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Study · Randomized controlled trial · n = 47 · 2024

2 results

Connectome dysfunction in patients at clinical high risk for psychosis and modulation by oxytocin.

Davies C, Martins D, Dipasquale O, McCutcheon RA, De Micheli A, Ramella-Cravaro V, Provenzani U, Rutigliano G, Cappucciati M, Oliver D, Williams S, Zelaya F and 8 more

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Allen P, Murguia S, Taylor D, Shergill S, Morrison P, McGuire P, Paloyelis Y, Fusar-Poli P

Molecular psychiatry19 Jan 2024Cited by 9 (Europe PMC)

PMID38243074 (opens in a new tab)PMCIDPMC11189815 (opens in a new tab)DOI10.1038/s41380-024-02406-x (opens in a new tab)PepBankPUB-38243074
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Summary

Abnormalities in functional brain networks (functional connectome) are increasingly implicated in people at Clinical High Risk for Psychosis (CHR-P). Intranasal oxytocin, a potential novel treatment for the CHR-P state, modulates network topology in healthy individuals. However, its connectomic effects in people at CHR-P remain unknown. Forty-seven men (30 CHR-P and 17 healthy controls) received acute challenges of both intranasal oxytocin 40 IU and placebo in two parallel randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled cross-over studies which had similar but not identical designs. Multi-echo resting-state fMRI data was acquired at approximately 1 h post-dosing. Using a graph theoretical approach, the effects of group (CHR-P vs healthy control), treatment (oxytocin vs placebo) and respective interactions were tested on graph metrics describing the topology of the functional connectome. Group effects were observed in 12 regions (all pFDR < 0.05) most localised to the frontoparietal network. Treatment effects were found in 7 regions (all pFDR < 0.05) predominantly within the ventral attention network. Our major finding was that many effects of oxytocin on network topology differ across CHR-P and healthy individuals, with significant interaction effects observed in numerous subcortical regions strongly implicated in psychosis onset, such as the thalamus, pallidum and nucleus accumbens, and cortical regions which localised primarily to the default mode network (12 regions, all pFDR < 0.05). Collectively, our findings provide new insights on aberrant functional brain network organisation associated with psychosis risk and demonstrate, for the first time, that oxytocin modulates network topology in brain regions implicated in the pathophysiology of psychosis in a clinical status (CHR-P vs healthy control) specific manner.
CC BYText from Europe PMC. Highlighted sentences are the source of results.

Results from this study2

2 results from studies that gave the peptide. 2 results from people.

  1. 01HumanRandomized controlled trialMechanism

    In men at clinical high risk for psychosis and healthy controls, intranasal oxytocin changed network topology in 7 brain regions compared with placebo, mainly in the ventral attention network.

    In plain wordsIn men, oxytocin changed how some brain regions connect compared with placebo, mostly in the ventral attention network.

    Peptide
    Oxytocin
    Outcome
    MixedFunctional connectome graph metrics, treatment effect
    Study

    n = 47

    Comparator
    Placebo
    Outcome group
    Brain and neuronal activity · Nervous system and cognition
    Studied dose
    40 IU · intranasal · acute challengeAs given in this study (human).

    Measurements

    Regions with treatment effect
    7 regions
    oxytocin vs placebo

    Source sentences

    Summary
    Treatment effects were found in 7 regions (all pFDR < 0.05) predominantly within the ventral attention network.
    1 context sentence
    Summary · context
    Forty-seven men (30 CHR-P and 17 healthy controls) received acute challenges of both intranasal oxytocin 40 IU and placebo in two parallel randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled cross-over studies which had similar but not identical designs.
  2. 02HumanRandomized controlled trialMechanism

    Oxytocin effects on network topology differed between men at clinical high risk for psychosis and healthy controls, with interaction effects in subcortical regions and in 12 cortical regions.

    In plain wordsIn men, oxytocin changed brain network patterns differently in people at high risk for psychosis than in healthy controls.

    Peptide
    Oxytocin
    Outcome
    MixedFunctional connectome graph metrics, group-by-treatment interaction
    Study

    n = 47

    Comparator
    Placebo
    Outcome group
    Brain and neuronal activity · Nervous system and cognition
    Studied dose
    40 IU · intranasal · acute challengeAs given in this study (human).

    Measurements

    Regions with interaction effect (default mode network)
    12 regions
    group by treatment

    Source sentences

    Summary
    many effects of oxytocin on network topology differ across CHR-P and healthy individuals, with significant interaction effects observed in numerous subcortical regions strongly implicated in psychosis onset, such as the thalamus, pallidum and nucleus accumbens, and cortical regions which localised primarily to the default mode network (12 regions, all pFDR < 0.05).
    1 context sentence
    Summary · context
    Forty-seven men (30 CHR-P and 17 healthy controls) received acute challenges of both intranasal oxytocin 40 IU and placebo in two parallel randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled cross-over studies which had similar but not identical designs.

AI wrote and checked these results. AI can make mistakes, so check important results against the source.

Version history

PepBank keeps every version of the data on this study. Status changes from Retraction Watch, Europe PMC and Crossref are listed with their source.

  1. Version 2Current

    11 Oct 2026, 00:50 UTC

    Study results updated

  2. Version 1

    9 Oct 2026, 02:48 UTC

    First added · source update from Europe PMC

Subjects

Terms as the source lists them.

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