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Objective:

To examine the impact of two diets differing in fat content and of wheel-running exercise on body mass.

Methods:

A total of 32 female C57BL/6J mice were assigned to either a high-fat (HF, 41% of dietary energy as fat) or low-fat (LF, 11% of dietary energy as fat) diet (16 per diet, individually housed). Eight mice from each diet group were housed with running wheels. Non-running mice were housed in similar cages, without wheels. Total cage activity (including non-exercise physical activity+ wheel running) and sleep time were also measured using an infra-red-sensing device. Oestrus stage of the wheel-running mice was assessed daily for 17 days.

Results:

After 8 weeks, HF mice were significantly heavier than LF mice (P= 0.004), but there was no detectable difference in body fat mass. Wheel-running mice tended to have a lower body mass than non-running controls (P= 0.056). Voluntary cage activity was …