Effects of Oxytocin on Reinforcement Learning and Interoception

University of Electronic Science and Technology of China

Status: Completed

Conditions: Healthy

Treatments: Drug: intranasal placebo; Drug: Intranasal oxytocin

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT05245708

UESTC-neuSCAN-83

Details and patient eligibility

About

The main aim of the study is to investigate whether intranasal oxytocin has effects on reinforcement learning under dynamic environment and interoceptive processing based on behavioral and electroencephalogram (EEG) responses.

Full description

A double-blinded, placebo-controled, between-subject design is employed in this study. In a randomized order, a total of 80 healthy males are instructed to self-administrated intranasal spray of oxytocin or placebo. (1) Participants first complete a probabilistic reward learning task 45 minutes after treatment with behavioral (response time and accuracy) and EEG data (ERP components such as FRN, ERN and P300) being collected during this task. (2) A resting-state recording and a heartbeat counting task are conducted following the learning task with ECG and EEG data being collected. Personality traits of subjects are assessed using validated Chinese version questionnaires including the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II), State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), Autism Spectrum Quotient (ASQ), the Cognitive Flexibility Inventory(CFI), Sensitivity to Punishment and Sensitivity to Reward Questionnaire (SPSRQ), Behavioral Inhibition System and Behavioral Activation System Scale (BIS/BAS). Subjects are asked to complete Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) when they just arrive, before and after the tasks.

Enrollment: 80 patients

Sex: Male

Ages: 18 to 28 years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Healthy subjects without any past or present psychiatric or neurological disorders.

Exclusion criteria

• History of brain injury medical or mental illness.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Basic Science

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Double Blind

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80 participants in 2 patient groups

oxytocin

Experimental group

Description:

a single dose of 24 international units (IU) of OT will be administered with 3 puffs of treatment to each nostril.

Treatment:

Drug: Intranasal oxytocin

placebo

Experimental group

Description:

a single dose of 24 international units (IU) of placebo will be administered with 3 puffs of treatment to each nostril.

Treatment:

Drug: intranasal placebo