Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 10, 2026
Using a Murine Model of Psychosocial Stress in Pregnancy as a Translationally Relevant Paradigm for Psychiatric Disorders in Mothers and Infants
Published on: June 13, 2021
PSYCHOSOCIAL FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH MATERNAL PLASMA OXYTOCIN IN LATE PREGNANCY: A MULTIVARIABLE ANALYSIS
N Șoldan1, C Glavce1, A Kozma1
1"Francisc I. Rainer" Institute of Anthropology, Romanian Academy, Bucharest, Romania.
Context:
Oxytocin (OXT) supports social affiliation and affect regulation; in late pregnancy, variability in plasma OXT may index the psychosocial context relevant to perinatal risk.
Objectives:
To test (i) differences in plasma OXT by adult attachment (AAS/R-AAS); (ii) associations with pregnancy planning, partner support, maternal perception, and history of emotional difficulties; and (iii) psychosocial factors independently associated with OXT.
Design:
Cross-sectional study.
Subjects And Methods:
Thirty-five women at 28-39 weeks' gestation (subsample of 140) provided morning EDTA plasma (08:00-10:00), stored at -80 °C. OXT was quantified by ELISA without solid-phase extraction or technical duplicates. Analyses comprised one-way ANOVA with Bonferroni tests, non-parametric contrasts (Mann-Whitney/Kruskal-Wallis with Holm adjustment), and HC3-robust multiple regression (α=0.05).
Results:
OXT differed by attachment (secure > avoidant > anxious-ambivalent; F(2,32)=31.115, p<0.001, ηp2=0.660). Univariate contrasts indicated higher OXT with planned pregnancy, partner support, positive (vs negative) maternal perception, and with a history of emotional difficulties; in the multivariable model (R2=0.718; adjusted R2=0.617), only attachment independently predicted OXT (avoidant vs secure B=-227.7 pg/mL; anxious-ambivalent vs secure B=-289.4 pg/mL).
Conclusions:
In late pregnancy, plasma OXT co-varies with adult attachment and, at group level, with proximal psychosocial factors; after adjustment, attachment remains the dominant predictor. Psychosocial screening is clinically actionable, whereas OXT measurement should remain a research tool.
