Background: Sepsis survivors are left with significant cognitive and behavioral impairments after discharge, but research on the relevant mechanisms and interventions remains lacking. TGR5 plays a neuroprotective role in many neurologic disease models through different mechanisms. To date, no studies have assessed the effects of TGR5 on neuroinflammation or cognitive or behavioral changes in sepsis models.Methods: A total of 267 eight-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rats were used in this study. Sepsis was induced by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP). All animals received volume resuscitation. The rats were given TGR5 CRISPR oligonucleotide intracerebroventricularly 48 hours before CLP surgery. INT-777 was administered intranasally 1 hour after CLP, and the cAMP inhibitor SQ22536 was administered intracerebroventricularly 1 hour after CLP. Survival rate, bodyweight change, clinical score, neurobehavioral tests, western blot, and immunofluorescence staining were performed. The cognitive function of rats was measured by Morris water maze during 15-20 days after CLP.Results: The expression of TGR5 in the rat hippocampus was upregulated and peaked at 3 days after CLP. The survival rate of rats after CLP was less than 50%, and the growth rate in terms of weight was significantly decreased, while these changes were not improved by INT-777 treatment. However, INT-777 treatment reduced the clinical scores of rats at 24 hours after CLP. On day 15 and later, the surviving mice completed a series of behavioral tests. CLP rats showed spatial and memory deficits and anxiety-like behaviors, and INT-777 treatment significantly improved these effects. Mechanistically, immunofluorescence analysis showed that INT-777 treatment reduced the number of microglia in the hippocampus, neutrophil infiltration and the expression of inflammatory factors after CLP in rats. Moreover, INT-777 treatment significantly increased the expression of TGR5, cAMP, p-PKA, and p-CREB and downregulated the expression of IL-1β, IL-6 and TNF-α. CRISPR-mediated TGR5 knockdown and SQ22536 treatment abolished the neuroprotective effects of TGR5 activation after CLP.Conclusion: This study demonstrates that INT-777 treatment reduced neuroinflammation and microglial cell activation, and then improved cognitive impairment in the experimental sepsis rats. TGR5 has translational potential as a therapeutic target to improve neurological outcomes in sepsis survivors.