Oxytocin and autism
Aims:
To test the effects of oxytocin inhalation on behaviour, cognition and brain function in autism.
Background:
Oxytocin (a peptide hormone) plays a key role in social behaviour and social understanding. A number of studies of autism have found reduced levels of blood plasma oxytocin.
Method:
We compare autistic people and typical individuals under two conditions: inhaling oxytocin or a placebo. We use cognitive tasks and fMRI to look at the effects of oxytocin on both the mind and brain.
Results:
Results will appear on our website.
Importance:
This work will help us understand the role of oxytocin in the mind, brain and behaviour.
Relevance:
This may have relevance for treatment in the future.
Selected Publications
- The oxytocin receptor gene predicts brain activity during an emotion recognition task in autism, Molecular Autism 10, 12 (2019), F Uzefovsky, R A I Bethlehem, S Shamay-Tsoory, A Ruigrok, R Holt, M Spencer, L Chura, V Warrier, B Chakrabarti, E Bullmore, J Suckling, D Floris, S Baron-Cohen
- Intranasal oxytocin enhances intrinsic corticostriatal functional connectivity in women, Translational Psychiatry 7:e1099 (2017), R Bethlehem, M Lombardo, M-C Lai, B Auyeung, S Crockford, J Deakin, S Soubramanian, A Sule, P Kundu, V Voon & S Baron-Cohen
- Oxytocin increases eye contact during a real-time, naturalistic social interaction in males with and without autism, Translational Psychiatry 5:e507 (2015), B Auyeung, M Lombardo, M Heinrichs, B Chakrabarti, A Sule, J Deakin, R Bethlehem, L Dickens, N Mooney, J Sipple, P Thiemann, S Baron-Cohen
- Effects of Oxytocin on Attention to Emotional Faces in Healthy Volunteers and Highly Socially Anxious Males, 18(2):pyu012 (2014), R Clark-Elford, P Nathan, B Auyeung, K Mogg, B Bradley, A Sule, U Müller, R Dudas, B Sahakian, S Baron-Cohen
- Genetic variation in the oxytocin receptor (OXTR) gene is associated with Asperger Syndrome, Molecular Autism 05:48 (2014), Di Napoli, V Warrier, S Baron-Cohen, B Chakrabarti