An animal study led by the Central Institute of Mental Health (ZI) in Mannheim shows that the neuropeptide oxytocin specifically promotes social rapprochement via a circuit in the medial prefrontal cortex. This effect is maintained even under physical stress such as hunger. The results were published in Nature Communications.

Using optogenetic methods, the international team of researchers triggered a local oxytocin release from nerve fibers that travel from the hypothalamus to the medial prefrontal cortex. In female rats, this targeted release led to a significant increase in social interactions. This was the first to identify a cortical circuit that responds directly to oxytocin and controls prosocial behavior.

The focus is on inhibitory interneurons with oxytocin receptors. These cells dampen the activity of main nerve cells that transmit signals to the amygdala – an area of the brain that is crucial for processing fear and stress. This targeted inhibition of fear-related networks increases the willingness to approach socially.

It is noteworthy that the prosocial effect persisted even under hunger. Normally, social needs in such situations compete with basic survival motives such as foraging. The results suggest that this neural circuit maintains social behavior even in the face of competing physical needs.

The findings provide new clues to how oxytocin modulates social behavior, empathy, trust, and social decision-making in the brain. Many mental illnesses such as anxiety disorders, autism spectrum disorders, depression or schizophrenia are associated with impairments in social behavior. A better understanding of the cellular and anatomical targets of oxytocin could therefore contribute to improved therapies.

In addition to the ZI, researchers from the Medical Faculty of Heidelberg, the Universities of Strasbourg (France), Haifa (Israel) and Krakow (Poland) were involved in the study. The work was initiated more than a decade ago by Prof. Dr. Valery Grinevich at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research in Heidelberg and has now been continued at the ZI.

Original Paper:

Oxytocin facilitates social behavior of female rats via selective modulation of interneurons in the medial prefrontal cortex | Nature Communications

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