The Role of Oxytocin in the Perception of Faces

Early Phase 1

Completed

• Conditions: Healthy
• Interventions: Drug: Syntocinon (synthetic oxytocin); Other: Placebo

• Registration Number: NCT02443727
• Lead Sponsor: Rodrigo Cardenas

Brief Summary

The main objective of this project is to study whether intranasal oxytocin (OT) affects how young adults perceive and attend to infant and adult faces. Based on existing research the investigators predict that oxytocin will facilitate the allocation of attentional resources on infant faces (compared to adult faces). The investigators also predict that oxytocin will enhance the activity of reward neural-networks associated with the perception of infant faces. The behavioral effects of OT (visual attention and face recognition) will be measured with eye-tracking while participants look at photographs of adult and infant faces. Neurological effects (the activity of emotion and reward networks) will be measured with functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) while participants look at infant faces on a computer screen.

Detailed Description

Not available

Study Timeline

• Study Start: 2015-04
• Study First Submitted: 2015-05-05
• Study First Submitted QC: 2015-05-13
• Study First Posted: 2015-05-14
• Primary Completion: 2015-12
• Study Completion: 2016-09
• Status Verified: 2023-04
• Last Update Submitted: 2023-04-22
• Last Update Posted: 2023-04-25

Recruitment & Eligibility

• Status: COMPLETED
• Sex: Male
• Target Recruitment: 71

Inclusion Criteria

• Healthy Volunteers
• Norma or corrected to norma vision
• Participants are non parents
• Able to provide written informed consent and to comply with all study procedures

Exclusion Criteria

• Dementia or severe cognitive disorders
• Endocrine disease or malignancy
• Nasal obstruction or upper-respiratory tract infection
• Current or previous psychiatric disorder
• Current or previous use of psychoactive drugs
• Alcoholism or substance abuse
• History of seizures
• Neurological Disorder
• Previous head trauma
• Hypertension
• Cardiovascular Disease
• Claustrophobia
• ferrous metal in any part of the body

Study & Design

• Study Type: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Design: PARALLEL

Arm && Interventions

Group	Intervention	Description
Intranasal oxytocin group	Syntocinon (synthetic oxytocin)	Participants will self-administer a single dose of 24 IU oxytocin (Syntocinon, Novartis; three puffs per nostril, each with 4 IU oxytocin, 6 puffs total).
Placebo group	Placebo	The placebo is identical to the oxytocin formulation with the exception of the active compound. Participants will self-administer three puffs per nostril of placebo (6 puffs total).

Primary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) Data	45 minutes after OT manipulation	The effect of OT will be assessed by determining changes in brain activation between treatment and placebo groups.
Eye movements data	45 minutes after OT manipulation	The effect of OT will be assessed by determining changes in eye movements between treatment and placebo groups.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Name	Time	Method
Implicit Attitudes toward infants	45 minutes after OT manipulation	Implicit attitudes toward infants as measured by the Implicit Association Test
Theory of mind	45 minutes after OT manipulation	Theory of mind as measured by the Reading the mind in the eyes test