Oxytocin and the social brain: Neural mechanisms and perspectives in human research
Abstract
The present paper summarizes functional imaging studies investigating the effects of intranasal oxytocin (OT) on brain responses to social stimuli. We aim to integrate previous research, point to unresolved issues and highlight perspectives for future studies. The studies so far have focused on identifying neural circuits underlying social information processing which are particularly sensitive to modulations by exogenous OT. Most consistently, stimulus-related responses of the amygdala and associated areas within the prefrontal and temporal cortices have been found to be modulated by OT administration. However, there are a number of unresolved issues related to the possible role of sex differences and hormonal status, genetic variability, and individual differences in socio-cognitive functioning. Future studies focusing on these open questions are expected to contribute to a more nuanced understanding of the role of the central OT system in humans and may provide the basis for novel treatment approaches for mental disorders characterized by social deficits. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled Oxytocin and Social Behav.
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From A precision medicine approach to oxytocin trials (2017) · cites this paper as Kanat et al. 2014
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Oxytocin modulates the racial Bias in neural responses to others' suffering
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“Some studies have explored OT effects on brain activation using EEG or MEG (Bick et al., 2013; Herzmann et al., in press; Hirosawa et al., 2012; Huffmeijer et al., 2013, 2012; Perry et al., 2010; Sheng et al., 2013).”
BackgroundOxytocin differentially modulates eye gaze to naturalistic social signals of happiness and anger
Domes, G., Steiner, A., Porges, S. W., & Heinrichs, M. (2013) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2012.10.002 · Cited by 139 · see citing works
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Self-citationOxytocin Modulates Neural Reactivity to Children's Faces as a Function of Social Salience
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Self-citationSteroid‐induced sexual differentiation of the developing brain: multiple pathways, one goal
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Oxytocin is not a valid biomarker when measured in saliva by immunoassay
Horvat-Gordon, M., Granger, D. A., Schwartz, E. B., Nelson, V. J., & Kivlighan, K. T. (2005) · Physiology & Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.physbeh.2005.01.007 · Cited by 111 · see citing works
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Oxytocin effects on complex brain networks are moderated by experiences of maternal love withdrawal
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Diminished Medial Prefrontal Activity behind Autistic Social Judgments of Incongruent Information
Watanabe, T., Yahata, N., Abe, O., Kuwabara, H., Inoue, H., Takano, Y., Iwashiro, N., Natsubori, T., Aoki, Y. Y., Takao, H., et al. (2012) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0039561 · Cited by 84 · see citing works
Hormonal contraceptives, menstrual cycle and brain response to faces
Marečková, K., Perrin, J. S., Khan, I. N., Lawrence, C., Dickie, E. W., McQuiggan, D. A., & Paus, T. (2012) · Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience · doi:10.1093/scan/nss128 · Cited by 78 · see citing works
Neurogenetic effects of OXTR rs2254298 in the extended limbic system of healthy Caucasian adults
Tost, H., Kolachana, B., Verchinski, B. A., Bilek, E., Goldman, A. L., Mattay, V. S., Weinberger, D. R., & Meyer-Lindenberg, A. (2011) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2011.06.034 · Cited by 77 · see citing works
Bick, J. R., Dozier, M., Bernard, K., Grasso, D. J., & Simons, R. F. (2012) · Child Development · doi:10.1111/cdev.12008 · Cited by 76 · see citing works
Buxbaum, J. D., Betancur, C., Bozdagi, O., Dorr, N. P., Elder, G. A., & Hof, P. R. (2012) · Molecular Autism · doi:10.1186/2040-2392-3-1 · Cited by 76 · see citing works
Neuroscience and facial expressions of emotion: the role of amygdala-prefrontal interactions
Whalen, P. J., Raila, H., Bennett, R., Mattek, A., Brown, A., Taylor, J., van Tieghem, M., Tanner, A., Miner, M., & Palmer, A. (2013) · Emotion Review · doi:10.1177/1754073912457231 · Cited by 64 · see citing works
Social anxiety modulates amygdala activation during social conditioning
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Amygdala response to negative images in postpartumvsnulliparous women and intranasal oxytocin
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Huffmeijer, R., Alink, L. R. A., Mattie Tops, A., Grewen, K., Light, K. C., Bakermans‐Kranenburg, M. J., & van IJzendoorn, M. H. (2012) · Hormones and Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.yhbeh.2012.11.008 · Cited by 42 · see citing works
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Oxytocin levels during breast-feeding in established lactation
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Report of altered urinary oxytocin and AVP excretion in neglected orphans should be reconsidered
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- Authors
- Kanat, M., Heinrichs, M., & Domes, G.
- Affiliations
- University of Freiburg (DE)
- Corresponding author
- Domes, Gregor
- Venue
- Brain Research
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2014-09
- Volume
- 1580
- Pages
- 160-171
- ISSN
- 0006-8993 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2018039576
- Cited by
- 122
- References
- 118
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 2 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 2 · 2022: 8 · 2021: 9 · 2020: 34 · 2019: 11 · 2018: 8 · 2017: 13 · 2016: 10 · 2015: 12 · 2014: 6
- FWCI
- 1.25
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Brain Research (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Research Bank (Australian Catholic University) (submittedVersion)
- FreiDok plus (Universitätsbibliothek Freiburg) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG 1312/2-1)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Sensory Systems › Olfactory and Sensory Function Studies
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Face Recognition and Perception
- Keywords
- oxytocin, social brain, intranasal oxytocin, social information processing, amygdala, prefrontal cortex, temporal cortex, sex differences, hormonal status, genetic variation, individual differences, social dysfunction, mental illness, functional neuroimaging
- MeSH terms
- Administration, Intranasal, Animals, Brain, Cognition, Female, Humans, Male, Oxytocin, Psychotropic Drugs, Sex Characteristics, Social Behavior, Neuroimaging
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