Search

BackgroundBlunted facial affect is a common negative symptom of schizophrenia. Additionally, assessing the trustworthiness of faces is a social cognitive ability that is impaired in schizophrenia. Currently available pharmacological agents are ineffective at improving either of these symptoms, despite their clinical significance. The hypothalamic neuropeptide oxytocin has multiple prosocial effects when administered intranasally to healthy individuals and shows promise in decreasing negative symptoms and enhancing social cognition in schizophrenia. Although two small studies have investigated oxytocin's effects on ratings of facial trustworthiness in schizophrenia, its effects on facial expressivity have not been investigated in any population.MethodWe investigated the effects of oxytocin on facial emotional expressivity while participants performed a facial trustworthiness rating task in 33 individuals with schizophrenia and 35 age-matched healthy controls using a double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over design. Participants rated the trustworthiness of presented faces interspersed with emotionally evocative photographs while being video-recorded. Participants' facial expressivity in these videos was quantified by blind raters using a well-validated manualized approach (i.e. the Facial Expression Coding System; FACES).ResultsWhile oxytocin administration did not affect ratings of facial trustworthiness, it significantly increased facial expressivity in individuals with schizophrenia (Z = -2.33, p = 0.02) and at trend level in healthy controls (Z = -1.87, p = 0.06).ConclusionsThese results demonstrate that oxytocin administration can increase facial expressivity in response to emotional stimuli and suggest that oxytocin may have the potential to serve as a treatment for blunted facial affect in schizophrenia.

BackgroundOlfaction plays an important role in mammalian social behavior. Olfactory deficits are common in schizophrenia and correlate with negative symptoms and low social drive. Despite their prominence and possible clinical relevance, little is understood about the pathological mechanisms underlying olfactory deficits in schizophrenia and there are currently no effective treatments for these deficits. The prosocial neuropeptide oxytocin may affect the olfactory system when administered intranasally to humans and there is growing interest in its therapeutic potential in schizophrenia.MethodsTo examine this model, we administered 40IU of oxytocin and placebo intranasally to 31 patients with a schizophrenia spectrum illness and 34 age-matched healthy control participants in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over study. On each test day, participants completed an olfactory detection threshold test for two different odors: (1) lyral, a synthetic fragrance compound for which patients with schizophrenia have specific olfactory detection threshold deficits, possibly related to decreased cyclic adenosine 3',5'-monophosphate (cAMP) signaling; and (2) anise, a compound for which olfactory detection thresholds change with menstrual cycle phase in women.ResultsOn the placebo test day, patients with schizophrenia did not significantly differ from healthy controls in detection of either odor. We found that oxytocin administration significantly and selectively improved olfactory detection thresholds for lyral but not for anise in patients with schizophrenia. In contrast, oxytocin had no effect on detection of either odor in healthy controls.DiscussionOur data indicate that oxytocin administration may ameliorate olfactory deficits in schizophrenia and suggest the effects of intranasal oxytocin may extend to influencing the olfactory system. Given that oxytocin has been found to increase cAMP signaling in vitro a possible mechanism for these effects is discussed.

ObjectivesOlder persons with schizophrenia develop problems associated with aging, such as poor mobility, at more rapid rates than people without serious mental illness. Decrements in mobility contribute to poor health outcomes. Impaired neurocognitive function and psychiatric symptoms are central aspects of schizophrenia. The purpose of this study was to determine the association between neurocognitive impairment and schizophrenia symptoms to mobility in older adults with schizophrenia.MethodsA cross-sectional study with 46 older adults with schizophrenia. Participants were assessed on neurocognitive function (MATRICS Consensus Cognitive Battery), psychiatric symptoms (Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale or PANSS), and mobility (Timed Get Up and Go or TGUG test). Pearson's bivariate correlations (two-tailed) and a simultaneous regression model were used.ResultsLower severity of negative symptoms and faster speed of processing tests were associated with faster TGUG time in bivariate correlations and multivariate regression analyses (p < .05).ConclusionOur data suggest that lower negative symptoms and faster speed of processing positively impact mobility in older patients with schizophrenia. Mobility interventions for this population need to target neurocognitive impairment and schizophrenia symptoms for optimal results.

BackgroundIndividuals with schizophrenia have functionally significant deficits in automatic and controlled social cognition, but no currently available pharmacologic treatments reduce these deficits. The neuropeptide oxytocin has multiple prosocial effects when administered intranasally in humans and there is growing interest in its therapeutic potential in schizophrenia.MethodsWe administered 40 IU of oxytocin and saline placebo intranasally to 29 male subjects with schizophrenia and 31 age-matched, healthy controls in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over study. Social cognition was assessed with The Awareness of Social Inference Test (TASIT) and the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET). We examined the effects of oxytocin administration on automatic social cognition (the ability to rapidly interpret and understand emotional cues from the voice, face, and body); controlled social cognition (the ability to comprehend indirectly expressed emotions, thoughts, and intentions through complex deliberations over longer time periods); and a control task (the ability to comprehend truthful dialog and perform general task procedures) in individuals with and without schizophrenia using mixed factorial analysis of variance models.ResultsPatients with schizophrenia showed significant impairments in automatic and controlled social cognition compared to healthy controls, and administration of oxytocin significantly improved their controlled, but not automatic, social cognition, F(1, 58) = 8.75; p = 0.004. Conversely, oxytocin administration had limited effects on social cognition in healthy participants. Patients and controls performed equally well and there were no effects of oxytocin administration on the control task.DiscussionIntact social cognitive abilities are associated with better functional outcomes in individuals with schizophrenia. Our data highlight the potentially complex effects of oxytocin on some but not all aspects of social cognition, and support the exploration of intranasal oxytocin as a potential adjunct treatment to improve controlled social cognition in schizophrenia.

BackgroundIndividuals with schizophrenia have functionally significant deficits in automatic and controlled social cognition, but no currently available pharmacologic treatments reduce these deficits. The neuropeptide oxytocin has multiple prosocial effects when administered intranasally in humans and there is growing interest in its therapeutic potential in schizophrenia.MethodsWe administered 40 IU of oxytocin and saline placebo intranasally to 29 male subjects with schizophrenia and 31 age-matched, healthy controls in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, cross-over study. Social cognition was assessed with The Awareness of Social Inference Test (TASIT) and the Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test (RMET). We examined the effects of oxytocin administration on automatic social cognition (the ability to rapidly interpret and understand emotional cues from the voice, face, and body); controlled social cognition (the ability to comprehend indirectly expressed emotions, thoughts, and intentions through complex deliberations over longer time periods); and a control task (the ability to comprehend truthful dialog and perform general task procedures) in individuals with and without schizophrenia using mixed factorial analysis of variance models.ResultsPatients with schizophrenia showed significant impairments in automatic and controlled social cognition compared to healthy controls, and administration of oxytocin significantly improved their controlled, but not automatic, social cognition, F(1, 58)=8.75; p=0.004. Conversely, oxytocin administration had limited effects on social cognition in healthy participants. Patients and controls performed equally well and there were no effects of oxytocin administration on the control task.DiscussionIntact social cognitive abilities are associated with better functional outcomes in individuals with schizophrenia. Our data highlight the potentially complex effects of oxytocin on some but not all aspects of social cognition, and support the exploration of intranasal oxytocin as a potential adjunct treatment to improve controlled social cognition in schizophrenia.

Within the scope of the DARIA project (neutron source Dedicated to Academic Research and Industrial Application), a pulsed proton accelerator is being developed at the National Research Center "Kurchatov Institute" (Kurchatov Complex for Theoretical and Experimental Physics). The accelerator features an operating frequency of 162.5 MHz, a current of 100 mA, and an energy of 13 MeV. The linac consists of two sections, namely a section with a radio-frequency quadrupole (RFQ), which provides focusing, bunching, and accelerating beam, and a section with a drift tube linac (DTL). This article is dedicated to the development of the DTL section, which is subject to several key requirements. To fulfill these requirements, an accelerating structure comprising a chain of multi-gap cavities, capable of producing high-frequency fields, is selected. The optimal number of gaps in the cavities is determined based on an assessment of the section's requirements. Additionally, the choice of the focusing system and focusing elements is carefully considered. Various configurations of focusing periods are analyzed to arrive at a suitable option for the section. Furthermore, the article presents the results from simulations of beam dynamics, including the study of Coulomb forces on particle dynamics in the DTL section. The growth of the emittance in the DTL section is analyzed, and the capabilities of the section for a wide range of input current and input beam emittance are examined. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]