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Thienel M, Heinrichs M, Fischer S, Ott V, Born J, Hallschmid M. Oxytocin's impact on social face processing is stronger in homosexual than heterosexual men. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2014; 39:194-203. [PMID: 24120269 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.09.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2013] [Revised: 09/11/2013] [Accepted: 09/14/2013] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Oxytocin is an evolutionarily highly preserved neuropeptide that contributes to the regulation of social interactions including the processing of facial stimuli. We hypothesized that its improving effect on social approach behavior depends on perceived sexual features and, consequently, on sexual orientation. In 19 homosexual and 18 heterosexual healthy young men, we investigated the acute effect of intranasal oxytocin (24IU) and placebo, respectively, on the processing of social stimuli as assessed by ratings of trustworthiness, attractiveness and approachability for male and female faces. Faces were each presented with a neutral, a happy, and an angry expression, respectively. In heterosexual subjects, the effect of oxytocin administration was restricted to a decrease in ratings of trustworthiness for angry female faces (p<0.02). In contrast, in homosexual men oxytocin administration robustly increased ratings of attractiveness and approachability for male faces regardless of the facial expression (all p ≤ 0.05), as well as ratings of approachability for happy female faces (p<0.01). Results indicate that homosexual in comparison to heterosexual men display higher sensitivity to oxytocin's enhancing impact on social approach tendencies, suggesting that differences in sexual orientation imply differential oxytocinergic signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthias Thienel
- Department of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen 72076, Germany
| | - Markus Heinrichs
- Department of Psychology, Laboratory for Biological and Personality Psychology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg 79104, Germany; Freiburg Brain Imaging Center, University Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Freiburg 79106, Germany
| | - Stefan Fischer
- Department of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen 72076, Germany
| | - Volker Ott
- Department of Neuroendocrinology, University of Lübeck, Lübeck 23562, Germany
| | - Jan Born
- Department of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen 72076, Germany
| | - Manfred Hallschmid
- Department of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen 72076, Germany.
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252
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Rilling JK, DeMarco AC, Hackett PD, Chen X, Gautam P, Stair S, Haroon E, Thompson R, Ditzen B, Patel R, Pagnoni G. Sex differences in the neural and behavioral response to intranasal oxytocin and vasopressin during human social interaction. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2014; 39:237-248. [PMID: 24157401 PMCID: PMC3842401 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.09.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 241] [Impact Index Per Article: 24.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2013] [Revised: 09/03/2013] [Accepted: 09/19/2013] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Both oxytocin (OT) and vasopressin (AVP) are known to modulate social behavior, and dysfunction in both systems has been postulated as a potential cause of certain psychiatric disorders that involve social behavioral deficits. In particular, there is growing interest in intranasal OT as a potential treatment for certain psychiatric disorders, and preliminary pre-clinical and clinical studies suggest efficacy in alleviating some of the associated symptoms. However, the vast majority of research participants in these studies have been male, and there is evidence for sexually differentiated effects of nonapeptides in both humans and non-human animals. To date, no study has investigated the effect of intranasal OT on brain function in human males and females within the same paradigm. Previously, in a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind fMRI study, we reported effects of intranasal OT and AVP on behavior and brain activity of human males as they played an interactive social game known as the Prisoner's Dilemma Game. Here, we present findings from an identical study in human females, and compare these with our findings from males. Overall, we find that both behavioral and neural responses to intranasal OT and AVP are highly sexually differentiated. In women, AVP increased conciliatory behavior, and both OT and AVP caused women to treat computer partners more like humans. In men, AVP increased reciprocation of cooperation from both human and computer partners. However, no specific drug effects on behavior were shared between men and women. During cooperative interactions, both OT and AVP increased brain activity in men within areas rich in OT and AVP receptors and in areas playing a key role in reward, social bonding, arousal and memory (e.g., the striatum, basal forebrain, insula, amygdala and hippocampus), whereas OT and AVP either had no effect or in some cases actually decreased brain activity in these regions in women. OT treatment rendered neural responses of males more similar to responses of females in the placebo group and vice versa, raising the prospect of an inverted u-shaped dose response to central OT levels. These findings emphasize the need to fully characterize the effects of intranasal OT and AVP in both males and females and at multiple doses before widespread clinical application will be warranted.
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Affiliation(s)
- James K Rilling
- Department of Anthropology, Emory University, United States; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, United States; Center for Behavioral Neuroscience, Emory University, United States; Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, United States; Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, United States.
| | | | | | - Xu Chen
- Department of Anthropology, Emory University, United States; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, United States
| | - Pritam Gautam
- Department of Anthropology, Emory University, United States
| | - Sabrina Stair
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, United States
| | - Ebrahim Haroon
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, United States
| | | | - Beate Ditzen
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, United States; Center for Behavioral Neuroscience, Emory University, United States; Department of Psychology, University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Rajan Patel
- Department of Biostatistics, Emory University, United States
| | - Giuseppe Pagnoni
- Department of Neural, Biomedical, and Metabolic Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Italy
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253
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Ellingsen DM, Wessberg J, Chelnokova O, Olausson H, Laeng B, Leknes S. In touch with your emotions: oxytocin and touch change social impressions while others' facial expressions can alter touch. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2014; 39:11-20. [PMID: 24275000 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.09.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 81] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2013] [Revised: 09/13/2013] [Accepted: 09/14/2013] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Interpersonal touch is frequently used for communicating emotions, strengthen social bonds and to give others pleasure. The neuropeptide oxytocin increases social interest, improves recognition of others' emotions, and it is released during touch. Here, we investigated how oxytocin and gentle human touch affect social impressions of others, and vice versa, how others' facial expressions and oxytocin affect touch experience. In a placebo-controlled crossover study using intranasal oxytocin, 40 healthy volunteers viewed faces with different facial expressions along with concomitant gentle human touch or control machine touch, while pupil diameter was monitored. After each stimulus pair, participants rated the perceived friendliness and attractiveness of the faces, perceived facial expression, or pleasantness and intensity of the touch. After intranasal oxytocin treatment, gentle human touch had a sharpening effect on social evaluations of others relative to machine touch, such that frowning faces were rated as less friendly and attractive, whereas smiling faces were rated as more friendly and attractive. Conversely, smiling faces increased, whereas frowning faces reduced, pleasantness of concomitant touch - the latter effect being stronger for human touch. Oxytocin did not alter touch pleasantness. Pupillary responses, a measure of attentional allocation, were larger to human touch than to equally intense machine touch, especially when paired with a smiling face. Overall, our results point to mechanisms important for human affiliation and social bond formation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dan-Mikael Ellingsen
- Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, The Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, S-413 45 Gothenburg, Sweden; Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, 0317 Oslo, Norway.
| | - Johan Wessberg
- Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, The Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, S-413 45 Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Olga Chelnokova
- Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, 0317 Oslo, Norway
| | - Håkan Olausson
- Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, The Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, S-413 45 Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Bruno Laeng
- Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, 0317 Oslo, Norway
| | - Siri Leknes
- Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology, The Sahlgrenska Academy at the University of Gothenburg, S-413 45 Gothenburg, Sweden; Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, 0317 Oslo, Norway
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254
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Striepens N, Matusch A, Kendrick KM, Mihov Y, Elmenhorst D, Becker B, Lang M, Coenen HH, Maier W, Hurlemann R, Bauer A. Oxytocin enhances attractiveness of unfamiliar female faces independent of the dopamine reward system. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2014; 39:74-87. [PMID: 24275006 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.09.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2013] [Revised: 09/25/2013] [Accepted: 09/25/2013] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Evidence from animal studies suggests that the social attraction and bonding effects of the neuropeptide oxytocin (OXT) are mediated by its modulation of dopamine (DA) release in brain reward centers, but this has not yet been demonstrated in humans. DA release can be measured by positron emission tomography (PET) using the radioligand [11C]raclopride. Its binding to DA D2 receptors (D2R) is sensitive and reciprocally related to endogenous DA, especially in the striatum. In a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled within-subjects trial on 18 adult male volunteers we combined [11C]raclopride PET and a facial attractiveness rating task to establish whether intranasal OXT (24 IU) increased both the perceived attractiveness of unfamiliar female faces and striatal DA release compared with placebo administration. While our behavioral data confirmed that subjects rated unfamiliar female faces as more attractive following OXT treatment, and this correlated with an increased perfusion rate in the striatum, there was no evidence for altered [11C]raclopride binding in the striatum or pallidum. Instead under OXT we rather observed an increased [11C]raclopride binding and reduced perfusion rate in subregions of the right dorsomedial prefrontal gyrus and superior parietal gyrus. The absence of OXT effects on dopamine release and D2 receptors in brain reward centers, despite increased striatal activity, implies that the peptide may facilitate perceived attraction via non-dopaminergic actions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nadine Striepens
- Departments of Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany
| | - Andreas Matusch
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine, INM-2, Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
| | - Keith M Kendrick
- Key Laboratory for Neuroinformation, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China (UESTC), 610054 Chengdu, PR China
| | - Yoan Mihov
- Departments of Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany
| | - David Elmenhorst
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine, INM-2, Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
| | - Benjamin Becker
- Departments of Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany
| | - Markus Lang
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine, INM-5, Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
| | - Heinz H Coenen
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine, INM-5, Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Maier
- Departments of Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany; German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), 53175 Bonn, Germany
| | - René Hurlemann
- Departments of Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, University of Bonn, 53105 Bonn, Germany.
| | - Andreas Bauer
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine, INM-2, Forschungszentrum Jülich, 52425 Jülich, Germany; Department of Neurology, Medical Faculty, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany
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255
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Gordon I, Vander Wyk BC, Bennett RH, Cordeaux C, Lucas MV, Eilbott JA, Zagoory-Sharon O, Leckman JF, Feldman R, Pelphrey KA. Oxytocin enhances brain function in children with autism. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2013; 110:20953-8. [PMID: 24297883 PMCID: PMC3876263 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1312857110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 216] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Following intranasal administration of oxytocin (OT), we measured, via functional MRI, changes in brain activity during judgments of socially (Eyes) and nonsocially (Vehicles) meaningful pictures in 17 children with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder (ASD). OT increased activity in the striatum, the middle frontal gyrus, the medial prefrontal cortex, the right orbitofrontal cortex, and the left superior temporal sulcus. In the striatum, nucleus accumbens, left posterior superior temporal sulcus, and left premotor cortex, OT increased activity during social judgments and decreased activity during nonsocial judgments. Changes in salivary OT concentrations from baseline to 30 min postadministration were positively associated with increased activity in the right amygdala and orbitofrontal cortex during social vs. nonsocial judgments. OT may thus selectively have an impact on salience and hedonic evaluations of socially meaningful stimuli in children with ASD, and thereby facilitate social attunement. These findings further the development of a neurophysiological systems-level understanding of mechanisms by which OT may enhance social functioning in children with ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ilanit Gordon
- Center for Translational Developmental Neuroscience, Yale Child Study Center, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
- Department of Psychology, and
| | - Brent C. Vander Wyk
- Center for Translational Developmental Neuroscience, Yale Child Study Center, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
| | - Randi H. Bennett
- Center for Translational Developmental Neuroscience, Yale Child Study Center, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
| | - Cara Cordeaux
- Center for Translational Developmental Neuroscience, Yale Child Study Center, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
| | - Molly V. Lucas
- Center for Translational Developmental Neuroscience, Yale Child Study Center, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
| | - Jeffrey A. Eilbott
- Center for Translational Developmental Neuroscience, Yale Child Study Center, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
| | - Orna Zagoory-Sharon
- The Gonda Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan 52900, Israel; and
| | - James F. Leckman
- Yale Child Study Center, School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
| | - Ruth Feldman
- Department of Psychology, and
- The Gonda Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan 52900, Israel; and
- Yale Child Study Center, School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
| | - Kevin A. Pelphrey
- Center for Translational Developmental Neuroscience, Yale Child Study Center, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520
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256
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Nguyen MN, Nishijo M, Nguyen AT, Bor A, Nakamura T, Hori E, Nakagawa H, Ono T, Nishijo H. Effects of maternal exposure to 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin on parvalbumin- and calbindin-immunoreactive neurons in the limbic system and superior colliculus in rat offspring. Toxicology 2013; 314:125-34. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tox.2013.09.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2013] [Revised: 09/10/2013] [Accepted: 09/12/2013] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
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257
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Colonnello V, Chen FS, Panksepp J, Heinrichs M. Oxytocin sharpens self-other perceptual boundary. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2013; 38:2996-3002. [PMID: 24064220 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.08.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2013] [Revised: 08/22/2013] [Accepted: 08/27/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Recent cross-species research has demonstrated that the neurohormone oxytocin plays a key role in social interaction and cognitive processing of others' emotions. Whereas oxytocin has been shown to influence social approach, trust, and bond formation, a potential role of the oxytocinergic system in blurring or enhancing the ability to differentiate between one's self and other's related stimuli is unknown. Thus, we investigated whether oxytocin affects the ability to differentiate between self- and other-related stimuli using a facial morphing procedure. In a placebo-controlled, double-blind study, 44 healthy men received either 24 IU oxytocin or placebo intranasally. After 45 min, we measured participants' ability to differentiate their own identity while viewing a photo of themselves morphing into the photo of an unfamiliar face. Oxytocin administration shortened the latency of self-other differentiation. Additionally, when asked to rate the pleasantness of the unmorphed photos, the oxytocin-treated participants rated their own and the unfamiliar face as comparably pleasant. Oxytocin increases the ability to recognize differences between self and others and increases positive evaluation of others. Our findings are consistent with the hypothesis that impaired oxytocin signaling may be involved in the development and manifestation of human psychopathologies in which self-recognition is altered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Colonnello
- Department of Psychology, Laboratory for Biological and Personality Psychology, University of Freiburg, D-79104 Freiburg, Germany.
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258
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Kirk HE, Hocking DR, Riby DM, Cornish KM. Linking social behaviour and anxiety to attention to emotional faces in Williams syndrome. RESEARCH IN DEVELOPMENTAL DISABILITIES 2013; 34:4608-4616. [PMID: 24210355 DOI: 10.1016/j.ridd.2013.09.042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2013] [Revised: 09/25/2013] [Accepted: 09/25/2013] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
The neurodevelopmental disorder Williams syndrome (WS) has been associated with a social phenotype of hypersociability, non-social anxiety and an unusual attraction to faces. The current study uses eye tracking to explore attention allocation to emotionally expressive faces. Eye gaze and behavioural measures of anxiety and social reciprocity were investigated in adolescents and adults with WS when compared to typically developing individuals of comparable verbal mental age (VMA) and chronological age (CA). Results showed significant associations between high levels of behavioural anxiety and attention allocation away from the eye regions of threatening facial expressions in WS. The results challenge early claims of a unique attraction to the eyes in WS and suggest that individual differences in anxiety may mediate the allocation of attention to faces in WS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah E Kirk
- School of Psychology and Psychiatry, Monash University, Australia.
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259
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Oxytocin administration alters HPA reactivity in the context of parent-infant interaction. Eur Neuropsychopharmacol 2013; 23:1724-31. [PMID: 23906646 DOI: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2013.06.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2013] [Revised: 06/11/2013] [Accepted: 06/23/2013] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
The neuropeptide oxytocin (OT) and the steroid cortisol (CT) have each been implicated in complex social behavior, including parenting, and one mechanism by which OT is thought to exert its pro-social effects is by attenuating hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) response to stress. Yet, no study to date has tested whether OT functions to reduce CT production in the context of the parent-infant attachment. In the current study, we examined the effects of intranasal OT administered to the parent on parent's and infant's CT levels following parent-child interaction that included a social stressor. Utilizing a double-blind, placebo-controlled, within-subject design, 35 fathers and their 5-month-old infants were observed in a face-to-face-still-face paradigm twice, one week apart. Interactions were micro-coded for social synchrony, and salivary CT were repeatedly assessed from parent and child. Results showed that OT increased fathers' overall CT response to the stress paradigm. Furthermore, OT altered infants' physiological and behavioral response as a function of parent-infant synchrony. Among infants experiencing high parent-infant synchrony, OT elevated infant HPA reactivity and increased infant social gaze to the father while father maintained a still-face. On the other hand, among infants experiencing low social synchrony, parental OT reduced the infant's stress response and diminished social gaze toward the unavailable father. Results are consistent with the "social salience" hypothesis and highlight that OT effects on human social functioning are not uniform and depend on the individual's attachment history and social skills. Our findings call to further investigate the effects of OT administration within developmental contexts, particularly the parent-infant relationship.
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260
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Intranasal oxytocin effects on social cognition: a critique. Brain Res 2013; 1580:69-77. [PMID: 24239931 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2013.11.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 73] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2013] [Revised: 11/01/2013] [Accepted: 11/07/2013] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
The last decade has seen a large number of published findings supporting the hypothesis that intranasally delivered oxytocin (OT) can enhance the processing of social stimuli and regulate social emotion-related behaviors such as trust, memory, fidelity, and anxiety. The use of nasal spray for administering OT in behavioral research has become a standard method, but many questions still exist regarding its action. OT is a peptide that cannot cross the blood-brain barrier, and it has yet to be shown that it does indeed reach the brain when delivered intranasally. Given the evidence, it seems highly likely that OT does affect behavior when delivered as a nasal spray. These effects may be driven by at least three possible mechanisms. First, the intranasally delivered OT may diffuse directly into the CNS where it directly engages OT receptors. Second, the intranasally delivered OT may trigger increased central release via an indirect peripheral mechanism. And third, the indirect peripheral effects may directly lead to behavioral effects via some mechanism other than increased central release. Although intranasally delivered OT likely affects behavior, there are conflicting reports as to the exact nature of those behavioral changes: some studies suggest that OT effects are not always "pro-social" and others suggest effects on social behaviors are due to a more general anxiolytic effect. In this critique, we draw from work in healthy human populations and the animal literature to review the mechanistic aspects of intranasal OT delivery, and to discuss intranasal OT effects on social cognition and behavior. We conclude that future work should control carefully for anxiolytic and gender effects, which could underlie inconsistencies in the existing literature. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled Oxytocin and Social Behav.
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261
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Israel S, Hart E, Winter E. Oxytocin decreases accuracy in the perception of social deception. Psychol Sci 2013; 25:293-5. [PMID: 24225448 DOI: 10.1177/0956797613500794] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Salomon Israel
- 1Department of Psychology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
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262
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Tang Y, Chen Z, Tao H, Li C, Zhang X, Tang A, Liu Y. Oxytocin activation of neurons in ventral tegmental area and interfascicular nucleus of mouse midbrain. Neuropharmacology 2013; 77:277-84. [PMID: 24148809 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2013.10.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2013] [Revised: 10/04/2013] [Accepted: 10/07/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Oxytocin (OT) was reported to affect cognitive and emotional behavior by action in ventral tegmental area (VTA) and other brain areas. However, it is still unclear how OT activates VTA and related midline nucleus. Here, using patch-clamp recording, we studied the effects of OT on neuron activity in VTA and interfascicular nucleus (IF). OT dose-dependently and selectively excited small neurons located in medial VTA and the majority of IF neurons but not large neurons in lateral VTA. We found the hyperpolarization-activated current (I(h)) and the membrane capacitance of OT-sensitive neuron were significantly smaller than those of OT-insensitive neurons. The action potential width of OT-sensitive neurons was about half that of OT-insensitive neurons. The OT effect was blocked by the OT receptor antagonist atosiban and WAY-267464 but not by tetrodotoxin, suggesting a direct postsynaptic activation of OT receptors. In addition, the phospholipase C (PLC) inhibitor U73122 antagonized the depolarization by OT. Both the nonselective cation channel (NSCC) antagonist SKF96365 and the Na(+)-Ca(2+) exchanger (NCX) blocker SN-6 attenuated OT effects. These results suggested that the PLC signaling pathway coupling to NSCC and NCX contributes to the OT-mediated activation of neurons in medial VTA and IF. Taken together, our results indicate OT directly acted on medial VTA and especially IF neurons to activate NSCC and NCX via PLC. The direct activation by OT of midbrain neurons may be one mechanism underlying OT effects on social behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yamei Tang
- Department of Laboratory, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410011, China
| | - Zhiheng Chen
- Department of Pediatrics, The Third Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410013, China
| | - Huai Tao
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Hunan University of Chinese Medicine, Changsha 410208, China
| | - Cunyan Li
- Department of Laboratory, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410011, China
| | - Xianghui Zhang
- Mental Health Institute, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, 139 Renmin Middle Road, Changsha 410011, China
| | - Aiguo Tang
- Department of Laboratory, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha 410011, China
| | - Yong Liu
- Mental Health Institute, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, 139 Renmin Middle Road, Changsha 410011, China.
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263
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Strathearn L, Kim S. Mothers' amygdala response to positive or negative infant affect is modulated by personal relevance. Front Neurosci 2013; 7:176. [PMID: 24115918 PMCID: PMC3792358 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2013.00176] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2013] [Accepted: 09/11/2013] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding, prioritizing and responding to infant affective cues is a key component of motherhood, with long-term implications for infant socio-emotional development. This important task includes identifying unique characteristics of one's own infant, as they relate to differences in affect valence—happy or sad—while monitoring one's own level of arousal. The amygdala has traditionally been understood to respond to affective valence; in the present study, we examined the potential effect of personal relevance on amygdala response, by testing whether mothers' amygdala response to happy and sad infant face cues would be modulated by infant identity. We used functional MRI to measure amygdala activation in 39 first-time mothers, while they viewed happy, neutral and sad infant faces of both their own and a matched unknown infant. Emotional arousal to each face was rated using the Self-Assessment Manikin Scales. Mixed-effects linear regression models were used to examine significant predictors of amygdala response. Overall, both arousal ratings and amygdala activation were greater when mothers viewed their own infant's face compared with unknown infant faces. Sad faces were rated as more arousing than happy faces, regardless of infant identity. However, within the amygdala, a highly significant interaction effect was noted between infant identity and valence. For own-infant faces, amygdala activation was greater for happy than sad faces, whereas the opposite trend was seen for unknown-infant faces. Our findings suggest that the amygdala response to positive or negative valenced cues is modulated by personal relevance. Positive facial expressions from one's own infant may play a particularly important role in eliciting maternal responses and strengthening the mother-infant bond.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lane Strathearn
- Attachment and Neurodevelopment Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, Children's Nutrition Research Center, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston TX, USA ; The Menninger Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston TX, USA ; The Meyer Center for Developmental Pediatrics, Texas Children's Hospital/Baylor College of Medicine, Houston TX, USA
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Ott V, Finlayson G, Lehnert H, Heitmann B, Heinrichs M, Born J, Hallschmid M. Oxytocin reduces reward-driven food intake in humans. Diabetes 2013; 62:3418-25. [PMID: 23835346 PMCID: PMC3781467 DOI: 10.2337/db13-0663] [Citation(s) in RCA: 172] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Experiments in animals suggest that the neuropeptide oxytocin acts as an anorexigenic signal in the central nervous control of food intake. In humans, however, research has almost exclusively focused on the involvement of oxytocin in the regulation of social behavior. We investigated the effect of intranasal oxytocin on ingestion and metabolic function in healthy men. Food intake in the fasted state was examined 45 min after neuropeptide administration, followed by the assessment of olfaction and reward-driven snack intake in the absence of hunger. Energy expenditure was registered by indirect calorimetry, and blood was repeatedly sampled to determine concentrations of blood glucose and hormones. Oxytocin markedly reduced snack consumption, restraining, in particular, the intake of chocolate cookies by 25%. Oxytocin, moreover, attenuated basal and postprandial levels of adrenocorticotropic hormone and cortisol and curbed the meal-related rise in plasma glucose. Energy expenditure and hunger-driven food intake as well as olfactory function were not affected. Our results indicate that oxytocin, beyond its role in social bonding, regulates nonhomeostatic, reward-related energy intake, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity, and the glucoregulatory response to food intake in humans. These effects can be assumed to converge with the psychosocial function of oxytocin and imply possible applications in the treatment of metabolic disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Volker Ott
- Department of Neuroendocrinology, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany
| | - Graham Finlayson
- Institute of Psychological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds, U.K
| | - Hendrik Lehnert
- Department of Internal Medicine I, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany
| | - Birte Heitmann
- Department of Neuroendocrinology, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany
| | - Markus Heinrichs
- Laboratory for Biological and Personality Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- Freiburg Brain Imaging Center, University Medical Center, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Jan Born
- Department of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases of the Helmholtz Centre Munich at the University of Tübingen (Paul Langerhans Institute Tübingen), Tübingen, Germany
| | - Manfred Hallschmid
- Department of Medical Psychology and Behavioral Neurobiology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Institute for Diabetes Research and Metabolic Diseases of the Helmholtz Centre Munich at the University of Tübingen (Paul Langerhans Institute Tübingen), Tübingen, Germany
- Corresponding author: Manfred Hallschmid,
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266
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Riem MME, van IJzendoorn MH, Tops M, Boksem MAS, Rombouts SARB, Bakermans-Kranenburg MJ. Oxytocin effects on complex brain networks are moderated by experiences of maternal love withdrawal. Eur Neuropsychopharmacol 2013; 23:1288-95. [PMID: 23453164 DOI: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2013.01.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2012] [Revised: 01/16/2013] [Accepted: 01/26/2013] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
The neuropeptide oxytocin has been implicated in a variety of social processes. However, recent studies indicate that oxytocin does not enhance prosocial behavior in all people in all circumstances. Here, we investigate effects of intranasal oxytocin administration on intrinsic functional brain connectivity with resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging. Participants were 42 women who received a nasal spray containing either 16 IU of oxytocin or a placebo and reported how often their mother used love withdrawal as a disciplinary strategy involving withholding love and affection after a failure or misbehavior. We found that oxytocin changes functional connectivity between the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) and the brainstem. In the oxytocin group there was a positive connectivity between these regions, whereas the placebo group showed negative connectivity. In addition, oxytocin induced functional connectivity changes between the PCC, the cerebellum and the postcentral gyrus, but only for those participants who experienced low levels of maternal love withdrawal. We speculate that oxytocin enhances prosocial behavior by influencing complex brain networks involved in self-referential processing and affectionate touch, most prominently in individuals with supportive family backgrounds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Madelon M E Riem
- Centre for Child and Family Studies, Leiden University, The Netherlands; Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition (LIBC), Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands
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267
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Neumann ID, Maloumby R, Beiderbeck DI, Lukas M, Landgraf R. Increased brain and plasma oxytocin after nasal and peripheral administration in rats and mice. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2013; 38:1985-93. [PMID: 23579082 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.03.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 397] [Impact Index Per Article: 36.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2012] [Revised: 01/28/2013] [Accepted: 03/04/2013] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
The possibility to improve socio-emotional behaviors in humans by intranasal administration of synthetic oxytocin (OXT) attracts increasing attention, but its uptake into the brain has never been demonstrated so far. Here we used simultaneous microdialysis in both the dorsal hippocampus and amygdala of rats and mice in combination with concomitant blood sampling from the jugular vein to study the dynamics of the neuropeptide in brain extracellular fluid and plasma after its nasal administration. OXT was found to be increased in microdialysates from both the hippocampus and amygdala with peak levels occurring 30-60min after nasal administration. Despite a similar temporal profile of OXT concentrations in plasma, peripheral OXT is unlikely to contribute to dialysate OXT as calculated from in vitro recovery data, indicating a central route of transport. Moreover, intraperitoneal administration of synthetic OXT in identical amounts caused rapid peak levels in brain dialysates and plasma during the first 30min after treatment and a subsequent return toward baseline. While the precise route(s) of central transport remain to be elucidated, our data provide the first evidence that nasally applied OXT indeed reaches behaviorally relevant brain areas, and this uptake is paralleled by changes in plasma OXT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Inga D Neumann
- Department of Behavioral and Molecular Neuroscience, University of Regensburg, 93053 Regensburg, Germany.
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268
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Matsuda YT, Fujimura T, Katahira K, Okada M, Ueno K, Cheng K, Okanoya K. The implicit processing of categorical and dimensional strategies: an fMRI study of facial emotion perception. Front Hum Neurosci 2013; 7:551. [PMID: 24133426 PMCID: PMC3783839 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2013.00551] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2013] [Accepted: 08/21/2013] [Indexed: 01/21/2023] Open
Abstract
OUR UNDERSTANDING OF FACIAL EMOTION PERCEPTION HAS BEEN DOMINATED BY TWO SEEMINGLY OPPOSING THEORIES: the categorical and dimensional theories. However, we have recently demonstrated that hybrid processing involving both categorical and dimensional perception can be induced in an implicit manner (Fujimura etal., 2012). The underlying neural mechanisms of this hybrid processing remain unknown. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that separate neural loci might intrinsically encode categorical and dimensional processing functions that serve as a basis for hybrid processing. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging to measure neural correlates while subjects passively viewed emotional faces and performed tasks that were unrelated to facial emotion processing. Activity in the right fusiform face area (FFA) increased in response to psychologically obvious emotions and decreased in response to ambiguous expressions, demonstrating the role of the FFA in categorical processing. The amygdala, insula and medial prefrontal cortex exhibited evidence of dimensional (linear) processing that correlated with physical changes in the emotional face stimuli. The occipital face area and superior temporal sulcus did not respond to these changes in the presented stimuli. Our results indicated that distinct neural loci process the physical and psychological aspects of facial emotion perception in a region-specific and implicit manner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoshi-Taka Matsuda
- Okanoya Emotional Information Project, Exploratory Research for Advanced Technology (ERATO), Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST) Wako, Japan ; Emotional Information Joint Research Laboratory, RIKEN Brain Science Institute Saitama, Japan ; Center for Baby Science, Doshisha University Kyoto, Japan
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269
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Chen FS, Minson JA, Schöne M, Heinrichs M. In the eye of the beholder: eye contact increases resistance to persuasion. Psychol Sci 2013; 24:2254-61. [PMID: 24068114 DOI: 10.1177/0956797613491968] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Popular belief holds that eye contact increases the success of persuasive communication, and prior research suggests that speakers who direct their gaze more toward their listeners are perceived as more persuasive. In contrast, we demonstrate that more eye contact between the listener and speaker during persuasive communication predicts less attitude change in the direction advocated. In Study 1, participants freely watched videos of speakers expressing various views on controversial sociopolitical issues. Greater direct gaze at the speaker's eyes was associated with less attitude change in the direction advocated by the speaker. In Study 2, we instructed participants to look at either the eyes or the mouths of speakers presenting arguments counter to participants' own attitudes. Intentionally maintaining direct eye contact led to less persuasion than did gazing at the mouth. These findings suggest that efforts at increasing eye contact may be counterproductive across a variety of persuasion contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frances S Chen
- 1Department of Psychology, Laboratory for Biological and Personality Psychology, University of Freiburg
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270
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Tollenaar MS, Chatzimanoli M, van der Wee NJA, Putman P. Enhanced orienting of attention in response to emotional gaze cues after oxytocin administration in healthy young men. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2013; 38:1797-802. [PMID: 23562249 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.02.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2012] [Revised: 02/08/2013] [Accepted: 02/25/2013] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Oxytocin is known to enhance recognition of emotional expressions and may increase attention to the eye region. Therefore, we investigated whether oxytocin administration would lead to increased orienting of attention in response to gaze cues of emotional faces. METHODS In a randomized placebo-controlled double-blind crossover study 20 healthy males received 24 IU of oxytocin or placebo. Thirty-five minutes after administration they performed a gaze cueing task with happy, fearful and neutral faces. Stress levels were measured throughout the study. RESULTS Oxytocin did not affect stress levels during the study, but significantly increased gaze cueing scores for happy and fearful expressions compared to placebo. No effects were found for neutral expressions. Trait anxiety or depression did not moderate the effect. CONCLUSIONS Oxytocin increases orienting of attention in response to emotional gaze cues, both for happy and fearful expressions. Replication is needed in female and clinical populations. Effects of oxytocin on early, automatic processing levels should be studied in relation to previously found pro-social and behavioral effects of oxytocin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marieke S Tollenaar
- Leiden University, Clinical, Health and Neuropsychology Unit, Leiden, The Netherlands; Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden, The Netherlands.
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271
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Parr LA, Modi M, Siebert E, Young LJ. Intranasal oxytocin selectively attenuates rhesus monkeys' attention to negative facial expressions. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2013; 38:1748-56. [PMID: 23490074 PMCID: PMC3743934 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.02.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 103] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2012] [Revised: 01/30/2013] [Accepted: 02/15/2013] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Intranasal oxytocin (IN-OT) modulates social perception and cognition in humans and could be an effective pharmacotherapy for treating social impairments associated with neuropsychiatric disorders, like autism. However, it is unknown how IN-OT modulates social cognition, its effect after repeated use, or its impact on the developing brain. Animal models are urgently needed. This study examined the effect of IN-OT on social perception in monkeys using tasks that reveal some of the social impairments seen in autism. Six rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta, 4 males) received a 48 IU dose of OT or saline placebo using a pediatric nebulizer. An hour later, they performed a computerized task (the dot-probe task) to measure their attentional bias to social, emotional, and nonsocial images. Results showed that IN-OT significantly reduced monkeys' attention to negative facial expressions, but not neutral faces or clip art images and, additionally, showed a trend to enhance monkeys' attention to direct vs. averted gaze faces. This study is the first to demonstrate an effect of IN-OT on social perception in monkeys, IN-OT selectively reduced monkey's attention to negative facial expressions, but not neutral social or nonsocial images. These findings complement several reports in humans showing that IN-OT reduces the aversive quality of social images suggesting that, like humans, monkey social perception is mediated by the oxytocinergic system. Importantly, these results in monkeys suggest that IN-OT does not dampen the emotional salience of social stimuli, but rather acts to affect the evaluation of emotional images during the early stages of information processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisa A Parr
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States; Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA, United States; Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States.
| | - Meera Modi
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta GA,Pfizer Program in Neuroscience, Cambridge MA
| | - Erin Siebert
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta GA
| | - Larry J Young
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Emory University, Atlanta GA,Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta GA,Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta GA
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272
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Ebner NC, Maura GM, MacDonald K, Westberg L, Fischer H. Oxytocin and socioemotional aging: Current knowledge and future trends. Front Hum Neurosci 2013; 7:487. [PMID: 24009568 PMCID: PMC3755210 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2013.00487] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2013] [Accepted: 08/01/2013] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The oxytocin (OT) system is involved in various aspects of social cognition and prosocial behavior. Specifically, OT has been examined in the context of social memory, emotion recognition, cooperation, trust, empathy, and bonding, and-though evidence is somewhat mixed-intranasal OT appears to benefit aspects of socioemotional functioning. However, most of the extant data on aging and OT is from animal research and human OT research has focused largely on young adults. As such, though we know that various socioemotional capacities change with age, we know little about whether age-related changes in the OT system may underlie age-related differences in socioemotional functioning. In this review, we take a genetic-neuro-behavioral approach and evaluate current evidence on age-related changes in the OT system as well as the putative effects of these alterations on age-related socioemotional functioning. Looking forward, we identify informational gaps and propose an Age-Related Genetic, Neurobiological, Sociobehavioral Model of Oxytocin (AGeNeS-OT model) which may structure and inform investigations into aging-related genetic, neural, and sociocognitive processes related to OT. As an exemplar of the use of the model, we report exploratory data suggesting differences in socioemotional processing associated with genetic variation in the oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) in samples of young and older adults. Information gained from this arena has translational potential in depression, social stress, and anxiety-all of which have high relevance in aging-and may contribute to reducing social isolation and improving well-being of individuals across the lifespan.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalie C. Ebner
- Department of Psychology, University of FloridaGainesville, FL, USA
| | | | - Kai MacDonald
- Department of Psychiatry, University of CaliforniaSan Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Lars Westberg
- Department of Pharmacology, University of GothenburgGothenburg, Sweden
| | - Håkan Fischer
- Department of Psychology, Stockholm UniversityStockholm, Sweden
- Aging Research Center, Karolinska InstituteStockholm, Sweden
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273
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Liu Y, Sheng F, Woodcock KA, Han S. Oxytocin effects on neural correlates of self-referential processing. Biol Psychol 2013; 94:380-7. [PMID: 23965321 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2013.08.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2013] [Revised: 08/06/2013] [Accepted: 08/12/2013] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Oxytocin (OT) influences how humans process information about others. Whether OT affects the processing of information about oneself remains unknown. Using a double-blind, placebo-controlled within-subject design, we recorded event-related potentials (ERPs) from adults during trait judgments about oneself and a celebrity and during judgments on word valence, after intranasal OT or placebo administration. We found that OT vs. placebo treatment reduced the differential amplitudes of a fronto-central positivity at 220-280 ms (P2) during self- vs. valence-judgments. OT vs. placebo treatment tended to reduce the differential amplitude of a late positive potential at 520-1000 ms (LPP) during self-judgments but to increase the differential LPP amplitude during other-judgments. OT effects on the differential P2 and LPP amplitudes to self- vs. celebrity-judgments were positively correlated with a measure of interdependence of self-construals. Thus OT modulates the neural correlates of self-referential processing and this effect varies as a function of interdependence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yi Liu
- Department of Psychology, Peking University, Beijing, China; PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing, China
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274
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Sauer A, Mothes-Lasch M, Miltner WHR, Straube T. Effects of gaze direction, head orientation and valence of facial expression on amygdala activity. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2013; 9:1246-52. [PMID: 23946006 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nst100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
There is increasing evidence for a role of the amygdala in processing gaze direction and emotional relevance of faces. In this event-related functional magnetic resonance study we investigated amygdala responses while we orthogonally manipulated head direction, gaze direction and facial expression (angry, happy and neutral). This allowed us to investigate effects of stimulus ambiguity, low-level factors and non-emotional factors on amygdala activation. Averted vs direct gaze induced increased activation in the right dorsal amygdala regardless of facial expression and head orientation. Furthermore, valence effects were found in the ventral amygdala and strongly dependent on head orientation. We observed enhanced activation to angry and neutral vs happy faces for observer-directed faces in the left ventral amygdala while the averted head condition reversed this pattern resulting in increased activation to happy as compared to angry and neutral faces. These results suggest that gaze direction drives specifically dorsal amygdala activation regardless of facial expression, low-level perceptual factors or stimulus ambiguity. The role of the amygdala is thus not restricted to the detection of potential threat, but has a more general role in attention processes. Furthermore, valence effects are associated with activation of the ventral amygdala and strongly influenced by non-emotional factors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Sauer
- Department of Neurophysiology, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, 60528 Frankfurt am Main, Germany, Department of Biological and Clinical Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University, 07743 Jena, Germany, and Institute of Medical Psychology and Systems Neuroscience, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, GermanyDepartment of Neurophysiology, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, 60528 Frankfurt am Main, Germany, Department of Biological and Clinical Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University, 07743 Jena, Germany, and Institute of Medical Psychology and Systems Neuroscience, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Martin Mothes-Lasch
- Department of Neurophysiology, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, 60528 Frankfurt am Main, Germany, Department of Biological and Clinical Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University, 07743 Jena, Germany, and Institute of Medical Psychology and Systems Neuroscience, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Wolfgang H R Miltner
- Department of Neurophysiology, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, 60528 Frankfurt am Main, Germany, Department of Biological and Clinical Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University, 07743 Jena, Germany, and Institute of Medical Psychology and Systems Neuroscience, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Thomas Straube
- Department of Neurophysiology, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, 60528 Frankfurt am Main, Germany, Department of Biological and Clinical Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University, 07743 Jena, Germany, and Institute of Medical Psychology and Systems Neuroscience, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany
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275
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Groppe SE, Gossen A, Rademacher L, Hahn A, Westphal L, Gründer G, Spreckelmeyer KN. Oxytocin influences processing of socially relevant cues in the ventral tegmental area of the human brain. Biol Psychiatry 2013; 74:172-9. [PMID: 23419544 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2012.12.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 150] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2012] [Revised: 12/27/2012] [Accepted: 12/27/2012] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Evidence accumulates that the neuropeptide oxytocin plays an important role in mediating social interaction among humans and that a dysfunction in oxytocin-modulated brain mechanisms might lie at the core of disturbed social behavior in neuropsychiatric disease. Explanatory models suggest that oxytocin guides social approach and avoidance by modulating the perceived salience of socially meaningful cues. Animal data point toward the ventral tegmental area (VTA) as the brain site where this modulation takes place. METHODS We used functional magnetic resonance imaging and a social incentive delay task to test the hypothesis that oxytocin modulates the neural processing of socially relevant cues in the VTA, hereby facilitating behavioral response. Twenty-eight nulliparous women (not taking any hormones) received intranasal oxytocin or placebo in a double-blind randomized clinical trial with a parallel-group design. RESULTS Oxytocin significantly enhanced VTA activation in response to cues signaling social reward (friendly face) or social punishment (angry face). Oxytocin effects on behavioral performance were modulated by individual differences in sociability with enhanced performance in women scoring low but decreased performance in women scoring high on self-reported measures of agreeableness. CONCLUSIONS Our data provide evidence that the VTA is the human brain site where oxytocin attaches salience to socially relevant cues. This mechanism might play an important role in triggering motivation to react at the prospect of social reward or punishment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah E Groppe
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Medical Faculty, RWTH Aachen University, Germany
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276
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Domes G, Heinrichs M, Kumbier E, Grossmann A, Hauenstein K, Herpertz SC. Effects of intranasal oxytocin on the neural basis of face processing in autism spectrum disorder. Biol Psychiatry 2013; 74:164-71. [PMID: 23510581 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2013.02.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 165] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2012] [Revised: 02/12/2013] [Accepted: 02/13/2013] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is associated with altered face processing and decreased activity in brain regions involved in face processing. The neuropeptide oxytocin has been shown to promote face processing and modulate brain activity in healthy adults. The present study examined the effects of oxytocin on the neural basis of face processing in adults with Asperger syndrome (AS). METHODS A group of 14 individuals with AS and a group of 14 neurotypical control participants performed a face-matching and a house-matching task during functional magnetic resonance imaging. The effects of a single dose of 24 IU intranasally administered oxytocin were tested in a randomized, placebo-controlled, within-subject, cross-over design. RESULTS Under placebo, the AS group showed decreased activity in the right amygdala, fusiform gyrus, and inferior occipital gyrus compared with the control group during face processing. After oxytocin treatment, right amygdala activity to facial stimuli increased in the AS group. CONCLUSIONS These findings indicate that oxytocin increases the saliency of social stimuli and in ASD and suggest that oxytocin might promote face processing and eye contact in individuals with ASD as prerequisites for neurotypical social interaction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregor Domes
- Department of Psychology, Laboratory for Biological and Personality Psychology, University of Freiburg, Germany.
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277
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Domes G, Sibold M, Schulze L, Lischke A, Herpertz SC, Heinrichs M. Intranasal oxytocin increases covert attention to positive social cues. Psychol Med 2013; 43:1747-1753. [PMID: 23146328 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291712002565] [Citation(s) in RCA: 92] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The neuropeptide oxytocin (OT) has positive effects on the processing of emotional stimuli such as facial expressions. To date, research has focused primarily on conditions of overt visual attention. METHOD We investigated whether a single intranasal dose of OT (24 IU) would modulate the allocation of attentional resources towards positive and negative facial expressions using a dot-probe paradigm in a sample of 69 healthy men. Attentional capacity for these facial cues was limited by presentation time (100 or 500 ms). In addition, we controlled for overt visual attention by recording eye movements using a remote eye tracker. RESULTS Reaction times (RTs) in the dot-probe paradigm revealed a pronounced shift of attention towards happy facial expressions presented for 100 ms after OT administration, whereas there were no OT-induced effects for longer presentation times (500 ms). The results could not be attributed to modulations of overt visual attention as no substance effects on gazes towards the facial target were observed. CONCLUSIONS The results suggest that OT increased covert attention to happy faces, thereby supporting the hypothesis that OT modulates early attentional processes that might promote prosocial behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- G Domes
- Department of Psychology, University of Freiburg, Germany.
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278
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Does intranasal oxytocin promote prosocial behavior to an excluded fellow player? A randomized-controlled trial with Cyberball. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2013; 38:1418-25. [PMID: 23352229 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2012.12.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2012] [Revised: 12/12/2012] [Accepted: 12/13/2012] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
The neuropeptide oxytocin has been shown to stimulate prosocial behavior. However, recent studies indicate that adverse early caregiving experiences may moderate the positive effects of oxytocin. In this double blind randomized-controlled trial we investigated the effects of oxytocin on prosocial behavior during a virtual ball-tossing game called Cyberball. We examined the influence of oxytocin on prosocial helping behavior toward a socially excluded person who was known to the participant, taking into account early caregiving experiences and the emotional facial expression of the excluded person as potential moderators. Participants were 54 women who received a nasal spray containing either 16IU of oxytocin or a placebo and had reported how often their mother used love withdrawal as a disciplinary strategy involving withholding love and affection after a failure or misbehavior. We found that participants compensated for other players' ostracism by throwing the ball more often toward the excluded player. Oxytocin administration further increased the number of ball throws toward the excluded person, but only in individuals who experienced low levels of maternal love withdrawal. The facial expression of the excluded person did not affect prosocial helping behavior and did not moderate the effects of oxytocin. Our findings indicate that the positive effects of oxytocin on prosocial behavior toward a victim of social exclusion are limited to individuals with supportive family backgrounds.
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279
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Nasal Oxytocin for Social Deficits in Childhood Autism: A Randomized Controlled Trial. J Autism Dev Disord 2013; 44:521-31. [DOI: 10.1007/s10803-013-1899-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 152] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
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280
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Abstract
AbstractIn spite of the remarkable progress made in the burgeoning field of social neuroscience, the neural mechanisms that underlie social encounters are only beginning to be studied and could – paradoxically – be seen as representing the “dark matter” of social neuroscience. Recent conceptual and empirical developments consistently indicate the need for investigations that allow the study of real-time social encounters in a truly interactive manner. This suggestion is based on the premise that social cognition is fundamentally different when we are in interaction with others rather than merely observing them. In this article, we outline the theoretical conception of a second-person approach to other minds and review evidence from neuroimaging, psychophysiological studies, and related fields to argue for the development of a second-person neuroscience, which will help neuroscience to really “go social”; this may also be relevant for our understanding of psychiatric disorders construed as disorders of social cognition.
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281
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Oxytocin, motivation and the role of dopamine. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2013; 119:49-60. [PMID: 23850525 DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2013.06.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 202] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2013] [Revised: 05/08/2013] [Accepted: 06/25/2013] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
The hypothalamic neuropeptide oxytocin has drawn the attention of scientists for more than a century. The understanding of the function of oxytocin has expanded dramatically over the years from a simple peptide adept at inducing uterine contractions and milk ejection to a complex neuromodulator with a capacity to shape human social behavior. Decades of research have outlined oxytocin's ability to enhance intricate social activities ranging from pair bonding, sexual activity, affiliative preferences, and parental behaviors. The precise neural mechanisms underlying oxytocin's influence on such behaviors have just begun to be understood. Research suggests that oxytocin interacts closely with the neural pathways responsible for processing motivationally relevant stimuli. In particular, oxytocin appears to impact dopaminergic activity within the mesocorticolimbic dopamine system, which is crucial not only for reward and motivated behavior but also for the expression of affiliative behaviors. Though most of the work performed in this area has been done using animal models, several neuroimaging studies suggest similar relationships may be observed in humans. In order to introduce this topic further, this paper will review the recent evidence that oxytocin may exert some of its social-behavioral effects through its impact on motivational networks.
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282
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Campbell A, Hausmann M. Effects of oxytocin on women's aggression depend on state anxiety. Aggress Behav 2013; 39:316-22. [PMID: 23553462 DOI: 10.1002/ab.21478] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2012] [Accepted: 01/17/2013] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Research on oxytocin (OT) indicates that it has stress reducing effects. This leads to opposing predictions of decreased and increased aggression which we examine in this study. Following completion of a state anxiety measure and administration of OT or a placebo, female participants took part in a competitive aggression game (PSAP) for a monetary prize which, if won, would be paid to a loved one. In the game, three options were available: participants could earn points; attack their opponent by deducting points; and defend themselves against point deduction by their opponent. There was no main effect of OT on these responses, however there was an interaction with state anxiety. In the placebo condition, women higher in state anxiety showed a significantly higher ratio of Attack-to-Earn responses than low anxiety women. Under oxytocin, there was a significant reduction in their Attack:Earn ratio resulting in no significant difference between high and low state anxiety groups. There was a similar trend for the Defend:Earn ratio. The reduction of reactive aggression in state anxious women supports the view that OT may decrease negative behavior and increase constructive behavior even under conditions of provocation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne Campbell
- Psychology Department; Durham University; Durham, United Kingdom
| | - Markus Hausmann
- Psychology Department; Durham University; Durham, United Kingdom
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283
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Domes G, Steiner A, Porges SW, Heinrichs M. Oxytocin differentially modulates eye gaze to naturalistic social signals of happiness and anger. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2013; 38:1198-202. [PMID: 23117026 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2012.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 102] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2012] [Revised: 10/01/2012] [Accepted: 10/02/2012] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
A number of previous studies has shown that oxytocin (OT) promotes facial emotion recognition and enhances eye gaze to facial stimuli in humans. Other studies report valence-specific effects of OT, supporting the proposed prosocial role of OT in social interactions. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis whether OT might selectively enhance eye gaze to positive, approach-related, but not to negative, threat-related social cues. In a placebo-controlled, double-blind, between-subject design, we assessed the effects of intranasal OT administration (24 IU) in 62 healthy male volunteers on eye gaze toward the eyes of neutral, positive (happy) and negative (angry) facial expressions compared with placebo. In order to capture the dynamics of facial expressions, we used video sequences showing neutral faces gradually displaying a specific emotion. In line with previous studies, OT increased eye gaze toward neutral facial expressions. Moreover, under OT treatment, eye gaze remained increased when the face showed a happy facial expression, but in contrast decreased when the face displayed an angry expression. These results support the notion that OT differentially modulates visual attention toward social signals of positive approach and threat and thereby contributes to the modulation of non-verbal interpersonal communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregor Domes
- Department of Psychology, Laboratory for Biological and Personality Psychology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.
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284
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Bethlehem RAI, van Honk J, Auyeung B, Baron-Cohen S. Oxytocin, brain physiology, and functional connectivity: a review of intranasal oxytocin fMRI studies. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2013; 38:962-74. [PMID: 23159011 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2012.10.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 209] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2012] [Revised: 10/10/2012] [Accepted: 10/10/2012] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
In recent years the neuropeptide oxytocin (OT) has become one of the most studied peptides of the human neuroendocrine system. Research has shown widespread behavioural effects and numerous potential therapeutic benefits. However, little is known about how OT triggers these effects in the brain. Here, we discuss some of the physiological properties of OT in the human brain including the long half-life of neuropeptides, the diffuse projections of OT throughout the brain and interactions with other systems such as the dopaminergic system. These properties indicate that OT acts without clear spatial and temporal specificity. Therefore, it is likely to have widespread effects on the brain's intrinsic functioning. Additionally, we review studies that have used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) concurrently with OT administration. These studies reveal a specific set of 'social' brain regions that are likely to be the strongest targets for OT's potential to influence human behaviour. On the basis of the fMRI literature and the physiological properties of the neuropeptide, we argue that OT has the potential to not only modulate activity in a set of specific brain regions, but also the functional connectivity between these regions. In light of the increasing knowledge of the behavioural effects of OT in humans, studies of the effects of OT administration on brain function can contribute to our understanding of the neural networks in the social brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard A I Bethlehem
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
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285
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Abstract
Unser Wissen zu Ursachen, Verlauf und Behandlungsoptionen von Patienten mit Störungen des Sozialverhaltens beschränkt sich überwiegend auf Studien an männlichen Patienten. In neueren Untersuchungen werden vermehrt weibliche Patientinnen berücksichtigt und geschlechtsassoziierte Unterschiede überprüft. Die vorliegende Arbeit gibt eine Übersicht über aktuelle Erkenntnisse zum psychopathologischen Erscheinungsbild und den neuropsychologischen Auffälligkeiten bei Mädchen mit Störungen des Sozialverhaltens. Es wird zudem die Frage berücksichtigt, ob auf der Basis der referierten Untersuchungsbefunde auf das Vorliegen geschlechtsspezifischer psychosozialer und neurobiologischer Risikofaktoren zu schließen ist. Implikationen für zukünftige Trends in der Forschung und Möglichkeiten für differentielle Behandlungsoptionen für Mädchen und Jungen werden diskutiert.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christina Stadler
- Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrische Klinik der Universitären Psychiatrischen Kliniken Basel
| | - Felix Euler
- Kinder- und Jugendpsychiatrische Klinik der Universitären Psychiatrischen Kliniken Basel
| | - Christina Schwenck
- Klinik für Psychiatrie, Psychosomatik und Psychotherapie des Kindes- und Jugendalters, Universitätsklinikum Frankfurt, J. W. Goethe-Universität, Frankfurt am Main
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286
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Järvinen AM, Bellugi U. What does Williams syndrome reveal about the determinants of social behavior? Front Hum Neurosci 2013; 7:321. [PMID: 23825455 PMCID: PMC3695384 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2013.00321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2013] [Accepted: 06/11/2013] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Growing evidence on autonomic nervous system (ANS) function in individuals with Williams syndrome (WS) has begun to highlight aberrancies that may have important implications for the social profile characterized by enhanced social motivation and approach. In parallel, neurobiological investigations have identified alterations in the structure, function, and connectivity of the amygdala, as well as prosocial neuropeptide dysregulation, as some of the key neurogenetic features of WS. A recent social approach/withdrawal hypothesis (Kemp and Guastella, 2011) suggests that autonomic cardiac control may play a key role in regulating the relationship between oxytocin (OT) and social behavior. This article discusses evidence from these critical, new strands of research into social behavior in WS, to consider the extent to which data on WS may provide novel insight into the determinants of social behavior. Future research directions are suggested.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna M Järvinen
- Laboratory for Cognitive Neuroscience, The Salk Institute for Biological Studies La Jolla, CA, USA
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287
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Abstract
Exogenous application of the neuromodulatory hormone oxytocin (OT) promotes prosocial behavior and can improve social function. It is unclear, however, whether OT promotes prosocial behavior per se, or whether it facilitates social interaction by reducing a state of vigilance toward potential social threats. To disambiguate these two possibilities, we exogenously delivered OT to male rhesus macaques, which have a characteristic pattern of species-typical social vigilance, and examined their performance in three social attention tasks. We first determined that, in the absence of competing task demands or goals, OT increased attention to faces and eyes, as in humans. By contrast, OT reduced species typical social vigilance for unfamiliar, dominant, and emotional faces in two additional tasks. OT eliminated the emergence of a typical state of vigilance when dominant face images were available during a social image choice task. Moreover, OT improved performance on a reward-guided saccade task, despite salient social distractors: OT reduced the interference of unfamiliar faces, particularly emotional ones, when these faces were task irrelevant. Together, these results demonstrate that OT suppresses vigilance toward potential social threats in the rhesus macaque. We hypothesize that a basic role for OT in regulating social vigilance may have facilitated the evolution of prosocial behaviors in humans.
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288
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Kryklywy JH, Nantes SG, Mitchell DGV. The amygdala encodes level of perceived fear but not emotional ambiguity in visual scenes. Behav Brain Res 2013; 252:396-404. [PMID: 23769997 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2013.06.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2013] [Revised: 06/01/2013] [Accepted: 06/06/2013] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
There are two current models of amygdala functioning with regard to identification of emotional expression. Classic models propose that the amygdala contributes to emotional expression recognition and empathy by encoding the level of threat or distress, and as such, responds greatest to more potent fearful cues. However, recent evidence suggests that the amygdala directs attention to relevant object features to disambiguate the stimulus (e.g., the eyes of a fearful face). The present study used fMRI to investigate amygdala functioning during the perception and identification of emotion in complex visual scenes. Participants later rated the images on levels of fear, disgust and arousal. These ratings were used to identify stimuli that were emotionally-ambiguous, emotionally-discrete, and non-emotional for each individual. A whole-brain and ROI approach was used to identify the nature of the amygdala response to visual scenes. Amygdala activity was associated with higher levels of fear in stimuli and was found to reflect the level of arousal in complex visual scenes. In contrast, no activity was observed that would indicate that the amygdala was modulated by emotional ambiguity when discriminating between fearful and disgusting visual scenes. These results are consistent with models that implicate the amygdala in the evaluation and representation of the intensity of fear, and imply that the functional contribution of the amygdala to deciphering threat in visual scenes likely extends beyond the search for emotionally salient features. The results also suggest that using attention to remedy emotion recognition abnormalities in at-risk populations with amygdala dysfunction may not address all key deficits associated with contributions of the amygdala to emotion and empathy.
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Affiliation(s)
- James H Kryklywy
- Department of Psychiatry, Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario N6A 5A5, Canada
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289
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Dall'Oglio A, Xavier LL, Hilbig A, Ferme D, Moreira JE, Achaval M, Rasia-Filho AA. Cellular components of the human medial amygdaloid nucleus. J Comp Neurol 2013; 521:589-611. [PMID: 22806548 DOI: 10.1002/cne.23192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2011] [Revised: 04/22/2012] [Accepted: 07/10/2012] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
The medial nucleus (Me) is a superficial component of the amygdaloid complex. Here we assessed the density and morphology of the neurons and glial cells, the glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) immunoreactivity, and the ultrastructure of the synaptic sites in the human Me. The optical fractionator method was applied. The Me presented an estimated mean neuronal density of 1.53 × 10⁵ neurons/mm³ (greater in the left hemisphere), more glia (72% of all cells) than neurons, and a nonneuronal:neuronal ratio of 2.7. Golgi-impregnated neurons had round or ovoid, fusiform, angular, and polygonal cell bodies (10-30 μm in diameter). The length of the dendrites varied, and pleomorphic spines were found in sparsely spiny or densely spiny cells (1.5-5.2 spines/dendritic μm). The axons in the Me neuropil were fine or coarsely beaded, and fibers showed simple or notably complex collateral terminations. The protoplasmic astrocytes were either isolated or formed small clusters and showed GFAP-immunoreactive cell bodies and multiple branches. Furthermore, we identified both asymmetrical (with various small, clear, round, electron-lucent vesicles and, occasionally, large, dense-core vesicles) and symmetrical (with small, flattened vesicles) axodendritic contacts, also including multisynaptic spines. The astrocytes surround and may compose tripartite or tetrapartite synapses, the latter including the extracellular matrix between the pre- and the postsynaptic elements. Interestingly, the terminal axons exhibited a glomerular-like structure with various asymmetrical contacts. These new morphological data on the cellular population and synaptic complexity of the human Me can contribute to our knowledge of its role in health and pathological conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aline Dall'Oglio
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre 90170-050-RS, Brazil
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290
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Stavropoulos KKM, Carver LJ. Research review: Social motivation and oxytocin in autism--implications for joint attention development and intervention. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 2013; 54:603-18. [PMID: 23451765 PMCID: PMC3663901 DOI: 10.1111/jcpp.12061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/05/2012] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND SCOPE The social motivation hypothesis (SMH) suggests that individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are less intrinsically rewarded by social stimuli than their neurotypical peers. This difference in social motivation has been posited as a factor contributing to social deficits in ASD. Social motivation is thought to involve the neuropeptide oxytocin. Here, we review the evidence for oxytocin effects in ASD, and discuss its potential role in one important social cognitive behavior. METHODS Systematic searches were conducted using the PsychINFO and MEDLINE databases and the search terms 'oxytocin' and 'autism'; the same databases were used for separate searches for 'joint attention', 'intervention', and 'autism', using the same inclusion criteria as an earlier 2011 review but updating it for the period 2010 to October 2012. FINDINGS Several studies suggest that giving oxytocin to both individuals with ASD and neurotypical individuals can enhance performance on social cognitive tasks. Studies that have attempted to intervene in joint attention in ASD suggest that social motivation may be a particular obstacle to lasting effects. CONCLUSIONS The review of the evidence for the SMH suggests a potential role for oxytocin in social motivation deficits in ASD. Because of its importance for later communicative and social development, the focus here is on implications of oxytocin and social motivation in the development of and interventions in joint attention. Joint attention is a central impairment in ASD, and as a result is the focus of several behavioral interventions. In describing this previous research on joint attention interventions in ASD, we pay particular attention to problems encountered in such studies, and propose ways that oxytocin may facilitate behavioral intervention in this area. For future research, integrating behavioral and pharmacological interventions (oxytocin administration) would be a worthwhile experimental direction to improve understanding of the role of oxytocin in ASD and help optimize outcomes for children with ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Leslie J. Carver
- Department of Psychology; University of California; San Diego CA USA
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291
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Veening JG, Olivier B. Intranasal administration of oxytocin: behavioral and clinical effects, a review. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2013; 37:1445-65. [PMID: 23648680 PMCID: PMC7112651 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2013.04.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 131] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2012] [Revised: 04/22/2013] [Accepted: 04/24/2013] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The mechanisms behind the effects of IN-applied substances need more attention. The mechanisms involved in the brain-distribution of IN-OT are completely unexplored. The possibly cascading effects of IN-OT on the intrinsic OT-system require serious investigation. IN-OT induces clear and specific changes in neural activation. IN-OT is a promising approach to treat certain clinical symptoms.
The intranasal (IN-) administration of substances is attracting attention from scientists as well as pharmaceutical companies. The effects are surprisingly fast and specific. The present review explores our current knowledge about the routes of access to the cranial cavity. ‘Direct-access-pathways’ from the nasal cavity have been described but many additional experiments are needed to answer a variety of open questions regarding anatomy and physiology. Among the IN-applied substances oxytocin (OT) has an extensive history. Originally applied in women for its physiological effects related to lactation and parturition, over the last decade most studies focused on their behavioral ‘prosocial’ effects: from social relations and ‘trust’ to treatment of ‘autism’. Only very recently in a microdialysis study in rats and mice, the ‘direct-nose-brain-pathways’ of IN-OT have been investigated directly, implying that we are strongly dependent on results obtained from other IN-applied substances. Especially the possibility that IN-OT activates the ‘intrinsic’ OT-system in the hypothalamus as well needs further clarification. We conclude that IN-OT administration may be a promising approach to influence human communication but that the existing lack of information about the neural and physiological mechanisms involved is a serious problem for the proper understanding and interpretation of the observed effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jan G Veening
- Division of Pharmacology, Utrecht Institute for Pharmaceutical Sciences, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80082, 3508 TB, Utrecht, The Netherlands; Department of Anatomy (109), Radboud University of Medical Sciences, P.O. Box 9101, 6500 HB, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
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292
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Sniffing around oxytocin: review and meta-analyses of trials in healthy and clinical groups with implications for pharmacotherapy. Transl Psychiatry 2013; 3:e258. [PMID: 23695233 PMCID: PMC3669921 DOI: 10.1038/tp.2013.34] [Citation(s) in RCA: 289] [Impact Index Per Article: 26.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The popularity of oxytocin (OT) has grown exponentially during the past decade, and so has the number of OT trials in healthy and clinical groups. We take stock of the evidence from these studies to explore potentials and limitations of pharmacotherapeutic applications. In healthy participants, intranasally administered OT leads to better emotion recognition and more trust in conspecifics, but the effects appear to be moderated by context (perceived threat of the 'out-group'), personality and childhood experiences. In individuals with untoward childhood experiences, positive behavioral or neurobiological effects seem lowered or absent. In 19 clinical trials, covering autism, social anxiety, postnatal depression, obsessive-compulsive problems, schizophrenia, borderline personality disorder and post-traumatic stress, the effects of OT administration were tested, with doses ranging from 15 IU to more than 7000 IU. The combined effect size was d=0.32 (N=304; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.18-0.47; P<0.01). However, of all disorders, only studies on autism spectrum disorder showed a significant combined effect size (d=0.57; N=68; 95% CI: 0.15-0.99; P<0.01). We hypothesize that for some of the other disorders, etiological factors rooted in negative childhood experiences may also have a role in the diminished effectiveness of treatment with OT.
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293
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Auyeung B, Lombardo MV, Baron-Cohen S. Prenatal and postnatal hormone effects on the human brain and cognition. Pflugers Arch 2013; 465:557-71. [DOI: 10.1007/s00424-013-1268-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 143] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2013] [Accepted: 03/11/2013] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
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294
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Declerck CH, Boone C, Kiyonari T. The effect of oxytocin on cooperation in a prisoner's dilemma depends on the social context and a person's social value orientation. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2013; 9:802-9. [PMID: 23588271 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nst040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
The interactionist approach to the study of exogenous oxytocin (OT) effects on prosocial behavior has emphasized the need to consider both contextual cues and individual differences. Therefore, an experiment was set up to examine the joint effect of intranasal OT, a salient social cue and the personality trait social value orientation on cooperative behavior in one-shot prisoner's dilemma games. The outcome of these mixed-motive games is known to be highly dependent on values and on social information that might reveal the partner's intent. Consistent with an a priori hypothesis, OT and social information interact significantly to affect the behavior of individuals with a proself value orientation: after prior contact with the game partner, OT enhances cooperative behavior, whereas in anonymous conditions, it exacerbates their intrinsic self-interested behavior. These effects of OT do not hold for individuals with a prosocial value orientation, whose cooperation levels appear to be more influenced by prior contact with the game partner. Follow-up hypotheses for why prosocial and proself individuals respond differently to exogenous OT were developed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolyn H Declerck
- Faculty of Applied Economics University of Antwerp, Antwerpen, Belgium and School of Social Informatics, Aoyama Gakuin University, Sagamihara-city, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Christophe Boone
- Faculty of Applied Economics University of Antwerp, Antwerpen, Belgium and School of Social Informatics, Aoyama Gakuin University, Sagamihara-city, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Toko Kiyonari
- Faculty of Applied Economics University of Antwerp, Antwerpen, Belgium and School of Social Informatics, Aoyama Gakuin University, Sagamihara-city, Kanagawa, Japan
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295
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Prehn K, Kazzer P, Lischke A, Heinrichs M, Herpertz SC, Domes G. Effects of intranasal oxytocin on pupil dilation indicate increased salience of socioaffective stimuli. Psychophysiology 2013; 50:528-37. [DOI: 10.1111/psyp.12042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2012] [Accepted: 02/19/2013] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Kristin Prehn
- Cluster of Excellence “Languages of Emotion”; Freie Universität Berlin; Berlin; Germany
| | - Philipp Kazzer
- Cluster of Excellence “Languages of Emotion”; Freie Universität Berlin; Berlin; Germany
| | | | | | - Sabine C. Herpertz
- Department of General Psychiatry; University of Heidelberg; Heidelberg; Germany
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296
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Quintana DS, Kemp AH, Alvares GA, Guastella AJ. A role for autonomic cardiac control in the effects of oxytocin on social behavior and psychiatric illness. Front Neurosci 2013; 7:48. [PMID: 23565075 PMCID: PMC3613775 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2013.00048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2013] [Accepted: 03/13/2013] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Cumulative evidence over the last decade indicates that intranasally administered oxytocin (OT) has a major impact on social behavior and cognition. In parallel, researchers have also highlighted the effects of OT on cardiovascular (CV) and autonomic nervous system (ANS) regulation. Taken at face value, these two streams of research appear largely unrelated. However, another line of evidence highlights a key role for autonomic cardiac control in social behavior and cognition. In this review, we suggest that autonomic cardiac control may moderate the relationship between OT and social behavior. We also highlight the importance of autonomic cardiac control in psychiatric disorders of social dysfunction and suggest that heart rate variability (HRV)-an index of autonomic cardiac control-may play a key role in patient response in treatment trials of OT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel S Quintana
- SCAN Research and Teaching Unit, School of Psychology, The University of Sydney Sydney, NSW, Australia ; Brain and Mind Research Institute, The University of Sydney Sydney, NSW, Australia
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297
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Han HJ, Lee K, Kim HT, Kim H. Distinctive amygdala subregions involved in emotion-modulated Stroop interference. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2013; 9:689-98. [PMID: 23543193 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nst021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite the well-known role of the amygdala in mediating emotional interference during tasks requiring cognitive resources, no definite conclusion has yet been reached regarding the differential roles of functionally and anatomically distinctive subcomponents of the amygdala in such processes. In this study, we examined female participants and attempted to separate the neural processes for the detection of emotional information from those for the regulation of cognitive interference from emotional distractors by adding a temporal gap between emotional stimuli and a subsequent cognitive Stroop task. Reaction time data showed a significantly increased Stroop interference effect following emotionally negative stimuli compared with neutral stimuli, and functional magnetic resonance imaging data revealed that the anterior ventral amygdala (avAMYG) showed greater responses to negative stimuli compared with neutral stimuli. In addition, individuals who scored high in neuroticism showed greater posterior dorsal amygdala (pdAMYG) responses to incongruent compared with congruent Stroop trials following negative stimuli, but not following neutral stimuli. Taken together, the findings of this study demonstrated functionally distinctive contributions of the avAMYG and pdAMYG to the emotion-modulated Stroop interference effect and suggested that the avAMYG encodes associative values of emotional stimuli whereas the pdAMYG resolves cognitive interference from emotional distractors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyun Jung Han
- or Hyun Taek Kim, PhD, Department of Psychology, Korea University, 1-5 Anam-dong, Seongbuk-Gu, Seoul 136-701, Republic of Korea.
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298
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Ellenbogen MA, Linnen AM, Cardoso C, Joober R. Intranasal oxytocin impedes the ability to ignore task-irrelevant facial expressions of sadness in students with depressive symptoms. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2013; 38:387-98. [PMID: 22902063 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2012.06.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2011] [Revised: 06/28/2012] [Accepted: 06/30/2012] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
The administration of oxytocin promotes prosocial behavior in humans. The mechanism by which this occurs is unknown, but it likely involves changes in social information processing. In a randomized placebo-controlled study, we examined the influence of intranasal oxytocin and placebo on the interference control component of inhibition (i.e. ability to ignore task-irrelevant information) in 102 participants using a negative affective priming task with sad, angry, and happy faces. In this task, participants are instructed to respond to a facial expression of emotion while simultaneously ignoring another emotional face. On the subsequent trial, the previously-ignored emotional valence may become the emotional valence of the target face. Inhibition is operationalized as the differential delay between responding to a previously-ignored emotional valence and responding to an emotional valence unrelated to the previous one. Although no main effect of drug administration on inhibition was observed, a drug × depressive symptom interaction (β = -0.25; t = -2.6, p < 0.05) predicted the inhibition of sad faces. Relative to placebo, participants with high depression scores who were administered oxytocin were unable to inhibit the processing of sad faces. There was no relationship between drug administration and inhibition among those with low depression scores. These findings are consistent with increasing evidence that oxytocin alters social information processing in ways that have both positive and negative social outcomes. Because elevated depression scores are associated with an increased risk for major depressive disorder, difficulties inhibiting mood-congruent stimuli following oxytocin administration may be associated with risk for depression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark A Ellenbogen
- Centre for Research in Human Development, Department of Psychology, Concordia University, Montréal, Canada.
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299
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Huffmeijer R, Alink LRA, Tops M, Grewen KM, Light KC, Bakermans-Kranenburg MJ, van Ijzendoorn MH. The impact of oxytocin administration and maternal love withdrawal on event-related potential (ERP) responses to emotional faces with performance feedback. Horm Behav 2013; 63:399-410. [PMID: 23159479 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2012.11.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2012] [Revised: 11/07/2012] [Accepted: 11/08/2012] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
This is the first experimental study on the effect of oxytocin administration on the neural processing of facial stimuli conducted with female participants that uses event-related potentials (ERPs). Using a double-blind, placebo-controlled within-subjects design, we studied the effects of 16 IU of intranasal oxytocin on ERPs to pictures combining performance feedback with emotional facial expressions in 48 female undergraduate students. Participants also reported on the amount of love withdrawal they experienced from their mothers. Vertex positive potential (VPP) and late positive potential (LPP) amplitudes were more positive after oxytocin compared to placebo administration. This suggests that oxytocin increased attention to the feedback stimuli (LPP) and enhanced the processing of emotional faces (VPP). Oxytocin heightened processing of the happy and disgusted faces primarily for those reporting less love withdrawal. Significant associations with LPP amplitude suggest that more maternal love withdrawal relates to the allocation of attention toward the motivationally relevant combination of negative feedback with a disgusted face.
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Affiliation(s)
- Renske Huffmeijer
- Centre for Child and Family Studies, Leiden University, P.O. Box 9555, 2300 RB Leiden, The Netherlands
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300
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Mishra A, Rogers BP, Chen LM, Gore JC. Functional connectivity-based parcellation of amygdala using self-organized mapping: a data driven approach. Hum Brain Mapp 2013; 35:1247-60. [PMID: 23418140 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.22249] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2012] [Revised: 10/22/2012] [Accepted: 12/03/2012] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The overall goal of this work is to demonstrate how resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) signals may be used to objectively parcellate functionally heterogeneous subregions of the human amygdala into structures characterized by similar patterns of functional connectivity. We hypothesize that similarity of functional connectivity of subregions with other parts of the brain can be a potential basis to segment and cluster voxels using data driven approaches. In this work, self-organizing map (SOM) was implemented to cluster the connectivity maps associated with each voxel of the human amygdala, thereby defining distinct subregions. The functional separation was optimized by evaluating the overall differences in functional connectivity between the subregions at group level. Analysis of 25 resting state fMRI data sets suggests that SOM can successfully identify functionally independent nuclei based on differences in their inter subregional functional connectivity, evaluated statistically at various confidence levels. Although amygdala contains several nuclei whose distinct roles are implicated in various functions, our objective approach discerns at least two functionally distinct volumes comparable to previous parcellation results obtained using probabilistic tractography and cytoarchitectonic analysis. Association of these nuclei with various known functions and a quantitative evaluation of their differences in overall functional connectivity with lateral orbital frontal cortex and temporal pole confirms the functional diversity of amygdala. The data driven approach adopted here may be used as a powerful indicator of structure-function relationships in the amygdala and other functionally heterogeneous structures as well.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arabinda Mishra
- Vanderbilt University Institute of Imaging Science (VUIIS), Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee; Department of Radiology and Radiological Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee
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