The DOI matches its Crossref record; 48 of the 48 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Oxytocin receptor genetic variation relates to empathy and stress reactivity in humans
Open accessAbstract
Oxytocin, a peptide that functions as both a hormone and neurotransmitter, has broad influences on social and emotional processing throughout the body and the brain. In this study, we tested how a polymorphism (rs53576) of the oxytocin receptor relates to two key social processes related to oxytocin: empathy and stress reactivity. Compared with individuals homozygous for the G allele of rs53576 (GG), individuals with one or two copies of the A allele (AG/AA) exhibited lower behavioral and dispositional empathy, as measured by the “Reading the Mind in the Eyes” Test and an other-oriented empathy scale. Furthermore, AA/AG individuals displayed higher physiological and dispositional stress reactivity than GG individuals, as determined by heart rate response during a startle anticipation task and an affective reactivity scale. Our results provide evidence of how a naturally occurring genetic variation of the oxytocin receptor relates to both empathy and stress profiles.
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“Indeed, intranasal administration of oxytocin in humans promotes trust and cooperation (11, 16–19), although such effects may be limited to in-group members and do not extend toward out-groups (16, 17).”
From Oxytocin promotes human ethnocentrism (2011) · cites this paper as [11]
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In the citing paper
“Results from studies in non-ASD populations have also linked OXTR polymorphisms to other measures of social behavior, such as empathy13, prosocial temperament14, and pair-bonding behavior15.”
From Effect of age and autism spectrum disorder on oxytocin receptor density in the human basal forebrain and midbrain (2018) · cites this paper as [13]
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In the citing paper
“Variation in OXTR SNPs has been linked to the ability to identify emotions and empathic concern (29)”
From Variation in the β-endorphin, oxytocin, and dopamine receptor genes is associated with different dimensions of human sociality (2017) · cites this paper as [29]
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“A polymorphic region of the oxytocin receptor (OXTR) in humans has been associated with empathy and stress reactivity [73].”
From Gestational Exposure to Low Dose Bisphenol A Alters Social Behavior in Juvenile Mice (2011) · cites this paper as [73]
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“There is no doubt that oxytocin is implicated in the development of trust (10, 18), empathy, and prosociality (11), but these tendencies appear limited to individuals belonging to one's in-group (16, 17).”
From Oxytocin promotes human ethnocentrism (2011) · cites this paper as [11]
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In the citing paper
“Functioning as both a neurotransmitter and a hormone, oxytocin's targets are widespread and include the hippocampus and the amygdala (10–12).”
From Oxytocin promotes human ethnocentrism (2011) · cites this paper as [11]
In the citing paper
“men and women carrying one or two copies of the A allele in the most common SNP, rs53576, show reduced empathy (Rodrigues et al., 2009; Uzefovsky et al., 2015)”
From Vasopressin and oxytocin receptor systems in the brain: Sex differences and sex-specific regulation of social behavior (2016) · cites this paper as Rodrigues et al., 2009
In the citing paper
“Already there are many indications that stable individual differences in prosocial tendencies have a genetic root and that they correspond to polymorphisms in the oxytocin receptor (OXTR) gene.”
From The effect of oxytocin on cooperation in a prisoner's dilemma depends on the social context and a person's social value orientation (2014) · cites this paper as Rodrigues et al., 2009
In the citing paper
“A number of single-nucleotide polymorphisms have been associated with differences in prosociality (Bakermans-Kranenburg & Van Ijzendoorn, 2008, Rodrigues et al., 2009;Riem et al.,2010;Tost et al., 2010).”
From The effect of oxytocin on cooperation in a prisoner's dilemma depends on the social context and a person's social value orientation (2014) · cites this paper as Rodrigues et al., 2009
In the citing paper
“Further, variations of the oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) have been associated with individual differences in the capacity and tendency to empathize with others’ emotional states in healthy individuals25–30 and related brain function in individuals with ASD31.”
From Randomized clinical trial shows no substantial modulation of empathy-related neural activation by intranasal oxytocin in autism (2021) · cites this paper as [25]
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Citations
Cites
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“The empathy and stress reactivity used in this study vary systematically in healthy human populations in other studies (27, 30, 32, 35).”
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The oxytocin receptor gene predicts brain activity during an emotion recognition task in autism
Uzefovsky, F., Bethlehem, R. A. I., Shamay-Tsoory, S., Ruigrok, A., Holt, R., Spencer, M., Chura, L., Warrier, V., Chakrabarti, B., Bullmore, E., et al. (2019) · Molecular Autism · doi:10.1186/s13229-019-0258-4 · Cited by 49
The role of oxytocin in mothers’ theory of mind and interactive behavior during the perinatal period
MacKinnon, A. L., Gold, I., Feeley, N., Hayton, B., Carter, C. S., & Zelkowitz, P. (2014) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2014.06.003 · Cited by 47
Who is to blame? Oxytocin promotes nonpersonalistic attributions in response to a trust betrayal
Klackl, J., Pfundmair, M., Agroskin, D., & Jonas, E. (2013) · Biological Psychology · doi:10.1016/j.biopsycho.2012.11.010 · Cited by 47
Shao, D., Zhang, H.-H., Long, Z.-T., Li, J., Bai, H.-Y., Li, J.-J., & Cao, F.-L. (2018) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2018.06.002 · Cited by 37
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Flasbeck, V., Moser, D., Kumsta, R., & Brüne, M. (2018) · Frontiers in Psychiatry · doi:10.3389/fpsyt.2018.00359 · Cited by 34
Montag, C., Sauer, C., Reuter, M., & Kirsch, P. (2013) · European Archives of Psychiatry and Clinical Neuroscience · doi:10.1007/s00406-013-0452-x · Cited by 32
Helping behavior in prairie voles: a model of empathy and the importance of oxytocin
Kitano, K., Yamagishi, A., Horie, K., Nishimori, K., & Sato, N. (2022) · iScience · doi:10.1016/j.isci.2022.103991 · Cited by 31
Kushner, S. C., Herzhoff, K., Vrshek‐Schallhorn, S., & Tackett, J. L. (2018) · Aggressive Behavior · doi:10.1002/ab.21724 · Cited by 31
Malik, A. I., Zai, C. C., Berall, L., Abu, Z., Din, F., Nowrouzi, B., Chen, S., & Beitchman, J. H. (2014) · Psychiatric Genetics · doi:10.1097/ypg.0000000000000044 · Cited by 29
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Harrison, A. J., Gamsiz, E. D., Berkowitz, I. C., Nagpal, S., & Jerskey, B. A. (2015) · American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B: Neuropsychiatric Genetics · doi:10.1002/ajmg.b.32377 · Cited by 26
Monin, J. K., Goktas, S. O., Kershaw, T., & DeWan, A. (2019) · PLOS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0213083 · Cited by 26
Oxytocin promotes altruistic punishment
Aydogan, G., Furtner, N. C., Kern, B., Jobst, A., Müller, N., & Kocher, M. G. (2017) · Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience · doi:10.1093/scan/nsx101 · Cited by 25
Mayer, A. V., Wermter, A.-K., Stroth, S., Alter, P., Haberhausen, M., Stehr, T., Paulus, F. M., Krach, S., & Kamp-Becker, I. (2021) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-021-94407-x · Cited by 23
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Metadata
- Authors
- Rodrigues, S. M., Saslow, L. R., Garcia, N., John, O. P., & Keltner, D.
- Affiliations
- Oregon State University (US)
- University of California, Berkeley (US)
- Venue
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
- Publisher
- National Academy of Sciences
- Published
- 2009-12-15
- Volume
- 106
- Issue
- 50
- Pages
- 21437-21441
- ISSN
- 0027-8424 (ISSN-L)
- 1091-6490
- PMC
- PMC2795557
- OpenAlex
- W2156891942
- Cited by
- 812
- References
- 48
- Citations by year
- 2026: 14 · 2025: 13 · 2024: 30 · 2023: 28 · 2022: 22 · 2021: 46 · 2020: 67 · 2019: 56 · 2018: 69 · 2017: 61 · 2016: 72 · 2015: 76 · 2014: 74 · 2013: 57 · 2012: 58
- FWCI
- 55.06
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Behavioral Neuroscience › Stress Responses and Cortisol
- Keywords
- oxytocin receptor, genetic variation, empathy, stress reactivity, heart rate response, emotional reactivity, social behavior, dispositional traits
- MeSH terms
- Emotions, Empathy, Female, Genotype, Humans, Male, Polymorphism, Genetic, Social Perception, Stress, Physiological, Receptors, Oxytocin, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Young Adult
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