Oxytocin is on the Brain at Kent State University
https://vimeo.com/manage/videos/304898253
It takes a village is a pretty common and pertinent theme within Kent State Universities endocrinology lab however, however in this case rather than children it’s hormones that are under supervision.
Specifically, oxytocin, the hormone that has become the main character of Dr. Heather Caldwell’s research.
“We are trying to understand how when we alter Oxycontin levels within the brain in early development what kinds of things within the brain are being affected,” said Dr. Caldwell a endocrinologist at Kent State University.
Oxytocin, often referred to as the “love hormone” is a neurohormone that is important for regulation of social behaviors within the brain, Dr. Caldwell is particularly interested in its effects of sexual differentiation in the brain that happens within early development. Dr. Caldwell’s research focuses on tweaking the oxytocin system in early development and the effective alterations to sex specific behaviors.
“we’ve been working on research that contributes to how early life oxytocin contribute to early intermale aggressive behavior,” said Dr. Caldwell, who has been using rodents as research models. “There are pronounced sex differences between in the oxytocin development between males and females.”
Dr. Caldwell’s team found that the oxytocin receptors were found in both males and females, however only females actually carried the oxytocin peptide.
“I am intrigued by the fact that the males have receptor but not the oxytocin ligand, from an evolutionary and energetic standpoint it doesn’t make sense to make a receptor for which you don’t have a way to signal through that receptor,” Dr. Caldwell said. “I’m excited about that possibility, as that has interesting implications.”
Dr. Caldwell’s lab is not only about the role of oxytocin of within early development, grad students within the lab are also working on their own oxytocin-based research. Graduate student Alex Yaw is conducting her own branch of research on the effects of cocaine addiction effects on offspring.
“I look at generational effects on paternal cocaine,” explains Yaw. “So when the fathers do cocaine, how does that effect the offspring.”
Yaw explains that this an interesting study as historically research has been on maternal cocaine affects on offspring, however different effects have been observed when placing the focus on fathers.
“It’s been a really good project,” said Yaw, who’s been working on this study for five years, “we’ve developed a model on oral maternal cocaine abuse and now we have the males on oral cocaine for the length of a sperm genic cycle, then we breed them and look at the offspring.”
Yaw came to Dr. Caldwell’s lab when she became interested in further studying how to social behaviors link to the circadian and reward behaviors that were initially observed.
Another graduate student in Dr. Caldwell’s lab, Karla Rodriguez is currently studying the effects of neurohormones on mental conditions, specifically, schizophrenia.
“I became interested in mental health and how hormones are involved,” said Rodriguez. “I particularly am interested in the social deficits, which come with schizophrenia and if we can understand more about the hormones involvement with that we can better treat it.”
Dr. Caldwell also has Ph.D student, Liz Aulino assisting her on her oxytocin research.
Dr. Caldwell has been interested in the oxytocin neurohormone specifically for nearly a decade and has been conducting this specific project for about two years after receiving the National Science Foundation.
“Only about 10% of grants get approved,” said Caldwell. “So, it’s really exciting to know that your peers think that you work is worth funding.”