OXYTOCIN, REWARD AND SOCIAL DECISION MAKING: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW (original) (raw)

Introduction: Decision making in social contexts comprises complex cognitive processes involving multiple neural circuits associated with the processing of emotions, motivational states, memories and reasoning. Such processes involve different neurotransmitter systems, in which the role of oxytocin has been recently highlighted. Oxytocin is a neuropeptide produced by the hypothalamus, initially implicated in the regulation of birth and maternal behavior, whose cognitive functions have been widely discussed, particularly in animal studies of social bonding. It is possible that oxytocin is envolved in social decision making through its actions in reward systems. For instance, oxytocin releasing in such areas might favor reward modulated social learning. Objective: To systematically review the literature regarding oxytocin interactions with reward circuits related to social decision-making processes in animal and human studies. Methodology: an eletronic search was performed on Medline database for original articles published in Portuguese or English, using the terms oxytocin, decision making, reward and social cognition. Results: The search retrieved 22 articles, out of which 12 were initially selected. The rejected manuscripts included 5 literature reviews and 4 papers that did not adress specifically the topics of interest. Among those selected, 8 were animal studies and 4 were human studies. All human studies consisted of randomized, double-blind studies. The main topics covered included the influence of oxytocin on the regulation of the amygdala and reward-related brain regions, as well as decision making and social cognition areas, through different experimental paradigms. Conclusion: several evidences indicate that oxytocin plays an important role in social decision-making processes. Among them, the expression of oxytocinergic receptors within brain areas associated with reward, spatial memory and social cognition, as well as increased social learning in nonhuman species. In humans, intranasal administration of oxytocin appears not only to increase the reward associated with cooperation, but also the creation and strengthening of intra-group cooperation rules. These studies show that oxytocin can be seen as a promising therapeutic alternative for several disorders where there is impairment of social cognition.