Healthy
Conditions
Keywords
oxytocin, acute tryptophan depletion, emotion
Brief summary
the study aims to explore whether there is an interaction between oxytocin and serotonin in the regulation of emotion-based behavior by using a between-subject randomized double blind pharmacological fMRI design during which 4 groups of healthy male subjects will receive combinations of oxytocin nasal-spray (versus placebo) and acute tryptophan depletion (ATD, versus placebo)
Detailed description
Convergent evidence from animal models and human studies suggests that both, serotonin and oxytocin are important regulators of social emotional behavior. Evidence is emerging that both systems interact in this domain. To determine the interaction of both systems on human social behavior, the present study aims to combine a randomized placebo-controlled administration of modulators of both systems (Oxytocin nasal-spray and acute tryptophan depletion, ATD) and their combination within a pharmaco-fMRI experiment. To determine effects on the neural networks engaged in social emotional processing, healthy male subjects will receive single doses of oxytocin (24IU) versus placebo and ATD (75.2g) versus placebo before fMRI measures of emotion perception and resting state will be acquired. To control for potential effects of pre-medication personality traits as well as effects of medicines on mood, subjects will be administered pre-treatment assessing relevant personality traits and post-treatment assessments of mood.
Interventions
DRUGoxytocin nasal spray
intranasal administration of oxytocin (24 IU)
intranasal administration of placebo nasal spray
DRUGATD treatment
oral administration of ATD (75.2g) (Acute Tryptophan Depletion)
oral administration of a tryptophan-balanced mixture (78.2g)
Sponsors
University of Electronic Science and Technology of China
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE
Masking
DOUBLE (Subject, Investigator)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
MALE
Age
18 Years to 30 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* health subjects without past or current psychiatric or neurological disorders * Right-handedness
Exclusion criteria
* History of head injury; * Medical or psychiatric illness. * High blood pressure, general cardio-vascular alterations * History of drug or alcohol abuse or addiction. * Allergy against medications or general strong allergies * Sleep disorders. * Visual or motor impairments
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Neural processing during the emotion processing as assessed via fMRI | 6h after treatment | fMRI BOLD indices of neural processing in emotion related brain regions will be compared between the treatment groups |
| Neural processing during the resting state as assessed via fMRI | 6h after treatment | Resting state activity in the emotional brain networks will be compared between the treatment groups |
Countries
China
Contacts
Primary ContactBenjamin Becker, Dr.
Outcome results
None listed