The Effects of Oxytocin on Complex Social Cognition in Autism Spectrum Disorders

March 22, 2021 updated by: Alexander Kolevzon
This study examines the effects of a single dose of intranasal oxytocin (vs. placebo) on complex social cognition in adults with autism spectrum disorders.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Participants receive a one-time administration of 24-IU intranasal oxytocin (or placebo) and perform an empathic accuracy task, a novel and ecologically valid measure of complex social cognition, in conjunction with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). The investigators will investigate the effects of oxytocin (versus placebo) on the behavioral and neural correlates of empathic accuracy.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
30

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Phase 2

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • New York
      • New York, New York, United States, 10029
        • Mount Sinai School of Medicine - Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

14 years to 41 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • In good physical health
  • Meet criteria for ASD according to psychiatric interview using the Diagnostic and Statistic Manual, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV)
  • Must be a history of developmental delay
  • Must meet full criteria for ASD on the Autism Diagnostic Interview- Revised (ADI-R) on either the social or communication domains and within two points on other domain (only if parent available for interview)
  • Must meet full criteria for ASD on the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule- Generic (ADOS-G) on the social domain. Meeting for ASD on the communication domain and total domain is not necessary
  • Must have a verbal IQ greater than 75, as measured by the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale- Fourth Edition (WAIS- III). Intelligence testing performed at other sites or through another protocol at this site within the past year will also be accepted
  • Capability of performing experimental tasks (i.e. can read and understand task instructions, cooperate with procedures)
  • Informed consent and capacity
  • Female participants must remain on birth control for the duration of the study

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Participants with any primary psychiatric diagnosis at screening
  • Participants with a medical history of neurological disease, including, but not limited to, epilepsy/seizure disorder (except simple febrile seizures), movement disorder, tuberous sclerosis, fragile X, and any other known genetic syndromes, or known abnormal MRI/structural lesion of the brain
  • Participants who are pregnant, who gave birth in the last six months, or who are currently breastfeeding
  • Participants with a medical condition that might interfere with the conduct of the study, confound interpretation of the study results, or endanger their own well-being
  • Participants with evidence or history of malignancy or any significant hematological endocrine, cardiovascular (including rhythm disorder), respiratory, renal, hepatic, gastrointestinal disease, or other major medical conditions
  • Participants taking psychoactive medication(s) (e.g., stimulants, antidepressants, antipsychotics, antiepileptics, anxiolytics, clondine)
  • Participants who, in the Investigator's opinion, might not be suitable for the study
  • Participants who are involved in another study whose procedures could influence performance in the current study
  • Female participants who do not stay on birth control for the duration of the study
  • Participants who have a known contraindication to the MRI scan: including sever claustrophobia or any kind of metal implant in the body

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Basic Science
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Crossover Assignment
  • Masking: Double

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Syntocinon then Placebo
24IU intranasal oxytocin, minimum of 3 weeks off, then placebo
Drug: Placebo
Intranasal Placebo
Drug: Syntocinon
One dose of 24 IU (3 sprays/nostril)
Other Names:
  • Intranasal oxytocin
Placebo Comparator: Placebo then Syntocinon
Placebo, minimum of 3 weeks off, then 24IU intranasal oxytocin or placebo
Drug: Placebo
Intranasal Placebo
Drug: Syntocinon
One dose of 24 IU (3 sprays/nostril)
Other Names:
  • Intranasal oxytocin

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Empathic Accuracy Performance
Time Frame: 45 minutes after drug/placebo administration
Participants watch videos of targets describing positive and negative autobiographical events and provide continuous ratings of how positive-negative the target is feeling on a 9-point Likert scale. Empathic accuracy is operationalized as a timecourse correlation between perceiver inferences about target affect and targets' own affect ratings.
45 minutes after drug/placebo administration
Fmri BOLD Response During Empathic Accuracy Task
Time Frame: 45 minutes after oxytocin/placebo administration
Images will be acquired using a 3.0 Tesla Siemens Allegra MRI scanner equipped to acquire gradient-echo, echoplanar T2*-weighted images (EPI) with blood oxygenation level dependent (BOLD) contrast. Each volume will comprise 26 axial slices of 4.5mm thickness and a 3.5 x 3.5mm in-plane resolution, aligned along the AC-PC axis. Volumes will be acquired continuously every 2 seconds. Each run will begin with 5 'dummy' volumes, which will be discarded from further analyses. At the end of the scanning session, a T-1 weighted structural image will be acquired from each participant.
45 minutes after oxytocin/placebo administration

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Alexander Kolevzon

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Jennifer Bartz, P.h.D., Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
June 18, 2010

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
April 25, 2014

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
April 25, 2014

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
August 12, 2010

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 13, 2010

First Posted (Estimate)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
August 17, 2010

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
April 15, 2021

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
March 22, 2021

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
March 1, 2021

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • GCO 09-0857

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Yes

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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