Peripheral oxytocin and vasopressin are associated with clinical symptom severity and cognitive functioning in midlife women with chronic schizophrenia

Neuroendocrine factors may contribute to cognitive and clinical symptom severity in schizophrenia, particularly among midlife women who may be a particularly vulnerable subpopulation given menopausal-related hormonal changes. Numerous studies demonstrate influences of both sex steroid hormones and sexually dimorphic neurohormones including oxytocin (OT) and arginine vasopressin (AVP) on cognition and symptomatology in schizophrenia (Bergemann et al., 2007; Kulkarni et al., 2015; Rubin et al., 2014; Rubin et al., 2013; Rubin et al., 2010; Rubin et al., 2015).

Source: Schizophrenia Research - September 28, 2017 Category: Psychiatry Authors: Leah H. Rubin, Heidi J. Wehring, Haley Demyanovich, C. Sue Carter, Hossein Pournajafi-Nazarloo, Stephanie M. Feldman, Amber K. Earl, Sharon August, James M. Gold, Deanna L. Kelly Tags: Letter to the Editor Source Type: research