oxytocin and HIV-Infections

Depression, substance use disorders, and other neuropsychiatric comorbidities are common in people with HIV (PWH), but the underlying mechanisms are not sufficiently understood. HIV-induced damage to the gastrointestinal tract potentiates residual immune dysregulation in PWH receiving effective antiretroviral therapy. However, few studies among PWH have examined the relevance of microbiome-gut-brain axis: bidirectional crosstalk between the gastrointestinal tract, immune system, and central nervous system.. A narrative review was conducted to integrate findings from 159 articles relevant to psychoneuroimmunology (PNI) and microbiome-gut-brain axis research in PWH.. Early PNI studies demonstrated that neuroendocrine signaling via the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and autonomic nervous system could partially account for the associations of psychological factors with clinical HIV progression. This review highlights the need for PNI studies examining the mechanistic relevance of the gut microbiota for residual immune dysregulation, tryptophan catabolism, and oxytocin release as key biological determinants of neuropsychiatric comorbidities in PWH (i.e., body-to-mind pathways). It also underscores the continued relevance of neuroendocrine signaling via the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, autonomic nervous system, and oxytocin release in modifying microbiome-gut-brain axis functioning (i.e., mind-to-body pathways).. Advancing our understanding of PNI and microbiome-gut-brain axis pathways relevant to depression, substance use disorders, and other neuropsychiatric comorbidities in PWH can guide the development of novel biobehavioral interventions to optimize health outcomes. Recommendations are provided for biobehavioral and neurobehavioral research investigating bidirectional PNI and microbiome-gut-brain axis pathways among PWH in the modern antiretroviral therapy era.

Topics: Brain; Brain-Gut Axis; Gastrointestinal Microbiome; HIV Infections; Humans; Hypothalamo-Hypophyseal System; Oxytocin; Pituitary-Adrenal System; Psychoneuroimmunology; Tryptophan

Depression is common in people with HIV (PWH), yet little is known about the mechanisms contributing to depressive symptoms in PWH. Previous research across a range of populations has suggested a relationship between the neuropeptide oxytocin and depressive symptoms, with variable directionality. This article investigated the association between peripheral oxytocin levels and depressive symptoms in PWH.. Unextracted oxytocin serum concentrations were assayed in 79 PWH (44% female, mean age = 34.35 [8.5], mean body mass index = 25.69 [5.46], mean CD4 = 516.60 [271.15]) who also completed the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). CES-D items were evaluated in an exploratory factor analysis (EFA), and the relationships between oxytocin, total CES-D score, and the resulting EFA factors were analyzed with multivariate linear regressions conducted in R. Multiple regression models were used to adjust for age, sex, body mass index, CD4, and education.. Contrary to hypothesized, higher peripheral oxytocin levels were associated with higher CES-D total scores with a small-to-moderate effect size ( β = 0.26, p = .009). Following Bonferroni correction, oxytocin was not significantly associated with any of the five factors identified from the EFA: depressed affect, positive affect, appetite, cognitive symptoms, or perceived failure ( p values > .042). Small effect sizes were found for the depressed affect ( β = 0.22) and perceived failure ( β = 0.21) factors ( p values > .042).. In a sample of predominately Black or African American individuals with HIV, higher oxytocin was associated with higher total depressive symptoms. In addition, this relationship was slightly stronger than those of specific depressive symptoms. These findings warrant further study into the role of oxytocin in mood symptoms within PWH.

Topics: Adult; Black or African American; Black People; Depression; Female; HIV Infections; Humans; Male; Oxytocin

Early life trauma (ELT) and HIV are associated with social processing deficits. In people with HIV (PWH), we examined whether facial emotion identification accuracy differs by ELT and whether neuroendocrine factors including cortisol, oxytocin (OT), and arginine vasopressin, and/or immune system measures play a role in the ELT-performance association.. We used secondary data from the placebo condition of a pharmacologic challenge study in PWH. Presence of ELT was measured with the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (at least moderate experiences of sexual, physical, and/or emotional abuse). Social processing was measured with the Facial Emotion Perception Test (FEPT). Salivary immune system measures and cortisol were sampled across a 5-hour study session. Blood was collected at study session start (12 pm ) to measure OT and arginine vasopressin. We examined the association of ELT with FEPT and five biological moderators (from principal components analysis of 12 biomarkers) of ELT-FEPT associations.. Of 58 PWH (42 men; mean [standard deviation] age = 33.7 [8.9] years), 50% endorsed ELT. ELT-exposed PWH demonstrated lower identification accuracy across all emotional expressions (unstandardized β [ B ] = 0.13; standard error [SE] = 0.05; p = .021, d = 0.63) and had higher OT levels compared with ELT-unexposed PWH ( t(1,56) = 2.12, p = .039; d = 0.57). For total accuracy, an OT/C-reactive protein factor moderated the ELT-FEPT association ( B = 0.14; SE = 0.05; p = .014); accuracy was lower in ELT-exposed PWH versus ELT-unexposed PWH when the factor was low but not when high. Similar results were obtained for fearful, neutral, and happy faces ( p values < .05). Regardless of ELT, a myeloid migration (MCP-1/MMP-9) factor was associated with reduced accuracy ( p values < .05).. Our pilot findings suggest that ELT may alter social processing in PWH, and OT and C-reactive protein may be a target for improving social processing in ELT-exposed PWH, and myeloid migration markers may be a target in PWH more generally.

Topics: Adult; Arginine Vasopressin; C-Reactive Protein; Female; HIV Infections; Humans; Hydrocortisone; Inflammation; Male; Matrix Metalloproteinase 9; Oxytocin; Social Perception

Sleep disturbances are highly prevalent in women with HIV, and few studies examine potential protective factors that may reduce risk for sleep disturbances in this high-risk population. This study predicted that HIV-specific social support from various sources (i.e., friends, family members, and spouses), as well as oxytocin (OT), would explain sleep quality in 71 low-income minority women living with HIV. Social support from family members was associated with better sleep quality in women. For women with high OT, support from friends was associated with better sleep quality, whereas for women with low OT, support from friends was associated with poorer sleep quality. Women with low OT may not effectively interpret and utilize available support resources, which may be associated with sleep disturbances.

Topics: Adult; Family; Female; Friends; HIV Infections; Humans; Middle Aged; Minority Groups; Oxytocin; Poverty; Risk Management; Sleep Wake Disorders; Social Support; Women; Young Adult

Elevated perceptions of psychosocial stress and stressful life events are linked to faster disease progression in individuals living with HIV and these associations may be stronger for women from ethnic minority populations. Levels of neurohormones such as oxytocin (OT), cortisol, and norepinephrine (NE) have been shown to influence the effects of psychosocial stress in different populations. Understanding how intrinsic neuroendocrine substances moderate the effects of stressors in minority women living with HIV (WLWH) may pave the way for interventions to improve disease management.. We examined circulating levels of plasma OT as a moderator of the effects of stress on disease status (viral load, CD4+ cell count) in 71 low-income ethnic minority WLWH.. At low levels of OT, there was an inverse association between stress and CD4+ cell counts. Counter-intuitively, at high levels of OT there was a positive association between stress and CD4+ cell counts. This pattern was unrelated to women's viral load. Other neuroendocrine hormones known to down-regulate the immune system (cortisol, norepinephrine) did not mediate the effects of OT and stress on immune status.. OT may have stress buffering effects on some immune parameters and possibly health status in low income ethnic minority WLWH reporting elevated stress.

Topics: Adult; Antiretroviral Therapy, Highly Active; CD4 Lymphocyte Count; Depression; Female; Florida; HIV Infections; Humans; Hydrocortisone; Life Change Events; Medication Adherence; Middle Aged; Minority Groups; Norepinephrine; Oxytocin; Poverty; Social Support; Socioeconomic Factors; Stress, Psychological; Viral Load; Young Adult

Oxytocin and prostaglandins (PGs) are hormones involved in labor and are used clinically for its induction. In this study the effect of oxytocin, PGF(2alpha), and PGE(2) on Humour immunodeficiency virus-1 production in acutely and persistently infected cells was measured. No significant effect on p24 antigen production was found with oxytocin or PGs, except for a transient decrease in persistently infected cells treated with 1 micro M PGF(2alpha). These results showed that oxytocin and PGs could be used clinically for labor induction without any direct enhancement in viral production. Besides, the results with PGF(2alpha) at the highest concentration studied may indicate a pharmacological effect.

Topics: Cell Line; Cells, Cultured; Dinoprost; Dinoprostone; HIV Core Protein p24; HIV Infections; HIV-1; Humans; Leukocytes, Mononuclear; Oxytocin