Oxytocin receptors in non-human primate brain visualized with monoclonal antibody.

The identity of putative oxytocin receptors visualized in autoradiographic studies of primate brain is unclear because the ligand used is much less selective in primate than rodent brains. This study tests the feasibility of utilizing a new monoclonal antibody (MoAb) developed against human uterine OTRs to visualize OTRs in primate brain. A block containing ventral hypothalamus of cynomolgus macaque brain, paraformaldehyde, glutaraldehyde-fixed and paraffin-embedded, and positive control tissue (human endometrium) were sectioned at 8 microm and studied with immunohistochemistry. OTRs were located in fibers in septal nucleus and in both cell bodies and fibers of preoptic area. These results indicate that OTRs in primate brain may be visualized with this MoAb, and are located in primate brain sites linked to the regulation of social behavior.