More than 20 years ago, an oxytocin/vasopressin-like peptide, CLITNCPRGamide, was isolated from the locust, Locusta migratoria [Proux JP, et al. (1987) Identification of an arginine vasopressin-like diuretic hormone from Locusta migratoria. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 149:180-186]. However, no similar peptide could be identified in other insects, nor could its prohormone be cloned, or its physio...

introduction: cardiac preconditioning represents the most potent and consistently reproducible method of rescuing heart tissue from undergoing irreversible ischemic damage. the aim of the present study was to evaluate oxytocin (ot) induced cardioprotection and its signaling pathways on lactate dehydrogenase (ldh) and creatine kinase-mb isoenzyme (ck-mb) in the anesthetized rats. methods: eighty...

Oxytocin is released in the maternal brain during breastfeeding and may help strengthen the mother-infant relationship. Here, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging to determine whether oxytocin modulates brain activity in postpartum day 4-8 dams receiving suckling stimulation. During imaging sessions, dams were exposed to pup suckling before and after administration of an oxytocin recep...

Oxytocin (OT) and vasopressin (VP) can profoundly affect animal physiology and behavior. Over the past 20 years, the genes that encode OT and VP, as well as their respective receptors, have been identified and intensively studied leading to a greater understanding of the hormones’ functions. The use of transgenic animals, including knockout mice, and viral vectors have opened new vistas of rese...

Gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) neurones constitute the final output pathway of a neuronal network that controls the preovulatory luteinising hormone (LH) surge and ovulation. Throughout the reproductive cycle, several neurotransmitters stimulate and inhibit the activity of GnRH neurones, including oxytocin. The central administration of oxytocin antiserum abolishes the pro-oestrous LH s...

Abstract Introduction: Occurrence of cardiac arrhythmias and myocardial infarction are two main deleterious events that are caused by ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury in the heart. Cardiac preconditioning represents the most potent method of rescuing heart tissue from undergoing irreversible ischemic damage. The aim of the present study was to evaluate oxytocin (OT) cardioprotective effect...

Oxytocin, a peptide that functions as both a hormone and neurotransmitter, has broad influences on social and emotional processing throughout the body and the brain. In this study, we tested how a polymorphism (rs53576) of the oxytocin receptor relates to two key social processes related to oxytocin: empathy and stress reactivity. Compared with individuals homozygous for the G allele of rs53576...

Nesfatin-1 is an 82-amino acid protein encoded by the nucleobindin2 gene. When injected intracerebroventricularly, nesfatin-1, via a melanocortin 3/4 receptor-dependent mechanism, potently decreased both food and water intakes and elevated mean arterial pressure in a dose-related manner. Because nesfatin-1 colocalized with oxytocin in hypothalamus and because nesfatin-1 had direct depolarizing ...

background: induction of ovulation in art is necessary for superovulation and the side effects of superovulatory drugs are debated. oxytocin as a natural hormone, have receptors and is synthesized by several reproductive organs. preovulatory presence of oxytocin receptor mrnas in granulosa cells indicating a role for oxytocin in follicular development. objective: the aim of the present study wa...

Beyond its role in parturition and lactation, oxytocin influences higher brain processes that control social behavior of mammals, and perturbed oxytocin signaling has been linked to the pathogenesis of several psychiatric disorders. However, it is still largely unknown how oxytocin exactly regulates neuronal function. We show that early, transient oxytocin exposure in vitro inhibits the develop...