High-intensity exercise improves cognitive function and hippocampal brain-derived neurotrophic factor expression in obese mice maintained on high-fat diet

We wanted to find the intensity of exercise that could increase brain- derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) expression and improve spatial learning and memory without dietary control. C57BL/6 mice were fed a 60% high-fat diet (HFD) for 6 weeks to induce obesity. Obesity-induced mice were exercised on a treadmill for 8 weeks at various exercise in-tensities: HFD-control (n=7), HFD-low-intensity exercise (HFD-LIE, n= 7, 12 m/min for 75 min), HFD-middle intensity exercise (HFD-MIE, n=7, 15 m/min for 60 min) and HFD-high-intensity exercise (HFD-HIE, n=7, 18 m/min for 50 min). One week before sacrificing mice, the Morris wa-ter maze test was performed, and the hippocampus was immediately removed after sacrifice. The expression levels of BDNF (encoded by the gene Bdnf) and tropomyosin receptor kinase B (TrkB) in the hippo-campus were analyzed by quantitative real-time reverse transcription- polymerase chain reaction and western blot. In the last probe test of the Morris water maze test, occupancy in the target quadrant was sig-nificantly higher in the HFD-HIE group (P<0.05) than in the other groups. In addition, mRNA expression from the Bdnf promoter region was found to be significantly higher in the HFD-HIE group than in the other groups (P<0.001). Although there were some differences in the levels of signifi-cance, the expression levels of both BDNF and TrkB were significantly higher in the HFD-HIE group than in the other groups. Therefore, rela-tively high-intensity aerobic exercise can resist the adverse effects of a high-fat diet on the brain without dietary control. Keywords: Obesity, High-fat diet, Exercise, Hippocampus, Brain-derived neurotrophic factor, Spatial learning