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Completed Phase 2 Interventional Results available

Single Dose Intranasal Oxytocin and Cognitive Effects in Autism

ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT02493426

Public ClinicalTrials.gov record NCT02493426. Field values are reproduced from the official study page; the official ClinicalTrials.gov record remains the source of truth for eligibility, enrollment, and contact information.

ClinicalTrials.gov public records Last synced Sep 5, 2026, 11:02 PM EDT

Data is sourced from official ClinicalTrials.gov public API records. Always review the official ClinicalTrials.gov record for the latest information.

Official title

Single Dose Intranasal Oxytocin (IN-OT) Versus Placebo in Autism: Examining Cognitive Effects

Brief summary

Reproduced verbatim from the official ClinicalTrials.gov record. Not medical advice.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a group of severe, life-long developmental disorders. Oxytocin (OT) is a neurohormone involved in both repetitive/rigid and social behaviors. This study is focusing on how a single dose of intranasal OT (IN-OT) affects cognitive rigidity and social perception tasks. Taking OT as a spray through the nose increases social and decreases repetitive behavior in some adults with ASD, and we are exploring if it helps children with ASD similarly. However, it is unclear whether every person with ASD has an abnormal OT level, and if OT affects restrictive or social behavior differently. Consequently, we aim to study whether OT treatment can be effective in treating subgroups with specific features of ASD. We will use approaches utilizing both behavioral and physiological responses to clarify the role of OT in ASD. We will develop a deeper understanding of the range of social and rigid behaviors and use that information to identify persons with ASD who would benefit from OT treatment. Potential subjects will be asked if they want to participate in two sessions in our clinical laboratory where they will get either single dose IN-OT or placebo. After receiving the substance, they will be asked to do a handful of tasks while we monitor heart rate, eye movements, and collect baseline and post intranasal blood, urine and saliva. The levels of hormones, metabolites and peptides related to or interacting with OT will be measures in the collected samples of blood plasma, urine and saliva. Additionally DNA will be extracted from the blood samples to study genes related to OT and ASD.

Study identification

NCT ID
NCT02493426
Recruitment status
Completed
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase 2
Lead sponsor
University of Minnesota
Other
Enrollment
27 participants

Conditions and interventions

Interventions

Drug

Eligibility (public fields only)

Age range
5 Years to 40 Years
Sex
All
Healthy volunteers
Healthy volunteers not accepted

This page does not interpret eligibility. Detailed inclusion and exclusion criteria are on the official ClinicalTrials.gov record.

Study timeline

Start date
Apr 30, 2014
Primary completion
Mar 30, 2021
Completion
Mar 30, 2021
Last update posted
Jan 22, 2023

2014 – 2021

United States locations

U.S. sites
1
U.S. states
1
U.S. cities
1
Facility City State ZIP Site status
Center for Neurobehavioral Development Minneapolis Minnesota 55414

Site contact phone numbers, emails, and investigator names are intentionally not displayed here. Open the official ClinicalTrials.gov record for site contact information.

About this trial record page

What this page shows
Public field values for ClinicalTrials.gov record NCT02493426, including study identification, conditions, interventions, eligibility (age, sex, healthy volunteer), timeline, and U.S. site list.
What this page does not do
No medical advice, eligibility judgments, treatment recommendations, study quality scoring, or AI-generated medical summaries. No site contact phone numbers, emails, or investigator names.
Where the data comes from
Sourced from the official ClinicalTrials.gov public API. The official record is the source of truth.
Last refresh
Last update posted Jan 22, 2023 · Synced Sep 5, 2026

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Open the official record

The complete protocol, eligibility criteria, and contact information for NCT02493426 live on ClinicalTrials.gov.

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