Time-dependent impact of a high-fat diet on the intestinal barrier of male mice

Figure 4 Summary of the main results. The animals fed the high-fat diet for 10 wk (HF10) had overweight, increased goblet cell numerical density, and Mucin2 expression as a compensatory mechanism to prevent injury from the HFD. However, after 16 wk, HFD-fed mice remained overweight and had a greater body mass than the HF10 group but had a decreased goblet cell number and Mucin2 expression. Therefore, HF16 mice exhibited a completely disarranged intestinal ultrastructure, with damaged tight junctions and negative occludin immunostaining. Created with Biorender (www.biorender.com). HFD: High-fat diet.