Neurochemical and electrophysiological deficits in the ventral hippocampus and selective behavioral alterations caused by high-fat diet in female C57BL/6 mice.

•Five weeks of high-fat diet (HFD) intake increases anxiety in female C57BL/6 mice.•Short-term object recognition memory is intact after 5weeks of HFD intake.•Six-week HFD intake alters prefrontocortical/ventral hippocampal (vHIP) monoamines.•Eleven to twelve weeks of HFD consumption reduces synaptic plasticity in the vHIP.•Overall, HFD intake alters specific behaviors and linked monoamines in female mice.