Grant: Operating Grant

Interpersonal functioning is integral to mental and physical health. Research on the biopsychosocial basis of affiliation offers important insight into the pathophysiology of mental disorders associated with social dysfunction, such as major depression. One neuropeptide (small protein-like molecules used by brain neurons to communicate with each other), oxytocin, is widely believed to have a central role in promoting affiliative behavior. However, recent studies in humans, using a nasal spray administration, have reported mixed findings with respect to the purported positive social effects of oxytocin. We propose that the response to the administration of an oxytocin nasal spray can be used to assess for abnormalities in the oxytocin system in persons at risk for depression. More specifically, we will attempt, for the first time, to link oxytocin-induced changes in how people perceive and interpret emotional pictures to future changes in their interpersonal relations and clinical symptoms. The study will track social behavior in previously-depressed and never-depressed healthy young adults for 18 months, and will assess whether the cognitive response to oxytocin can predict interpersonal difficulties and symptoms of depression six to 18 months later. The proposed research is important because it is the first study to explicitly assess the clinical relevance of studying challenges to this important neurobiological system. It represents a novel approach to studying interpersonal vulnerability, and has important implications for understanding depression. If the response to an oxytocin challenge signifies vulnerability for interpersonal problems and depression, the procedure could be used in the context of identifying people who would benefit from preventative interventions.