title: Intranasal Oxytocin and Vasopressin Modulate Divergent Brainwide Functional Substrates.
abstract: The neuropeptides oxytocin (OXT) and vasopressin (AVP) have been identified as modulators of emotional social behaviors and associated with neuropsychiatric disorders characterized by social dysfunction. Experimental and therapeutic use of OXT and AVP via the intranasal route is the subject of extensive clinical research. However, the large-scale functional substrates directly engaged by these peptides and their functional dynamics remain elusive. By using cerebral blood volume (CBV) weighted fMRI in the mouse, we show that intranasal administration of OXT rapidly elicits the transient activation of cortical regions and a sustained activation of hippocampal and forebrain areas characterized by high oxytocin receptor density. By contrast, intranasal administration of AVP produced a robust and sustained deactivation in cortico-parietal, thalamic and mesolimbic regions. Importantly, intravenous administration of OXT and AVP did not recapitulate the patterns of modulation produced by intranasal dosing, supporting a central origin of the observed functional changes. In keeping with this notion, hippocampal local field potential recordings revealed multi-band power increases upon intranasal OXT administration. We also show that the selective OXT-derivative TGOT reproduced the pattern of activation elicited by OXT and that the deletion of OXT receptors does not affect AVP-mediated deactivation. Collectively, our data document divergent modulation of brainwide neural systems by intranasal administration of OXT and AVP, an effect that involves key substrates of social and emotional behavior. The observed divergence calls for a deeper investigation of the systems-level mechanisms by which exogenous OXT and AVP modulate brain function and exert their putative therapeutic effects.
authors.affiliation: Functional Neuroimaging Laboratory, Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems @UniTn, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Rovereto (TN), Italy.
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Galbusera
authors.affiliation: Functional Neuroimaging Laboratory, Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems @UniTn, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Rovereto (TN), Italy.
authors.forename: Alessia
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: De Felice
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Girardi
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
authors.forename: Giacomo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bassetto
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Maschietto
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Tohoku University, Miyagi, Japan.
authors.forename: Katsuhiko
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nishimori
authors.affiliation: CNR, Institute of Neuroscience, Milan, Italy.|Department of Biotechnology and Translational Medicine, University of Milan, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Bice
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Chini
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience and Brain Technologies, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy.
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Papaleo
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Vassanelli
authors.affiliation: Functional Neuroimaging Laboratory, Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems @UniTn, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Rovereto (TN), Italy.
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gozzi
mesh_terms: D000281:Administration, Intranasal; D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D010121:Oxytocin / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000378:metabolism; D014667:Vasopressins / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D014667:Vasopressins; D010121:Oxytocin