Associations between alcohol use and peripheral, genetic, and epigenetic markers of oxytocin in a general sample of young and older adults.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Human and nonhuman animal research suggests that greater oxytocin (OT) activity is protective against harmful substance use. Most research on this topic is preclinical, with few studies evaluating the association between substance use and individual differences in the human OT system. The present study sought to fill this gap by evaluating the relationship between alcohol use and multiple biological measures of OT activity in an overall low to moderate-drinking sample.

Method

As part of a larger study, generally healthy young (n = 51) and older (n = 53) adults self-reported whether they regularly used alcohol and how much alcohol they consumed per week. Participants also provided blood samples from which peripheral OT, and in an age-heterogeneous subset of parti

SUBMITTER: Rung JM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8933764 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature