High fat diet produces brain insulin resistance, synaptodendritic abnormalities and altered behavior in mice

• HFD leads to failed activation of Akt/mTOR/GSK3β pathways by insulin in cortex.
• HFD leads to increased AMPK and correlated decreased IPMK levels.
• HFD is associated with increased IRS1-pS616 pathological neurites.
• HFD is associated with decreased PSD-95 and dendritic spine density.
• HFD impairs spatial working memory in mice.

Insulin resistance and other features of the metabolic syndrome are increasingly recognized for their effects on cognitive health. To ascertain mechanisms by which this occurs, we fed mice a very high fat diet (60% kcal by fat) for 17 days or a moderate high fat diet (HFD, 45% kcal by fat) for 8 weeks and examined changes in brain insulin signaling responses, hippocampal synaptodendritic protein expression, and spatial working memory. Compared to normal control diet mice, cerebral cortex tissues of HFD mice were insulin-resistant as evidenced by failed activation of Akt, S6 and GSK3β with ex-vivo insulin stimulation. Importantly, we found that expression of brain IPMK, which is necessary for mTOR/Akt signaling, remained decreased in HFD mice upon activation of AMPK. HFD mouse hippocampus exhibited increased expression of serine-phosphorylated insulin receptor substrate 1 (IRS1-pS616), a marker of insulin resistance, as well as decreased expression of PSD-95, a scaffolding protein enriched in post-synaptic densities, and synaptopodin, an actin-associated protein enriched in spine apparatuses. Spatial working memory was impaired as assessed by decreased spontaneous alternation in a T-maze. These findings indicate that HFD is associated with telencephalic insulin resistance and deleterious effects on synaptic integrity and cognitive behaviors.