Oxytocin and ResilienceOxytocin and Resilience

OxytocinOxytocinThe “Love Hormone”

◦Trust◦Positive feelings◦Anxiolytic◦Sex and pair bonding◦Empathy

Produced: HypothalamusReleased: Posterior PituitaryGq – PLC/IP3 pathway

Traumatic

Scantamburlo 07

Anxiety

Depression

R=-0.58R2=0.33P=0.003

R=-0.61R2=0.37P=0.005

Chaviaras 10

Oxytocin agonistUsed in humans

Less locomotion when given i.p.?

Stress

HPA axis

Hypothalamus

Pituitary

Adrenal

Stress

HPA axis

Different PolymorphismsDifferent PolymorphismsChen 2011

◦ Rs53576 GG GA AA

Thompson 2011◦ Rs2254298

GG GA

Thompson 11Thompson 11

Mother with depression?

Rs2254298?

Hi / Low adversity + / - polymorphisim

Environment x Genetics

Thompson 11

Receptor PolymorphismReceptor PolymorphismRs53576

◦Adenosine (A) instead of a Guanine (G)

◦Opposite effect of adding Oxytocin

◦Non-coding intron mutation! “the genetic variant investigated in this

study in likely a marker for still-unidentified functional variants of the gene”

Chen 11

Hardy-Weinberg Hardy-Weinberg equilibriumequilibrium

%

Chen 11

Meanwhile in Germany…Meanwhile in Germany…

Social Support NO Social Support

N = 203

Chen 11

Trier Social Stress for Groups

Chen 11

*

Chen 11

Take homeTake homeOxytocin has

antidepressant/anxiolytic action◦Promotes resilience

Responsible for positive effects of social support

Receptor polymorphisms appear to confer a loss of function