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Query: UNIPROT:P01178 (oxytocin)
 15,767 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

A review of early research (up through 1970) on prostaglandins (PGs) is presented. Their chemical structure and classification based on their ring-structure is detailed as well as various analytic methods of mammalian tissues and body fluids. For clinical use PGE1 and 2, PGF2alpha and PGA1 are the most significant ones because of their properties. PGs have many physiological activities encompassing many organ systems. Their pharmacological actions include: 1) stimulation of nonvascular smooth muscle; 2) peripheral vasodilation (excluding PGFs which cause vasoconstriction); 3) inhibition of lipolysis; 4) inhibition of platelet aggregation; 5) inhibition of gastric peristalsis and gastric juice secretion; 6) bronchodilation; and 7) inhibition of spontaneous CNS activity. The level of PGEs in semen is closely related to the degree of fertility; normally fertile men have 55 mcg PGE/ml and never less than 11 mcg/ml. Current studies are under way on the effect of PGE in artificial insemination of sperm of subfertile men. PGF2alpha and PGE2 stimulate menstruation and uterine contraction; other PGs inhibit uterine contraction. PGs from semen have a role in sperm transport and possibly act on fallopian tube motility aiding sperm capacitation, and ovum retention and transport. Early trials with PGs point to a possible action as an abortifacient, as a once-a-month contraceptive, or a postconception contraceptive agent. PGF2alpha is found in variable concentrations in maternal blood during contraction of the pregnant uterus; levels increase as labor progresses. PGs have been used for labor induction, for induction of abortion and in mole pregnancy. Given as a constant intravenous infusion they produce regular contractions leading to natural expulsion of the fetus and causing very few side effects in the woman with no adverse effects on the fetus. PGs' action compares favorably with that of oxytocin and is preferable for labor induction in certain pregnancy complications. PGE1 and 2 have a stronger effect than PGF2alpha, hence can be used in smaller dosage and cause fewer adverse effects.
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PMID:[Prostaglandins in gynecology and obstetrics]. 505 16

1. The molecular weight of porcine neurophysin was estimated by molecular sieve chromatography and by analytical ultracentrifugation and was found to be in the order of 13,000.2. Internal evidence for the homogeneity of the preparation of neurophysin with respect to molecular weight was obtained in the ultracentrifugation experiments.3. The frictional ratio of neurophysin was 1.1 which suggests that the molecular form of the protein approximates to a sphere.4. The molecular weight and frictional ratio were not affected by temperature change (10-34 degrees C) or by twofold change in protein concentration.5. The binding of [(14)C]lysine vasopressin to porcine neurophysin was studied at 0, 27 and at 45 degrees C, and double reciprocal plots of the binding were shown to be curvilinear at 27 and at 45 degrees C and rectilinear at 0 degrees C.6. Concordant estimates for maximum binding capacity were obtained by extrapolations from the data at 27 and 45 degrees C by applying two independent empirical methods of approximation; these agreed with the estimate obtained by extrapolation of the straight line, fitting data obtained at 0 degrees C, being approximately 1 mole lysine vasopressin per 13,000 g protein.7. The association constant and thermodynamic parameters of the reaction were estimated for near saturation conditions. The reaction is entropy driven.8. The binding of lysine vasopressin was found to be dependent on protein concentration. No dependence of oxytocin binding on protein concentration was apparent.
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PMID:The molecular dimensions of porcine neurophysin and some thermodynamic parameters of the reaction with lysine vasopressin. 577 52

Seventy-two patients with gestational trophoblastic tumors (GTTs) and 20 first-trimester healthy pregnant women (controls) participated in this study. According to the WHO scoring system, GTTs were subgrouped into 24 hydatiform mole spontaneous regression (HMSR), 18 postmolar high-risk (PMHR) and 16 low- and 14 high-risk cases of choriocarcinoma. Patients with choriocarcinoma were treated with hysterectomy and methotrexate chemotherapy, whereas molar pregnancy was managed by either oxytocin infusion followed by suction evacuation or by hysterectomy. Serum p53 autoantibodies were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbant assay and serum hCGbeta was determined by radioimmunoassay before and throughout the 12 months after treatment. p53 autoantibodies were not detected in normal pregnancy and cases of HMSR but were detected in all cases of PMHR and choriocarcinoma. Concentrations of p53 autoantibodies were higher in choriocarcinoma than in PMHR cases. Serial measurements of p53 autoantibodies dropped to an undetectable level within 1 and 6 months after treatment in cases of PMHR and low-risk choriocarcinoma, respectively. Decreasing values of p53 autoantibodies in high-risk choriocarcinoma remained higher than the cut-off level of controls. There was a significant positive correlation between p53 autoantibodies and serum hCGbeta concentration in GTTs. In conclusion, detection of p53 autoantibodies has a high potential for the differential diagnosis of GTTs and their serial measurements are clinically useful to monitor disease progression and to assess response to therapy in GTTs.
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PMID:Diagnostic and prognostic significance of circulating tumor suppressor gene p53 autoantibodies in patients with gestational trophoblastic tumors. 1506 19

Neurophysin-M, a methionine-containing protein that is the major constituent of neurophysin, has been crystallized as complexes with [8-arginine]-vasopressin. Three moles of vasopressin alone or 2 moles of vasopressin together with 1 mole of oxytocin are bound/mole of protein. An amorphous complex of the protein with oxytocin alone contains 2 moles of the hormone/mole of protein. Deamino-[8-arginine]-vasopressin, a highly active basic analogue of vasopressin, is not bound by neurophysin. The primary amino group of both vasopressin and oxytocin is necessary for binding with neurophysin.
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PMID:The composition of crystalline complexes of neurophysin-M with [8-arginine]-vasopressin and oxytocin. 1674 66

Naked mole-rats are highly social rodents that live in large colonies characterized by a rigid social and reproductive hierarchy. Only one female, the queen, breeds. Most colony members are non-reproductive subordinates that work cooperatively to rear the young and maintain an underground burrow system. Little is known about the neurobiological basis of the complex sociality exhibited by this species. The neuropeptide oxytocin (Oxt) modulates social bonding and other social behaviors in many vertebrates. Here we examined the distribution of Oxt immunoreactivity in the brains of male and female naked mole-rats. As in other species, the majority of Oxt-immunoreactive (Oxt-ir) cells were found in the paraventricular and supraoptic nuclei, with additional labeled cells scattered throughout the preoptic and anterior hypothalamic areas. Oxt-ir fibers were found traveling toward and through the median eminence, as well as in the tenia tecta, septum, and nucleus of the diagonal band of Broca. A moderate network of fibers covered the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis and preoptic area, and a particularly dense fiber innervation of the nucleus accumbens and substantia innominata was observed. In the brainstem, Oxt-ir fibers were found in the periaqueductal gray, locus coeruleus, parabrachial nucleus, nucleus of the solitary tract, and nucleus ambiguus. The high levels of Oxt immunoreactivity in the nucleus accumbens and preoptic area are intriguing, given the link in other rodents between Oxt signaling in these regions and maternal behavior. Although only the queen gives birth or nurses pups in a naked mole-rat colony, most individuals actively participate in pup care.
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PMID:Distribution of oxytocin in the brain of a eusocial rodent. 1858 38

African mole-rats provide a unique taxonomic group for investigating the evolution and neurobiology of sociality. The two species investigated here display extreme differences in social organization and reproductive strategy. Naked mole-rats (NMRs) live in colonies, dominated by a queen and her consorts; most members remain nonreproductive throughout life but cooperate in burrowing, foraging, and caring for pups, for which they are not biological parents (alloparenting). In contrast, Cape mole-rats (CMRs) are solitary and intolerant of conspecifics, except during fleeting seasonal copulation or minimal maternal behavior. Research on other mammals suggests that oxytocin receptors at various telencephalic sites regulate social recognition, monogamous pair bonding, and maternal/allomaternal behavior. Current paradigms in this field derive from monogamous and polygamous species of New World voles, which are evolutionarily remote from Old World mole-rats. The present findings indicate that NMRs exhibit a considerably greater level of oxytocin receptor (OTR) binding than CMRs in the: nucleus accumbens; indusium griseum; central, medial, and cortical amygdaloid nuclei; bed nucleus of the stria terminalis; and CA1 hippocampal subfield. In contrast, OTR binding in the piriform cortex is intense in CMRs but undetectable in NMRs. We speculate that the abundance of OTR binding and oxytocin-neurophysin-immunoreactive processes in the nucleus accumbens of NMRs reflects their sociality, alloparenting behavior, and potential for reproductive attachments. In contrast, the paucity of oxytocin and its receptors at this site in CMRs may reflect a paucity of prosocial behaviors. Whether similarities in OTR expression between eusocial mole-rats and monogamous voles are due to gene conservation or convergent evolution remains to be determined.
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PMID:Telencephalic binding sites for oxytocin and social organization: a comparative study of eusocial naked mole-rats and solitary cape mole-rats. 2023 93

Fukomys anselli, also known as Ansell's mole rat, is a subterranean, highly social (so-called eusocial) rodent that lives in Africa. These mole rats typically form multigenerational families consisting of a single monogamous breeding pair and their nonreproductive offspring. Research on other mammals suggests that oxytocin (OT) and vasopressin (VP) as well as the distribution of OT- and VP-receptors may influence social behavior and pair bonding. Recent studies on eusocial naked mole rats have shown a possible relation between sociality and OT-immunoreactive (OT-ir) processes. In this study, we examined expression patterns of OT and VP in the brains of F. anselli and the common Sprague-Dawley (SD) laboratory rat. As in other species, the majority of OT-ir and VP-ir neurons was found in the paraventricular (Pa) and supraoptic (SO) nuclei, and scattered labeling throughout the preoptic and anterior hypothalamic areas. We found no difference in either quality or quantity of OT- and VP-ir neurons between individuals of different social and reproductive ranks. Equally unexpected was the finding of specific OT-immunoreactivity in neurons of the mammillary complex of F. anselli that was not found in SD rats. Further studies are needed to determine whether these mammillary OT-ir neurons are causally related to monogamy in F. anselli and whether these correlates of monogamy are found in other species.
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PMID:Distribution of oxytocin- and vasopressin-immunoreactive neurons in the brain of the eusocial mole rat (Fukomys anselli). 2226 48

The naked mole-rat is a subterranean colonial rodent. In each colony, which can grow to as many as 300 individuals, there is only one female and 1-3 males that are reproductive and socially dominant. The remaining animals are reproductively suppressed subordinates that contribute to colony survival through their cooperative behaviors. Oxytocin is a peptide hormone that has shown relatively widespread effects on prosocial behaviors in other species. We examined whether social status affects the number of oxytocin-immunoreactive neurons in the paraventricular nucleus and the supraoptic nucleus by comparing dominant breeding animals to subordinate non-breeding workers from intact colonies. We also examined these regions in subordinate animals that had been removed from their colony and paired with an opposite- or same-sex conspecific for 6 months. Stereological analyses indicated that subordinates had significantly more oxytocin neurons in the paraventricular nucleus than breeders. Animals in both opposite- and same-sex pairs showed a decreased oxytocin neuron number compared to subordinates suggesting that status differences may be due to social condition rather than the reproductive activity of the animal per se. The effects of social status appear to be region specific as no group differences were found for oxytocin neuron number in the supraoptic nucleus. Given that subordinate naked mole-rats are kept reproductively suppressed through antagonism by the queen, we speculate that status differences are due either to oxytocin's anxiolytic properties to combat the stress of this antagonism or to its ability to promote the prosocial behaviors of subordinates.
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PMID:Social condition and oxytocin neuron number in the hypothalamus of naked mole-rats (Heterocephalus glaber). 2320 Jul 87

In recent decades, scientific understanding of the many roles of oxytocin (OT) in social behavior has advanced tremendously. The focus of this research has been on maternal attachments and reproductive pair-bonds, and much less is known about the substrates of sociality outside of reproductive contexts. It is now apparent that OT influences many aspects of social behavior including recognition, trust, empathy, and other components of the behavioral repertoire of social species. This review provides a comparative perspective on the contributions of OT to life in mammalian social groups. We provide background on the functions of OT in maternal attachments and the early social environment, and give an overview of the role of OT circuitry in support of different mating systems. We then introduce peer relationships in group-living rodents as a means for studying the importance of OT in non-reproductive affiliative behaviors. We review species differences in oxytocin receptor (OTR) distributions in solitary and group-living species of South American tuco-tucos and in African mole-rats, as well as singing mice. We discuss variation in OTR levels with seasonal changes in social behavior in female meadow voles, and the effects of OT manipulations on peer huddling behavior. Finally, we discuss avenues of promise for future investigation, and relate current findings to research in humans and non-human primates. There is growing evidence that OT is involved in social selectivity, including increases in aggression toward social outgroups and decreased huddling with unfamiliar individuals, which may support existing social structures or relationships at the expense of others. OT's effects reach beyond maternal attachment and pair bonds to play a role in affiliative behavior underlying "friendships", organization of broad social structures, and maintenance of established social relationships with individuals or groups.
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PMID:Life in groups: the roles of oxytocin in mammalian sociality. 2437 4

The neuropeptide oxytocin regulates a wide variety of social behaviors across diverse species. However, the types of behaviors that are influenced by this hormone are constrained by the species in question and the social organization that a particular species exhibits. Therefore, the present experiments investigated behaviors regulated by oxytocin in a eusocial mammalian species by using the naked mole-rat (Heterocephalus glaber). In Experiment 1, adult non-breeding mole-rats were given intraperitoneal injections of either oxytocin (1mg/kg or 10mg/kg) or saline on alternate days. Animals were then returned to their colony and behavior was recorded for minutes 15-30 post-injection. Both doses of oxytocin increased huddling behavior during this time period. In Experiment 2, animals received intraperitoneal injections of either oxytocin (1mg/kg), an oxytocin-receptor antagonist (0.1mg/kg), a cocktail of oxytocin and the antagonist, or saline across 4 testing days in a counterbalanced design. Animals were placed in either a 2-chamber arena with a familiar conspecific or in a small chamber with 1week old pups from their home colony and behaviors were recorded for minutes 15-30 post-injection. Oxytocin increased investigation of, and time spent in close proximity to, a familiar conspecific; these effects were blocked by the oxytocin antagonist. No effects were seen on pup-directed behavior. These data suggest that oxytocin is capable of modulating affiliative-like behavior in this eusocial species.
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PMID:Peripheral administration of oxytocin increases social affiliation in the naked mole-rat (Heterocephalus glaber). 2453 Aug 45


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