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The role of oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR) DNA methylation (DNAm) in human social and emotional functioning: a systematic narrative review
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: The neuropeptide Oxytocin (OXT) plays a central role in birthing, mother-infant bonding and a broad range of related social behaviours in mammals. More recently, interest has extended to epigenetic programming of genes involved in oxytocinergic neurotransmission. This review brings together early findings in a rapidly developing field of research, examining relationships between DNA methylation (DNAm) of the Oxytocin Receptor Gene (OXTR) and social and emotional behaviour in human populations. METHOD: A systematic search across Web of Knowledge/Science, Scopus, Medline and EMBASE captured all published studies prior to June 2017 examining the association between OXTR DNAm and human social and emotional outcomes. Search terms included 'oxytocin gene' or 'oxytocin receptor gene' and 'epigenetics' or 'DNA methylation'. Any article with a focus on social and emotional functioning was then identified from this set by manual review. RESULTS: Nineteen studies met eligibility criteria. There was considerable heterogeneity of study populations, tissue samples, instrumentation, measurement, and OXTR site foci. Only three studies examined functional consequences of OXTR DNAm on gene expression and protein synthesis. Increases in OXTR DNAm were associated with callous-unemotional traits in youth, social cognitive deficits in Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD), rigid thinking in anorexia nervosa, affect regulation problems, and problems with facial and emotional recognition. In contrast, reductions in DNAm were associated with perinatal stress, postnatal depression, social anxiety and autism in children. CONCLUSIONS: Consistent with an emerging field of inquiry, there is not yet sufficient evidence to draw conclusions about the role of OXTR DNAm in human social and emotional behaviour. However, taken together, findings point to increased OXTR DNAm in general impairments in social, cognitive and emotional functioning, and decreased OXTR DNAm in specific patterns of impairment related to mood and anxiety disorders (but not in all). Future progress in this field would be enhanced by adequately powered designs, greater phenotypic precision, and methodological improvements including longitudinal studies with multiple time-points to facilitate causal inference.
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“In the endocrine system, OXT is secreted by the posterior pituitary into the bloodstream to support reproductive processes like uterine contraction and lactation (Grewen et al., 2010; Maud et al., 2018).”
From Music's context-dependent influence on oxytocin, social bonding, and emotion regulation: a systematic review (2026) · cites this paper as Maud et al., 2018
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“Genetic variants, including single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), in the OXTR have been shown to independently influence gene expression and been associated with human emotional responsiveness and social behaviour [23].”
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“with ASD reported associations with rs7632287, rs237887, rs2268491 and rs2254298 [33].”
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“istic spectrum disorder (ASD) [24], depressed women and their families [25] and with smaller bilateral amygdala volumes and greater grey matter volumes in a brain”
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“This has led to the development of OXT treatments including using nasal OXT to increase attachment security in healthy males with an insecure attachment pattern [9] and improved social engagement between fathers and their infants [10].”
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“imaging study [26], while rs237887 has been associated with human social recognition skills [27].”
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“concentrations also correlate with cerebrospinal concentrations and with childhood anxiety [17].”
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“In contrast, reduced OXTR DNAm has been associated within indicators of perinatal stress [55], postnatal depression [56], social anxiety [53] and autism in children [60].”
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“These include positive associations between OXTR DNAm and callous-unemotional traits in youth [47, 58], social cognitive deficits in ASD [45, 46], rigid thinking in anorexia nervosa [49], affect regulation problems [41, 57] and mood deficits [38–40] as well as limbic regions linked with facial and emotional recognitio…”
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“These include positive associations between OXTR DNAm and callous-unemotional traits in youth [47, 58], social cognitive deficits in ASD [45, 46], rigid thinking in anorexia nervosa [49], affect regulation problems [41, 57] and mood deficits [38–40] as well as limbic regions linked with facial and emotional recognitio…”
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“The common embryological origin of brain and buccal cells suggests that these two cell types may have more in common than blood cells, and that using buccal cells as a peripheral biomarker might provide a closer approximation to central brain processes, relative to other cell types [61].”
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“imaging study [26], while rs237887 has been associated with human social recognition skills [27].”
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“reported associations for mood disorders are in both direction, which may reflect striking differences between studies, including type of mood disorder under investigation, epigenome regions studied, underlying variation in genotypic and hormonal factors [39, 56] as well as the effect of aging [38].”
BackgroundResultOxytocin receptor DNA methylation in postpartum depression
Kimmel, M., Clive, M. L., Gispen, F. E., Guintivano, J., Brown, T., Cox, O., Beckmann, M. W., Kornhuber, J., Fasching, P. A., Osborne, L. M., et al. (2016) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2016.04.008 · Cited by 118 · cited 3×
“reported associations for mood disorders are in both direction, which may reflect striking differences between studies, including type of mood disorder under investigation, epigenome regions studied, underlying variation in genotypic and hormonal factors [39, 56] as well as the effect of aging [38].”
BackgroundResultOxytocin indexes relational distress following interpersonal harms in women
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“and with specific types of relationship stress in women [18].”
BackgroundPolymorphisms in the oxytocin receptor gene are associated with the development of psychopathy
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“Only rs1042778 replicated an association with high CU traits across sexes and between childhood versus adolescent age groups within 2 separated geographical groups [59].”
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“This finding is in contrast to the other studies of depression where associations were found between OXTR DNAm and depression risk for individuals with the rs53576 A allele [38, 40], possibly accounted for by hormonal differences compared to mood disorders at differing times in the life-cycle.”
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“In mouse models, OXTR DNAm patterns have been correlated with differential OXTR expression in different body tissues [35].”
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“Rs2254298 (G > A) has also been associated with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) [24], depressed women and their families [25] and with smaller bilateral amygdala volumes and greater grey matter volumes in a brain imaging study [26], while rs237887 has been associated with human social recognition skills [27].”
BackgroundResultInfluentialKim, Y.-R., Kim, J.-H., Kim, M. J., & Treasure, J. (2014) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0088673 · Cited by 97 · cited 2×
“These include positive associations between OXTR DNAm and callous-unemotional traits in youth [47, 58], social cognitive deficits in ASD [45, 46], rigid thinking in anorexia nervosa [49], affect regulation problems [41, 57] and mood deficits [38–40] as well as limbic regions linked with facial and emotional recognitio…”
BackgroundThe role of longitudinal cohort studies in epigenetic epidemiology: challenges and opportunities
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Epigenetic evidence for involvement of the oxytocin receptor gene in obsessive–compulsive disorder
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“gion from blood and anxiety disorders were identified [53, 54].”
BackgroundReiner, I., Van IJzendoorn, M. H., Bakermans-Kranenburg, M. J., Bleich, S., Beutel, M., & Frieling, H. (2015) · Journal of Psychiatric Research · doi:10.1016/j.jpsychires.2015.03.012 · Cited by 83 · cited 5×
“compared OXTR DNAm in PBMCs between depressed pre-menopausal women and non-depressed age-matched controls [40].”
BackgroundResultInfluentialMizumoto, Y., Kimura, T., & Ivell, R. (1997) · Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology · doi:10.1016/s0303-7207(97)00195-0 · Cited by 79 · cited 1×
“In human samples, a region within the OXTR third intron between regions encoding trans-membrane domains 6 and 7, has been shown to be hyper-methylated within non-expressing tissues, but hypo-methylated in the uterine myometrium at term, when OXT is up-regulated for the birthing process [21].”
BackgroundMaternal adversities during pregnancy and cord blood oxytocin receptor (OXTR) DNA methylation
Unternaehrer, E., Bolten, M., Nast, I., Staehli, S., Meyer, A. H., Dempster, E., Hellhammer, D. H., Lieb, R., & Meinlschmidt, G. (2016) · Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience · doi:10.1093/scan/nsw051 · Cited by 75 · cited 2×
“also investigated OXTR DNAm in the cord blood of 39 infants born to mothers who had completed psychological testing and saliva cortisol testing during the second and third trimesters of their pregnancies [55].”
BackgroundMethodRubin, L. H., Connelly, J. J., Reilly, J. L., Carter, C. S., Drogos, L. L., Pournajafi‐Nazarloo, H., Ruocco, A. C., Keedy, S., Matthew, I., Tandon, N., et al. (2015) · Biological Psychiatry Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroimaging · doi:10.1016/j.bpsc.2015.10.003 · Cited by 72 · cited 5×
“Two studies investigated a possible association between DNAm changes at the OXTR and subsequent oxytocin neuropeptide synthesis [47, 48].”
BackgroundResultInfluentialThe altered promoter methylation of oxytocin receptor gene in autism
Yüksel, M. E., Yücetürk, B., Karataş, Ö. F., Özen, M., & Doğangün, B. (2016) · Journal of Neurogenetics · doi:10.1080/01677063.2016.1202951 · Cited by 68 · cited 3×
“In contrast, reduced OXTR DNAm has been associated within indicators of perinatal stress [55], postnatal depression [56], social anxiety [53] and autism in children [60].”
BackgroundResultLoth, E., Poline, J.-B., Thyreau, B., Jia, T., Tao, C., Lourdusamy, A., Stacey, D., Cattrell, A., Desrivières, S., Ruggeri, B., et al. (2014) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2013.07.043 · Cited by 65 · cited 1×
“G) has been associated with reduced positivity [28], reduced empathy [29] and decreased parental sensitivity [30] while rs1042778 has been associated with reduced parenting sensitivity [31] and rs237915 has been associated with brain responsiveness to social cues [32].”
BackgroundHarony-Nicolas, H., Mamrut, S., Brodsky, L., Shahar-Gold, H., Barki-Harrington, L., & Wagner, S. (2014) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.10.004 · Cited by 61 · cited 1×
“In different brain areas, differing DNAm at specific CpG regions within the OXTR occurred with differential expression of OXTR [36].”
BackgroundThe role of longitudinal cohort studies in epigenetic epidemiology: challenges and opportunities
Ng, J., Barrett, L. M., Wong, A., et al. (2012) · Genome biology · doi:10.1186/gb4029 · Cited by 48
Understanding the Oxytocin System and Its Relevance to Psychiatry
Shamay‐Tsoory, S., & Young, L. J. (2015) · Biological Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2015.10.014 · Cited by 41
Endocrinologic Control of Food Intake
Uvnäs‐Moberg, K. (2009) · Nutrition Reviews · doi:10.1111/j.1753-4887.1990.tb02906.x · Cited by 13
Research works printed but not linked: 1
- Uvnas-Moberg K, Petersson M. Oxytocin, a mediator of anti-stress, well-being, social interaction, growth and healing. Z Psychosom Med Psychother. 2005;51(1):57–80.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
DNA methylation and regulation of gene expression: Guardian of our health
Dhar, G. A., Saha, S., Mitra, P., & Chaudhuri, R. N. (2021) · The Nucleus · doi:10.1007/s13237-021-00367-y · Cited by 260
Childhood maltreatment and DNA methylation: A systematic review
Cecil, C. A. M., Zhang, Y., & Nolte, T. (2020) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2020.02.019 · Cited by 186
Advances in human oxytocin measurement: challenges and proposed solutions
Tabak, B. A., Leng, G., Szeto, A., Parker, K. J., Verbalis, J. G., Ziegler, T. E., Lee, M. R., Neumann, I. D., & Mendez, A. J. (2023) · Molecular Psychiatry · doi:10.1038/s41380-022-01719-z · Cited by 170
“Reviews of these approaches typically note that understanding interactions with endogenous oxytocin would be of significant value [68, 79, 86].”
BackgroundOxytocin and the Neurobiology of Prosocial Behavior
Marsh, N., Marsh, A. A., Lee, M. R., & Hurlemann, R. (2020) · The Neuroscientist · doi:10.1177/1073858420960111 · Cited by 159
The physiology and pharmacology of oxytocin in labor and in the peripartum period
Uvnäs-Moberg, K. (2024) · American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology · doi:10.1016/j.ajog.2023.04.011 · Cited by 118
Metadata
- Authors
- Maud, C., Ryan, J., McIntosh, J. E., & Olsson, C. A.
- Affiliations
- Deakin University (AU)
- Royal Children's Hospital (AU)
- Corresponding author
- Maud, Catherine
- Venue
- BMC Psychiatry
- Published
- 2018-05-29
- Volume
- 18
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 154-154
- ISSN
- 1471-244X (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC5975530
- OpenAlex
- W2805059767
- Cited by
- 151
- References
- 68
- Citations by year
- 2026: 19 · 2025: 17 · 2024: 15 · 2023: 20 · 2022: 19 · 2021: 24 · 2020: 22 · 2019: 9 · 2018: 5
- FWCI
- 2.27
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- BMC Psychiatry (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Monash University Research Portal (Monash University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Minerva Access (University of Melbourne) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Figshare (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Epigenetics and DNA Methylation
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
- Keywords
- oxytocin receptor gene, oxytocin receptor, DNA methylation, epigenetics, oxytocin, social behavior, emotional functioning, callous-unemotional traits, autism spectrum disorder, anorexia nervosa, emotion regulation, perinatal stress, postpartum depression, social anxiety, mood disorders
- MeSH terms
- Cognition, Emotions, Humans, Synaptic Transmission, Oxytocin, Social Behavior, Receptors, Oxytocin, DNA Methylation, Gene Expression Profiling, Epigenomics
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