A Pharmaco-imaging Approach to Predicting Social Functioning and Clinical Responses to Oxytocin Administration in Schizophrenia

December 30, 2025 updated by: VA Office of Research and Development
Schizophrenia has a devastating and disproportionate effect on veterans compared to the general US population. Some of the most disabling symptoms, such as low motivation, difficulty expressing emotions, and decreased ability to infer the mental states of others, cause poor social functioning. This means that veterans with schizophrenia have trouble navigating interpersonal interactions and building meaningful relationships in the community. Unfortunately, current antipsychotic medications typically only improve positive symptoms but fail to improve social functioning deficits, which are strong predictors of poor quality of life and functional outcomes. Oxytocin, a peptide found in the brain, plays an important role in social behavior and is known to moderate affiliation, stress, and learning across taxa. In this study, the investigators will test whether oxytocin could be an effective treatment for social functioning deficits in schizophrenia. The investigators will examine changes in brain activation to understand how oxytocin affects behavior and to predict which individuals may benefit from oxytocin treatment.

Study Overview

Status

Status

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

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

The study uses a combined within- and between-subject placebo-controlled study design.

Within subjects phase: After screening, participants will be randomized into two study arms for the fMRI phase of the study. In each study arm, participants will complete a placebo-controlled, within-subject, pharmaco-fMRI paradigm with one of two possible dosages of oxytocin (20 or 40IU) and placebo. Following the fMRI phase of the study, participants will be randomized for the next phase of the study

Between subjects phase: Participants will receive the same dosage of oxytocin the participant received in the fMRI phase, or placebo, twice daily for 3 weeks. Before and after the three weeks of drug administration, participants will be assessed for social functioning, social ability, negative symptoms, and theory of mind. More participants will be randomized to receive chronically administered oxytocin than placebo to maximize the study's power to test the investigators' hypothesis that acute oxytocin-induced increases in right temporo-parietal junction activity will be positively correlated with improvements in social functioning (primary outcome), social ability, negative symptoms, and theory of mind over three weeks of oxytocin administration.

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.
26

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 Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Contact Backup

  • Name: Jake C Gibson, BA
  • Phone Number: 24117 (415) 221-4810

Study Locations

  • United States
    • California
      • San Francisco, California, United States, 94121-1563
        • San Francisco VA Medical Center, San Francisco, CA
      • West Los Angeles, California, United States, 90073
        • VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, West Los Angeles, CA

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

18 years to 70 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Veteran
  • age 18-70
  • a diagnosis of schizophrenia, schizophreniform, schizoaffective, or brief psychotic disorder determined by the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-5
  • no medication changes or psychiatric hospitalizations in the past month
  • SFS modified raw score of no more than 75

Exclusion Criteria:

  • substance use disorder in the past month, except mild to moderate cannabis use disorder
  • illness affecting the nasal passages
  • significant neurological/medical disorder
  • pacemakers
  • extensive dental work
  • claustrophobia
  • deafness
  • inability to read
  • currently participating in a psychosocial intervention targeting social functioning deficits
  • currently taking high dose testosterone or estrogen/progesterone
  • inability to complete VOT

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: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel 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.
Placebo Comparator: Placebo
Saline
Drug: Placebo
Placebo
Experimental: Intranasal Oxytocin
Dosages of oxytocin: 20IU or 40IU.
Drug: Oxytocin
Intranasal administration of oxytocin
Other Names:
  • Syntocinon

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
Social Functioning Score
Time Frame: Baseline visit: Full assessment is collected prior to any treatments fMRI phase: assessment not collected Chronic phase: partial assessment collected before the start (A1) and at end (A2) of 3 weeks of daily administration
The Social Functioning Scale is a 79-item semi-structured interview based assessment that includes [a global summary score (primary outcome)] The subscale scores of social engagement, interpersonal communication, and prosocial were expected the change in 3 weeks, while other subscales were not expected to change (e.g. employment) and thus were not collected during the chronic period. Scale ranges from 0 to lower functioning to 90 higher functioning.
Baseline visit: Full assessment is collected prior to any treatments fMRI phase: assessment not collected Chronic phase: partial assessment collected before the start (A1) and at end (A2) of 3 weeks of daily administration

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
CAINS Score (Clinical Assessment Interview for Negative Symptoms)
Time Frame: Baseline visit: assessment is collected prior to any treatments fMRI phase: assessment not collected Chronic phase: assessment collected before the start (A1) and at end (A2) of 3 weeks of daily administration
Negative symptoms will be assessed with the CAINS (clinical assessment interview for negative symptoms) comprised of several subscales that will be summed for a global score. Each item is assessed from 0-no impairment to 4-severe deficit. The total score from 0 to 52 where higher scores represent more significant impairment.
Baseline visit: assessment is collected prior to any treatments fMRI phase: assessment not collected Chronic phase: assessment collected before the start (A1) and at end (A2) of 3 weeks of daily administration

Other Outcome Measures

Other Outcome Measures

For clinical trials, a planned measurement described in the protocol that is used to determine the effect of an intervention/treatment on participants. For observational studies, a measurement or observation that is used to describe patterns of diseases or traits, or associations with exposures, risk factors, or treatment. Types of outcome measures include primary outcome measure and secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
QLS Scale (Quality of Life)
Time Frame: Baseline visit: assessment not collected fMRI phase: assessment not collected Chronic phase: assessment collected before the start (A1) and at end (A2) of 3 weeks of daily administration
Quality of Life will be assessed with the Quality of Life Scale (QLS), a 9-item assessment that measures domains such as interpersonal relations, occupation role functioning, and intrapsychic foundations. Each item is rated from 0 to 6 with the lower values indicating greater severity of symptoms. As such, the total score ranges from 0-54 (higher scores indicate good quality of life).
Baseline visit: assessment not collected fMRI phase: assessment not collected Chronic phase: assessment collected before the start (A1) and at end (A2) of 3 weeks of daily administration
Hinting Task
Time Frame: Baseline visit: assessment not collected fMRI phase: assessment not collected Chronic phase: assessment collected before the start (A1) and at end (A2) of 3 weeks of daily administration

Theory of Mind (ToM) will be assessed using The Hinting Task, a well-validated tool where participants make social inferences after hearing 10 fictional conversations. Each conversation ends with one character's utterance and the participant is asked to determine its meaning.

Each item is scored from 0 to 2. The summed values of the scale from 0 to 20, where higher values represent better theory of mind / higher functioning
Baseline visit: assessment not collected fMRI phase: assessment not collected Chronic phase: assessment collected before the start (A1) and at end (A2) of 3 weeks of daily 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.
VA Office of Research and Development

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
University of California, San Francisco
VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System

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: Josh Woolley, BS, San Francisco VA Medical Center, San Francisco, CA

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.
January 13, 2020

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.
January 31, 2024

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.
January 31, 2024

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).
April 1, 2019

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.
April 2, 2019

First Posted (Actual)

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.
April 3, 2019

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.
January 20, 2026

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.
December 30, 2025

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.
December 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

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.
  • MHBB-011-18F
  • 19-27265 (Other Identifier: University of California, San Francisco)
  • 1I01CX001761-01A2 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Study Data/Documents

  1. Informed Consent Form

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Yes

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

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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