, Neurology,
Fiona Hollis, and Ellen Siobhan Mitchell, and Carles Canto, and Dongmei Wang, and Carmen Sandi
November 1972, Pathologie-biologie,
Fiona Hollis, and Ellen Siobhan Mitchell, and Carles Canto, and Dongmei Wang, and Carmen Sandi
January 2016, eNeuro,
Fiona Hollis, and Ellen Siobhan Mitchell, and Carles Canto, and Dongmei Wang, and Carmen Sandi
January 2015, PloS one,
Fiona Hollis, and Ellen Siobhan Mitchell, and Carles Canto, and Dongmei Wang, and Carmen Sandi
May 2017, Behavioural brain research,
Copied contents to your clipboard!