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Cells Oct 2023Alzheimer's disease (AD)-the most common cause of dementia in the elderly-is characterized by progressive memory loss and β-amyloid protein (Aβ) accumulation in the... (Review)
Review
Alzheimer's disease (AD)-the most common cause of dementia in the elderly-is characterized by progressive memory loss and β-amyloid protein (Aβ) accumulation in the brain. Recently, loneliness was found to be a high risk factor for AD, and social isolation has become a major cause of AD. AD. Oxytocin (OXT), the main hormone involved in social bonding, has been implicated in social interactions, notably in building trust and relationships. Moreover, social isolation or social enrichment modulates the activation of neurons related to OXT. Recently, we reported that OXT reverses learning and memory impairment in AD animal models. Based on the limited number of studies currently available, OXT might be a therapeutic target for AD. Further studies are necessary in order to better understand the role of oxytocin in AD. In this review, we described the relationships between OXT, AD, and social interaction.
Topics: Animals; Humans; Aged; Alzheimer Disease; Oxytocin; Social Interaction; Amyloid beta-Peptides; Brain
PubMed: 37887270
DOI: 10.3390/cells12202426 -
The International Journal of... Nov 2023The clinical debut of schizophrenia is frequently a first episode of psychosis (FEP). As such, there is considerable interest in identifying associations between...
BACKGROUND
The clinical debut of schizophrenia is frequently a first episode of psychosis (FEP). As such, there is considerable interest in identifying associations between biological markers and clinical or cognitive characteristics that help predict the progression and outcome of FEP patients. Previous studies showed that high prolactin, low oxytocin, and high homocysteine are factors associated with FEP 6 months after diagnosis, at which point plasma levels were correlated with some clinical and cognitive characteristics.
METHODS
We reexamined 75 patients at 12 months after diagnosis to measure the evolution of these molecules and assess their association with clinical features.
RESULTS
At follow-up, FEP patients had lower prolactin levels than at baseline, and patients treated with risperidone or paliperidone had higher prolactin levels than patients who received other antipsychotic agents. By contrast, no changes in oxytocin and homocysteine plasma levels were observed between the baseline and follow-up. In terms of clinical features, we found that plasma prolactin and homocysteine levels were correlated with the severity of the psychotic symptoms in male FEP patients, suggesting that they might be factors associated with psychotic symptomatology but only in men. Together with oxytocin, these molecules may also be related to sustained attention, verbal ability, and working memory cognitive domains in FEP patients.
CONCLUSION
This study suggests that focusing on prolactin, oxytocin, and homocysteine at a FEP may help select adequate pharmacological treatments and develop new tools to improve the outcome of these patients, where sex should also be borne in mind.
Topics: Humans; Male; Cognition; Follow-Up Studies; Oxytocin; Prolactin; Psychotic Disorders; Homocysteine
PubMed: 37603404
DOI: 10.1093/ijnp/pyad051 -
Lancet (London, England) Dec 2023Oxytocin is effective in reducing labour duration but can be associated with fetal and maternal complications that could potentially be reduced by discontinuing the... (Randomized Controlled Trial)
Randomized Controlled Trial
BACKGROUND
Oxytocin is effective in reducing labour duration but can be associated with fetal and maternal complications that could potentially be reduced by discontinuing the treatment during labour. We aimed to assess the impact of discontinuing oxytocin during active labour on neonatal morbidity.
METHODS
STOPOXY was a multicentre, randomised, open-label, controlled, superiority trial conducted in 21 maternity units in France. Participants who received oxytocin before 4 cm dilation were randomly assigned 1:1 to either discontinuous oxytocin (oxytocin infusion stopped beyond a cervical dilation equal to or greater than 6 cm) or continuous oxytocin (administration of oxytocin continued until delivery). Randomisation was stratified by centre and parity. The primary outcome, neonatal morbidity, was assessed at birth using a composite variable defined by an umbilical arterial pH at birth less than 7·10, a base excess greater than 10 mmol/L, umbilical arterial lactates greater than 7 mmol/L, a 5-min Apgar score less than 7, or admission to the neonatal intensive care unit. Efficacy and safety was assessed in participants who were randomly assigned (excluding those who withdrew consent or were deemed ineligible after randomisation) and had reached a cervical dilation of at least 6 cm. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03991091.
FINDINGS
Of 2459 participants randomly assigned between Jan 13, 2020, and Jan 24, 2022, 2170 were eligible to receive the intervention and were included in the final modified intention-to-treat analysis. The primary outcome occurred for 102 (9·6%) of 1067 participants (95% CI 7·9 to 11·5) in the discontinuous oxytocin group and for 101 (9·2%) of 1103 participants (7·6 to 11·0) in the continuous oxytocin group; absolute difference 0·4% (95% CI -2·1 to 2·9); relative risk 1·0 (95% CI 0·8 to 1·4). There were no clinically significant differences in adverse events between the two groups of the safety population.
INTERPRETATION
Among participants receiving oxytocin in early labour, discontinuing oxytocin when the active phase is reached does not clinically or statistically significantly reduce neonatal morbidity compared with continuous oxytocin.
FUNDING
French Ministry of Health and the Département de la Recherche Clinique et du Développement de l'Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris.
Topics: Infant, Newborn; Pregnancy; Female; Humans; Oxytocin; Oxytocics; Labor, Induced; Labor, Obstetric; Morbidity
PubMed: 37952548
DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(23)01803-2 -
Comprehensive Psychoneuroendocrinology Nov 2023More than any other neuropeptide, oxytocin (OXT) is attracting the attention of neurobiologists, psychologists, psychiatrists, evolutionary biologists and even... (Review)
Review
More than any other neuropeptide, oxytocin (OXT) is attracting the attention of neurobiologists, psychologists, psychiatrists, evolutionary biologists and even economists. It is often called a "love hormone" due to its many prosocial functions described in vertebrates including mammals and humans, especially its ability to support "bonding behaviour". Oxytocin plays an important role in female reproduction, as it promotes labour during parturition, enables milk ejection in lactation and is essential for related reproductive behaviours. Therefore, it particularly attracts the interest of many female researchers. In this short narrative review I was invited to provide a personal overview on my scientific journey closely linked to my research on the brain OXT system and the adventures associated with starting my research career behind the Iron Curtain.
PubMed: 38108033
DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2023.100206 -
Nature Reviews. Neuroscience Dec 2023Many social behaviours are evolutionarily conserved and are essential for the healthy development of an individual. The neuropeptide oxytocin (OXT) is crucial for the... (Review)
Review
Many social behaviours are evolutionarily conserved and are essential for the healthy development of an individual. The neuropeptide oxytocin (OXT) is crucial for the fine-tuned regulation of social interactions in mammals. The advent and application of state-of-the-art methodological approaches that allow the activity of neuronal circuits involving OXT to be monitored and functionally manipulated in laboratory mammals have deepened our understanding of the roles of OXT in these behaviours. In this Review, we discuss how OXT promotes the sensory detection and evaluation of social cues, the subsequent approach and display of social behaviour, and the rewarding consequences of social interactions in selected reproductive and non-reproductive social behaviours. Social stressors - such as social isolation, exposure to social defeat or social trauma, and partner loss - are often paralleled by maladaptations of the OXT system, and restoring OXT system functioning can reinstate socio-emotional allostasis. Thus, the OXT system acts as a dynamic mediator of appropriate behavioural adaptations to environmental challenges by enhancing and reinforcing social salience and buffering social stress.
Topics: Animals; Humans; Oxytocin; Cues; Reinforcement, Psychology; Social Behavior; Mammals; Receptors, Oxytocin
PubMed: 37891399
DOI: 10.1038/s41583-023-00759-w -
European Journal of Endocrinology Aug 2023To investigate the response of anorexigenic oxytocin to food intake among adolescents and young adults with avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), a...
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the response of anorexigenic oxytocin to food intake among adolescents and young adults with avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), a restrictive eating disorder characterized by lack of interest in food or eating, sensory sensitivity to food, and/or fear of aversive consequences of eating, compared with healthy controls (HC).
DESIGN
Cross-sectional.
METHODS
A total of 109 participants (54 with ARFID spectrum and 55 HC) were instructed to eat a ∼400-kcal standardized mixed meal. We sampled serum oxytocin at fasting and at 30-, 60-, and 120-min postmeal. We tested the hypothesis that ARFID would show higher mean oxytocin levels across time points compared with HC using a mixed model ANOVA. We then used multivariate regression analysis to identify the impact of clinical characteristics (sex, age, and body mass index [BMI] percentile) on oxytocin levels in individuals with ARFID.
RESULTS
Participants with ARFID exhibited greater mean oxytocin levels at all time points compared with HC, and these differences remained significant even after controlling for sex and BMI percentile (P = .004). Clinical variables (sex, age, and BMI percentile) did not show any impact on fasting and postprandial oxytocin levels among individuals with ARFID.
CONCLUSIONS
Consistently high oxytocin levels might be involved in low appetite and sensory aversions to food, contributing to food avoidance in individuals with ARFID.
Topics: Adolescent; Young Adult; Humans; Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder; Feeding and Eating Disorders; Oxytocin; Cross-Sectional Studies; Eating; Retrospective Studies
PubMed: 37474111
DOI: 10.1093/ejendo/lvad087 -
Neurobiology of Stress Sep 2023Anxiety and depression are highly prevalent psychiatric disorders, affecting approximately 18% of the United States population. Evidence indicates that central oxytocin...
Anxiety and depression are highly prevalent psychiatric disorders, affecting approximately 18% of the United States population. Evidence indicates that central oxytocin mediates social cognition, social bonding, and social anxiety. Although it is well-established that oxytocin ameliorates social deficits, less is known about the therapeutic effects of oxytocin in non-social contexts. We hypothesized that positive effects of oxytocin in social contexts are attributable to intrinsic effects of oxytocin on neural systems that are related to emotion regulation. The present study investigated the effect of intracerebroventricular (ICV) oxytocin administration (i.e., central action) on anxiety- and depression-like behavior in C57Bl/6J mice using non-social tests. Male and female mice received an ICV infusion of vehicle or oxytocin (100, 200, or 500 ng), then were tested in the elevated zero maze (for anxiety-like behavior) and the tail suspension test (for depression-like behavior). Oxytocin dose-dependently increased open zone occupancy and entries in the elevated zero maze and reduced immobility duration in the tail suspension test in both sexes. Oxytocin decreased anxiety and depression-like behavior in male and female mice. The observed effect of oxytocin on anxiolytic-like behavior appeared to be driven by the males. Given the smaller anxiolytic-like effect of oxytocin in the female mice and the established interaction between oxytocin and reproductive hormones (estrogen and progesterone), we also explored whether oxytocin sensitivity in females varies across estrous cycle phases and in ovariectomized females that were or were not supplemented with estrogen or progesterone. Oxytocin reduced anxiety-like behavior in female mice in proestrus/estrus, ovariectomized females (supplemented or not with estrogen or progesterone), but not females in metestrus/diestrus. Additionally, oxytocin reduced depression-like behavior in all groups tested with slight differences across the various hormonal statuses. These results suggest that the effect of oxytocin in depression- and anxiety-like behavior in mice can be influenced by sex and hormonal status.
PubMed: 37706061
DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2023.100567 -
Comprehensive Psychoneuroendocrinology May 2024Scientific inquiry and methodology are based on third person objectivity. Yet, as humans we experience everything through our first-person lens and second-person...
Scientific inquiry and methodology are based on third person objectivity. Yet, as humans we experience everything through our first-person lens and second-person relational learning. The purpose of this review is to share the journey of discoveries about science and oxytocin from this author's unique and diverse perspective. Hormones are signaling molecules and long distant messengers required to regulate an organism's physiology and behavior. Oxytocin has taken the lead as the most investigated neurohormone that modulates social cognition, influences parenting behaviors, facilitates within or across-species bonding, and even biologically buffers against stressors such as isolation. Our increasing understanding that social connection, community belonging, and trust in others influence both physical and mental health outcomes, has led to numerous intervention and treatment oxytocin studies across a myriad of conditions. No longer just a way to facilitate female reproduction and lactation, oxytocin is now viewed as the "social influencer" that affects not just women but also men along with its closely related neurohormone, vasopressin. This review uses the narrative lens to illustrate how scientific lineage shapes what we study and how investigating oxytocin has been a microcosm to macrocosm metaphor for our collective social learning as a scientific community.
PubMed: 38550559
DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2024.100230 -
Clinical Psychopharmacology and... Aug 2023The purpose of this study was to compare the plasma oxytocin levels of children with separation anxiety disorder (SAD) and their mothers with those of healthy controls...
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to compare the plasma oxytocin levels of children with separation anxiety disorder (SAD) and their mothers with those of healthy controls and to examine the relationship between oxytocin levels and changes in anxiety three months after treatment.
METHODS
Thirty children aged 6-12 years with SAD, 30 healthy children, and mothers of both groups were included in the study. All cases were evaluated with semi-structured interview and Clinical Global Impression Scale. All cases and mothers of both groups filled out scales to determine various psychological variables (anxiety, depression, and attachment). The patient group children were re-evaluated with their mothers after three months, following treatment. Plasma oxytocin levels were evaluated from both groups and their mothers before and after treatment.
RESULTS
The plasma oxytocin levels of mothers of children with SAD were significantly lower than those of the controls and increased significantly three months after their children were treated. No difference was found between the plasma oxytocin levels of children with SAD and the control group, and these children's levels decreased significantly after treatment. A positive correlation was found between changes in the plasma oxytocin levels of children with SAD and the change in anxiety scores.
CONCLUSION
Our results show that the change in plasma oxytocin levels in both children and mothers after treatment suggests that oxytocin may be important in the etiology of SAD.
PubMed: 37424418
DOI: 10.9758/cpn.22.1008 -
Comprehensive Psychoneuroendocrinology Nov 2023In this article, I am going through my scientific and personal journey using my work on oxytocin as a compass. I recount how my scientific questions were shaped over the... (Review)
Review
In this article, I am going through my scientific and personal journey using my work on oxytocin as a compass. I recount how my scientific questions were shaped over the years, and how I studied them through the lens of different fields ranging from linguistics and neuroscience to comparative and population genomics in a wide range of vertebrate species. I explain how my evolutionary findings and proposal for a universal gene nomenclature in the oxytocin-vasotocin ligand and receptor families have impacted relevant fields, and how my studies in the oxytocin and vasotocin system in songbirds, humans and non-human primates have led me to now be testing intranasal oxytocin as a candidate treatment for speech deficits. I also discuss my projects on the neurobiology of dance and where oxytocin fits in the picture of studying speech and dance in parallel. Lastly, I briefly communicate the challenges I have been facing as a woman and an international scholar in science and academia, and my personal ways to overcome them.
PubMed: 38108035
DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2023.100193