Oxytocin enhances attentional bias for neutral and positive expression faces in individuals with higher autistic traits

Lei, Xu; Ma, Xiaole; Zhao, Weihua; Luo, Li; Yao, Shuxia; Kendrick, Keith M.

doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2015.09.002

Cited by 41 publications

(43 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…16 Together, these findings support the assumption that oxytocin may selectively increase the salience of social information in individuals with low socio-cognitive abilities. 17 As a novel finding, the improvement in social attention in ASD by oxytocin was influenced by individual levels of social anxiety.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 67%

“…Notably, oxytocin effects on attention 16 and empathic accuracy 17 were shown to be particularly pronounced in healthy individuals with higher autistic traits. In persons diagnosed with ASD, intranasally administered oxytocin seems to facilitate social interactions and feelings of trust, 18 promote mentalizing abilities based on facial features 19, 20, 21 and to increase eye gaze.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

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Restoring effects of oxytocin on the attentional preference for faces in autism

et al. 2017

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Reduced attentional preference for faces and symptoms of social anxiety are common in autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). The neuropeptide oxytocin triggers anxiolytic functions and enhances eye gaze, facial emotion recognition and neural correlates of face processing in ASD. Here we investigated whether a single dose of oxytocin increases attention to faces in ASD. As a secondary question, we explored the influence of social anxiety on these effects. We tested for oxytocin's effects on attention to neutral faces as compared to houses in a sample of 29 autistic individuals and 30 control participants using a dot-probe paradigm with two different presentation times (100 or 500 ms). A single dose of 24 IU oxytocin was administered in a randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled, cross-over design. Under placebo, ASD individuals paid less attention to faces presented for 500 ms than did controls. Oxytocin administration increased the allocation of attention toward faces in ASD to a level observed in controls. Secondary analyses revealed that these oxytocin effects primarily occurred in ASD individuals with high levels of social anxiety who were characterized by attentional avoidance of faces under placebo. Our results confirm a positive influence of intranasal oxytocin on social attention processes in ASD. Further, they suggest that oxytocin may in particular restore the attentional preference for facial information in ASD individuals with high social anxiety. We conclude that oxytocin's anxiolytic properties may partially account for its positive effects on socio-cognitive functioning in ASD, such as enhanced eye gaze and facial emotion recognition.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 67%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Restoring effects of oxytocin on the attentional preference for faces in autism

et al. 2017

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“…Based on the titles and abstracts, 68 studies were rejected . Based on full text review of the remaining 12 studies, five were rejected for being short‐term studies (less than a month), while one was rejected for not being a randomized controlled trial . The rejected studies are presented in Table S1.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Systematic review and meta‐analysis of reported adverse events of long‐term intranasal oxytocin treatment for autism spectrum disorder

Cai

Feng

Yap

2018

Psychiatry Clin Neurosci

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Recent studies have suggested oxytocin as a possible drug to treat social deficits caused by autism spectrum disorder (ASD), but the safety of intranasal oxytocin in autistic patients has not been established. The aim of this review was to characterize the side-effect profile of long-term intranasal oxytocin in treatment of ASD compared to placebo. All randomized controlled trials of intranasal oxytocin in the treatment of ASD published before 1 January 2017 that reported safety data were identified from databases, including PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, and International Pharmaceutical Abstract. Relevant data from the selected studies were then extracted for meta-analysis to estimate the pooled risk ratio for the most common adverse events. Descriptive analysis of severe adverse events was also conducted. Of the 223 participants in the five included studies, 123 were given oxytocin and 100 were given placebos. Nasal discomfort (14.3%), tiredness (7.2%), irritability (9.0%), diarrhea (4.5%), and skin irritation (4.5%) were the most common adverse events. None of these common adverse events was statistically associated with treatment allocation according to meta-analysis using pooled data (all P-values > 0.1). Five severe adverse events were reported, namely aggression (one in placebo, two in oxytocin) and seizures (one in placebo, one in oxytocin). Results from this systematic review support intranasal oxytocin as well tolerated and safe for use in the ASD population. Larger clinical trials should be conducted to establish the efficacy of intranasal oxytocin as a treatment of ASD.

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“…187 Several studies have also shown that autistic-like traits moderate OT effects, though the direction of effects vary. For example, among individuals with greater autistic traits (i.e., poorer social cognitive skills), IN OT has shown both stronger social effects, including improved empathic accuracy 188 and attention toward positive faces, 189 as well as blunted effects on perceived hedonic value of interpersonal touch 190 and reversed effects on consumers’ relationships with brands. 191 …”

Section: Moderating Factorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Oxytocin and Stress-related Disorders: Neurobiological Mechanisms and Treatment Opportunities

Sippel

Allington²,

Pietrzak

et al. 2017

Chronic Stress

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Novel pharmacotherapies that improve outcomes for individuals with stress-related psychiatric disorders are needed. The neurohormone oxytocin (OT) is a promising candidate given its influence on the social–emotional brain. In this review, we present an overview of evidence supporting OT’s utility for treating major depressive disorder and posttraumatic stress disorder. We first discuss endogenous OT, which research suggests is not yet a reliable biomarker of stress-related disorders. Second, we review effects of intranasal (IN) OT on processes relevant to stress-related disorders in healthy populations (anhedonia, reward processing, psychosocial stress reactivity, fear/anxiety, and social behavior) and their neurobiological mechanisms (e.g., the salience network and hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis). Third, we present the sparse but promising findings from clinical populations, followed by discussion of critical moderating variables to consider in the service of maximizing the therapeutic potential of OT (e.g., patient sex and child maltreatment). We also identify heterogeneous findings and limitations of existing research, including reliance on single-dose studies in psychiatrically healthy samples and unanswered questions regarding the effectiveness of IN drug delivery and dosing schedules. Well-controlled multidose studies including women and measures of potentially moderating variables are sorely needed and would inform our understanding of the utility of OT for preventing and treating stress-related psychiatric disorders.

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Oxytocin enhances attentional bias for neutral and positive expression faces in individuals with higher autistic traits

Cited by 41 publications

References 29 publications

Restoring effects of oxytocin on the attentional preference for faces in autism

Restoring effects of oxytocin on the attentional preference for faces in autism

Systematic review and meta‐analysis of reported adverse events of long‐term intranasal oxytocin treatment for autism spectrum disorder

Oxytocin and Stress-related Disorders: Neurobiological Mechanisms and Treatment Opportunities

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