A ketogenic diet reduces age-induced chronic neuroinflammation in mice

• Published in: bioRxiv 2023-12
• Main Authors: Nomura, Mitsunori, Natalia Faraj Murad, Madhavan, Sidharth S, Eap, Brenda, Garcia, Thelma Y, Carlos Galicia Aguirre, Verdin, Eric, Ellerby, Lisa, Furman, David, Newman, John C
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aging; Astrocytes; Bone marrow; Brain; Esters; Fasting; Flow cytometry; G protein-coupled receptors; Gene expression; High fat diet; Histone deacetylase; Inflammasomes; Inflammation; Ketogenesis; Ketones; Lipopolysaccharides; Low carbohydrate diet; Lymphocytes T; Macrophages; Microglia; Signal transduction
• DOI: 10.1101/2023.12.01.569598

Beta-hydroxybutyrate (BHB) is a ketone body synthesized during fasting or strenuous exercise. Our previous study demonstrated that a cyclic ketogenic diet (KD), which induces BHB levels similar to fasting every other week, reduces midlife mortality and improves memory in aging mice. BHB actively regulates gene expression and inflammatory activation through non-energetic signaling pathways. Neither of these activities has been well-characterized in the brain and they may represent mechanisms by which BHB affects brain function during aging. First, we analyzed hepatic gene expression in an aging KD-treated mouse cohort using bulk RNA-seq. In addition to the downregulation of TOR pathway activity, cyclic KD reduces inflammatory gene expression in the liver. We observed via flow cytometry that KD also modulates age-related systemic T cell functions. Next, we investigated whether BHB affects brain cells transcriptionally in vitro. Gene expression analysis in primary human brain cells (microglia, astrocytes, neurons) using RNA-seq shows that BHB causes a mild level of inflammation in all three cell types. However, BHB inhibits the more pronounced LPS-induced inflammatory gene activation in microglia. Furthermore, we confirmed that BHB similarly reduces LPS-induced inflammation in primary mouse microglia and bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs). BHB is recognized as an inhibitor of histone deacetylase (HDAC), an inhibitor of NLRP3 inflammasome, and an agonist of the GPCR Hcar2. Nevertheless, in microglia, BHB's anti-inflammatory effects are independent of these known mechanisms. Finally, we examined the brain gene expression of 12-month-old male mice fed with one-week and one-year cyclic KD. While a one-week KD increases inflammatory signaling, a one-year cyclic KD reduces neuroinflammation induced by aging. In summary, our findings demonstrate that BHB mitigates the microglial response to inflammatory stimuli, like LPS, possibly leading to decreased chronic inflammation in the brain after long-term KD treatment in aging mice.Competing Interest StatementJ.C.N. and E.V. are co-founders, hold stock, and co-inventors on patents licensed to BHB Therapeutics, Ltd., and Selah Therapeutics Ltd., which develop ketone esters for consumer and therapeutic use.