Grant: Project Grant

Obesity and associated metabolic dysfunction increases the risk of depression. Atypical depression, the form more commonly observed in obese individuals, is linked to brain inflammation and is predictive of increased food craving, overeating and weight gain. Obesity is coupled to various structural and functional changes in the brain that are remarkably similar to those observed in depressive disorders, such as region-specific increases in cell density and compromised neural connectivity and excitability. Several lines of evidence suggest that prolonged inflammation caused by poor dietary lifestyle and inactivity and resulting metabolic consequences are required for such outcomes. Rodent models of obesity exhibiting depressive- and anxiety-like behaviors are invaluable for uncovering the immunometabolic and neural mechanisms involved. The overall objective of our research is to determine the nature of neural changes during diet-induced obesity development and to identify which brain pathways underlie anxiety and depressive behavior and increased motivation for food caused by poor diet and excess weight gain.