Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Hugh Robson Building, 15 George Square, Edinburgh EH8 9XD, UK.
Department of Science, Technology and Innovation Studies, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 2022 Aug 29;377(1858):20210055. doi: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0055. Epub 2022 Jul 11.
In this paper, we analyse the claim that oxytocin is a 'social neuropeptide'. This claim originated from evidence that oxytocin was instrumental in the initiation of maternal behaviour and it was extended to become the claim that oxytocin has a key role in promoting social interactions between individuals. We begin by considering the structure of the scientific literature on this topic, identifying closely interconnected clusters of papers on particular themes. We then analyse this claim by considering evidence of four types as generated by these clusters: (i) mechanistic studies in animal models, designed to understand the pathways involved in the behavioural effects of centrally administered oxytocin; (ii) evidence from observational studies indicating an association between oxytocin signalling pathways and social behaviour; (iii) evidence from intervention studies, mainly involving intranasal oxytocin administration; and (iv) evidence from translational studies of patients with disorders of social behaviour. We then critically analyse the most highly cited papers in each segment of the evidence; we conclude that, if these represent the best evidence, then the evidence for the claim is weak. This article is part of the theme issue 'Interplays between oxytocin and other neuromodulators in shaping complex social behaviours'.
本文分析了催产素是一种“社交神经肽”的说法。这一说法源于催产素在启动母性行为方面的作用的证据，并被扩展为催产素在促进个体之间的社交互动方面起着关键作用的说法。我们首先考虑了这个主题的科学文献的结构，确定了关于特定主题的紧密相互关联的论文群。然后，我们通过考虑这些群集中产生的四种类型的证据来分析这一说法：（i）在动物模型中进行的机制研究，旨在了解中枢给予催产素的行为效应所涉及的途径；（ii）表明催产素信号通路与社会行为之间存在关联的观察性研究证据；（iii）主要涉及鼻内催产素给药的干预研究证据；（iv）来自社交行为障碍患者的转化研究的证据。然后，我们对每个证据部分的高引用论文进行了批判性分析；我们的结论是，如果这些论文代表了最佳证据，那么这一说法的证据是薄弱的。本文是主题为“催产素和其他神经调质在塑造复杂社会行为中的相互作用”的一部分。
