Healthy
Conditions
Keywords
oxytocin, fMRI, escape decisions, dynamic predator-prey interaction, defensive responses
Brief summary
The presnet study is to investigate the effect of intranasal oxytocin (24 IU) treatment on modulating how human responsd to threat in a dynamic situation.
Detailed description
Predator-prey interactions are inherently dynamic, requiring adaptive responses from prey to survive. Altough there is eviedence for oxytocin modulating anxiety and fear responses to threats, it remains unclear whether oxytocin (OT) would modulate how humans respond to threats along the predatory imminence continuum to facilitate escape during such interactions. Our study therefore focuses on this question by combining behavioralmeasures, skin conductance response, and fMRI in a dynamic predator-prey interaction paradigm. In this double-blind, between-subject, placebo-controlled study, participants are instructed to escape by evaluating the relative distance between themselves (i.e., the prey), the predator (slow, medium and high attacking speed) and the refuge. The MRI and Biopac electrophysiological acquisition systems are used in the study to collect subjects' brain activity and skin conductance response. Participants are also asked to rate their confidence and anxiety levels during performing the task. We will aslo examine the resulted patterns of flight initiation distance (FID) and distance to refuge (DTR) when the prey fled from different predators. Scores of questionnaires including Positive and Negative Affect Schedule, State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, Beck Depression Inventory-Ⅱ, Autism Spectrum Quotient, Sensitivity to Punishment and Sensitivity to Reward Questionnaire, General Risk Propensity Scale are also collected before the experiment.
Interventions
DRUGOxytocin nasal spray
intranasal administration of oxytocin (24 IU)
DRUGPlacebo
intranasal administration of placebo (24 IU)
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
ALL
Age
18 Years to 35 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Healthy subjects without past or current psychiatric or neurological disorders
Exclusion criteria
* History of head injury; pregnant, menstruating, taking oral contraceptives; medical or psychiatric illness, * The presence of metal in the body or claustrophobia.
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Escape sucess rates when confronting different predators | 1 hour | Escape sucess rates in successfully entering the refuge when confronting the fast, medium and slow predators. |
| Flight initiation distance | 1 hour | It is the prey-predator distance when a prey flees from a threat, a key index quantifying escape decisions. |
| The distance to refuge | 1 hour | The distance to refuge when a prey flees from a threat. |
| Brain activity patterns in response to threats along the predatory imminence continuum | 1 hour | Brain activity patterns in response to different predators along the predatory imminence continuum. We will examine these brain response patterns via both the conventional univariate analysis and the machine learning-based multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA) approaches. Based on previous studies, the medium predator is a priori used as an anchor for fast and slow predators for a more sensitive measure of brain activity differences and contrasts with the medium predator would be reported in the suplemental files for completeness (if there were significant effects). |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Anxiety rating scores | 1 hour | Particioants are asked to rate how anxious they felt during the escape decision-making process. |
| SCR during task | 1 hour | Skin Conductance Response (SCR) data are recorded in the task during scanning. |
| Confidence rating scores | 1 hour | Participants are asked to rate their confidence levels in successfully escaping from the predator before each block. |
Countries
China
Contacts
Primary ContactKeith M Kendrick, Dr
Outcome results
None listed