Fig. 6

HFD selectively exacerbates TBI-induced deficits in cognitive function. A TBI-SD mice exhibit a significant decrease in % spontaneous alterations in the Y Maze task when compared to Sham-SD counterparts, at 70 dpi; effects of which are independent of number of arm entries. B During the familiar phase of the novel object recognition (NOR), performed at 77 dpi, all four groups spend a similar % time spent with the familiar objects. However, TBI-SD mice spend significantly less % time with the novel object when compared to Sham-SD counterparts, at 78 dpi. Notably, TBI-HFD mice spend significantly less % time with the novel object, when compared to TBI-SD mice. C Compared to Sham-SD mice, TBI-SD mice take significantly longer to find the hidden platform (s) on acquisition day (AD)3 and AD4 of the acquisition phase of the Morris water maze (MWM) task, carried out on 80–83 dpi. D TBI-SD and Sham-HFD mice display a significant increase in time to find the escape platform (s) in the probe trial at 84 dpi, when compared to their Sham-SD counterparts. E The effect of TBI and HFD on swim speed (m/s). F TBI-SD mice utilize an increased % repetitive looping search strategy (58%) when compared to Sham-SD counterparts (0%). Notably, TBI-HFD mice demonstrate an increased % of repetitive looping search strategy (67%) when compared to TBI-SD counterparts (58%). * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001, **** p < 0.0001 vs Sham-SD; + p < 0.05 vs TBI-SD; #### p < 0.0001 vs Sham-HFD. N = 8–12 per group. Data expressed as mean ± SEM