Oxytocin and vasopressin: Signalling, behavioural modulation and potential therapeutic effects

Rae, Mariana; Duarte, Mariana Lemos; Gomes, Ivone; Camarini, Rosana; Devi, Lakshmi A.

doi:10.1111/bph.15481

Cited by 51 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 156 publications

(245 reference statements)

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“…Oxytocin may moderately increase in response to LSD-induced psychological stress. For example, oxytocin has been considered an anti-stress hormone ( Rae et al, 2021 ). Thus, the oxytocin response might be triggered by subjective LSD-induced effects rather than by a direct pharmacological effect of LSD.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Role of the 5-HT2A Receptor in Acute Effects of LSD on Empathy and Circulating Oxytocin

et al. 2021

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The psychedelic lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) has experienced a revival in research, including clinical trials that evaluate LSD-assisted psychotherapy. LSD induces perceptual alterations and influences emotion processing in ways that may support psychotherapy. Here, we investigated the effects of LSD on emotional empathy and mediating role of the serotonin 5-hydroxytryptamine-2A (5-HT2A) receptor by administering 25, 50, 100, and 200 µg LSD alone and 200 µg LSD combined with pretreatment with the 5-HT2A receptor antagonist ketanserin (40 mg) using a placebo-controlled, double-blind, random-order, crossover design in 16 healthy subjects. The Multifaceted Empathy Test (MET) was used to assess the effects of LSD on emotional empathy. Plasma oxytocin levels were also measured. LSD dose-dependently increased implicit and explicit emotional empathy, with the highest 200 µg LSD dose having a significant effect compared with placebo. The 200 µg dose of LSD also moderately increased plasma oxytocin levels compared with placebo. Ketanserin reduced the LSD-induced elevations of oxytocin but not the LSD-induced increases in emotional empathy. These findings confirm that LSD enhances empathy, and this effect may be partially independent of its primary action on 5-HT2A receptors to induce subjective psychedelic effects. In contrast, LSD-induced oxytocin release may depend on 5-HT2A receptor stimulation, which is consistent with the psychedelic effect of LSD. Further studies are needed to investigate whether LSD may also enhance empathy and potentially produce therapeutic effects in patients who have deficits in empathy and impairments in social functioning.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Role of the 5-HT2A Receptor in Acute Effects of LSD on Empathy and Circulating Oxytocin

et al. 2021

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“…The peptides AVP and OT are key hormones in the peripheral system and in the brain with largely opposite roles in modulating stress, anxiety, and social behaviors (Neumann and Landgraf, 2012). However, due to high sequence homology between both peptides and their receptors, there are many signaling interactions (Jurek and Neumann, 2018) but the conditions of their crosstalk remain in general unclear (Rae et al, 2021) and particularly in the process of childbirth (Wellmann and Bührer, 2012).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Vasopressin but Not Oxytocin Responds to Birth Stress in Infants

Malfertheiner¹,

Bataiosu-Zimmer²,

Michel

et al. 2021

Front. Neurosci.

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ContextBirth triggers a large fetal neuroendocrine response, which is more pronounced in infants born vaginally than in those born by elective cesarean section (ECS). The two related peptides arginine vasopressin (AVP) and oxytocin (OT) play an essential role in peripheral and central stress adaptation and have a shared receptor mediating their function. Elevated cord blood levels of AVP and its surrogate marker copeptin, the C-terminal part of AVP prohormone, have been found after vaginal delivery (VD) as compared to ECS, while release of OT in response to birth is controversial. Moreover, AVP, copeptin and OT have not yet been measured simultaneously at birth.ObjectiveTo test the hypothesis that AVP but not OT levels are increased in infants arterial umbilical cord blood in response to birth stress and to characterize AVP secretion in direct comparison with plasma copeptin.MethodsIn a prospective single-center cross-sectional study, we recruited healthy women with a singleton pregnancy and more than 36 completed weeks of gestation delivering via VD or ECS (cesarean without prior uterine contractions or rupture of membranes). Arterial umbilical cord blood samples were collected directly after birth, centrifuged immediately and plasma samples were frozen. Concentrations of AVP and OT were determined by radioimmunoassay and that of copeptin by ultrasensitive immunofluorescence assay.ResultsA total of 53 arterial umbilical cord blood samples were collected, n = 29 from VD and n = 24 from ECS. Ten venous blood samples from pregnant women without stress were collected as controls. AVP and copeptin concentrations were significantly higher in the VD group than in the ECS group (both p < 0.001), median (range) AVP 4.78 (2.38–8.66) vs. 2.38 (1.79–3.88) (pmol/L), copeptin 1692 (72.1–4094) vs. 5.78 (3.14–17.97), respectively, (pmol/L). In contrast, there was no difference in OT concentrations (pmol/L) between VD and ECS, 6.00 (2.71–7.69) vs. 6.14 (4.26–9.93), respectively. AVP and copeptin concentrations were closely related (Rs = 0.700, p < 0.001) while OT did not show any correlation to either AVP or copeptin. In linear regression models, vaginal delivery and biochemical stress indicators, base deficit and pH, were independent predictors for both AVP and copeptin. OT was not linked to base deficit or pH.ConclusionVaginal birth causes a profound secretion of AVP and copeptin in infants. Whereas AVP indicates acute stress events, copeptin provides information on cumulative stress events over a longer period. In contrast, fetal OT is unaffected by birth stress. Thus, AVP signaling but not OT mediates birth stress response in infants. This unique hormonal activation in early life may impact neurobehavioral development in whole life.

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“…Despite the increasing socioeconomic cost of these disorders, which even surpasses that of chronic somatic diseases, the development of novel pharmacotherapeutics for the management of mental illnesses has been slow over the last 30 years. However, some promising agents are emerging that may aid the management of these disorders, for example, the neuropeptide oxytocin (Martins et al, 2022) and agents that interact with the vasopressin system (Rae et al, 2022). As pleiotropic neuromodulators of the stress system, the oxytocin and vasopressin systems are considered promising targets or plasma biomarkers of autism spectrum disorder, schizophrenia and substance use disorder.…”

Section: Linked Articlesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Building Bridges In Neuropharmacology: New therapeutic approaches for psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders

Bailey

Berwick

Camarini

et al. 2022

British J Pharmacology

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Oxytocin and vasopressin: Signalling, behavioural modulation and potential therapeutic effects

Cited by 51 publications

References 156 publications

Role of the 5-HT2A Receptor in Acute Effects of LSD on Empathy and Circulating Oxytocin

Role of the 5-HT2A Receptor in Acute Effects of LSD on Empathy and Circulating Oxytocin

Vasopressin but Not Oxytocin Responds to Birth Stress in Infants

Building Bridges In Neuropharmacology: New therapeutic approaches for psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders

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