['Studies conducted in adult rats have shown that increased fat intake affects brain energy homeostasis and stress response. The neuroendocrine circuits controlling the aforementioned functions continue to mature during puberty. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether post-weaning high-fat consumption can modify the endocrine responses of pubertal rats to an acute stress.', 'Weaning male and female Wistar rats on postnatal day (P) 22 were fed either a high-fat (HF; 45% calories from fat) or a control (10% calories from fat) diet and were sacrificed on the individual day of puberty onset (between P35 and P42) under basal conditions or 4 h after swimming stress. Plasma insulin, leptin and corticosterone levels were determined by radioimmunoassay and the respective receptors in the hypothalamus and hippocampus were determined by Western blot analysis.', 'Stressed HF-fed males showed a smaller increase in plasma insulin levels than chow-fed males. Their leptin receptor levels were reduced in the hypothalamus, but not in the hippocampus, and their glucocorticoid receptor levels were increased in the hypothalamus compared to stressed chow-fed males. HF-fed females were nonresponsive to stress-induced alterations in plasma glucose and corticosterone levels, as well as to hippocampal insulin receptors following stress. Several sex differences were also revealed in the endocrine responses of HF-fed animals following stress.'] Does high-fat feeding influence the endocrine responses of pubertal rats to an acute stress?