Effects of Oxytocin (Oxt/OT) on Eating Behaviour of Albino Wistar Rats

Oxytocin (Oxt/OT) is a hormone, a neuropeptide, that is sometimes called curdle chemical hormone (The American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, 2015). It is one of the hormones produced in the hypothalamus just like gonadotropic and vasopressin hormones. The rats used for the study comprised twelve rats (6 males and 6 females). The rats were grouped into experimental and control groups. The drug used for the study was a drug concentration of oxytocin and a Non-Hydrated Intravenous Solution (NH IV Solution). NH IV solution was used in order to reduce the concentration of the oxytocin drug so that it wouldn’t be harmful to the rats. Before presenting food to the rats, the drug was administered once a day (early in the morning). The rats were grouped into three categories (lower, normal and higher dosage groups). The drug administered to the rats was based on the grouping of the rats. The rats under lower dosage were given 0.5ml of drug concentration; the normal dosage was given 0.8ml of drug concentration, while the higher dosage was given 1ml of drug concentration. Weight checking was done before and after the study in order to examine possible side effects of oxytocin on the weight of animals based on their rate of eating. The results were analysed using different statistical methods depending on the hypothesis stated. Hypothesis 1 was analysed using factorial design, while hypothesis 2 was analysed using an independent t-test method of research. The results analysed revealed that oxytocin has some significant effects on the eating behaviour of the albino Wistar rats. The result proved that oxytocin has a negative/side effect on eating behaviour, causing a reduction in craving for food in the rats.