Flaxseed Administration Improves Affective and Cognitive Functions in Fructose Diet Wistar Rats

Elkaoui, Habiba; Chakit, Miloud; Mesfioui, Abdelhalem; Elhessni, Aboubaker

doi:10.21608/ejvs.2025.369553.2713

Flaxseed Administration Improves Affective and Cognitive Functions in Fructose Diet Wistar Rats

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

¹ Biology and Health Laboratory, Faculty of Sciences, Ibn Tofail University, Kenitra, Morocco.

² Biology and Health Laboratory, Faculty of Science, Ibn Tofail University, Kenitra, Morocco.

10.21608/ejvs.2025.369553.2713

Abstract

Hyperglycidic and hyperlipidic diets contribute to the outset of obesity, which is a complex multifactorial disease leading to pathological alterations in terms of somatic and psychological health. Medicinal plants are widely used for the treatment of this pathology. The objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of flaxseed supplementation on affective and cognitive behaviors in fructose diet Wistar rats. 40 male Wistar rats, aged one month, were distributed into four groups of 10 rats: 1. control rats; 2. control rats supplemented with flaxseed (25% flaxseed); 3. rats on a fructose diet (23%); 4. rats with fructose enriched in flaxseed (23% fructose + 25% flaxseed). These rats were fed with fructose for 2 months. Behavioral tests including Open Field, Elevated Plus Maze, and Forced Swim were carried out during the treatment period. Biochemical parameters for oxidative stress (lipid peroxidation and nitric oxide) were investigated from the prefrontal cortex, while systemic glycemia, triglycerides, and cholesterol were evaluated from the blood plasma after two months of treatment. Our results showed that the level of anxiety was not affected by fructose intake. However, the measurement of depression by the forced swim test shows that fructose induces depressive-like behaviour and also increases the oxidative stress markers (lipid peroxidation and nitric oxide) in the prefrontal cortex of the Wistar rats. Fructose supplemented with flaxseed reduced the anxiety level and oxidative stress in rats. Our data indicate that flaxseed administration improves affective and cognitive behavior, possibly via decreasing oxidative stress resulting from the high-fructose diet.

Keywords