Biography

My research focuses on understanding the oxytocin system in the human brain and the involvement of oxytocin in pain perception, social cognition and social decision making, both in healthy populations and it's implication in neuropsychiatric disorders, such as eating disorders or schizophrenia. A key focus of my work is understanding the mechanisms through which synthetic oxytocin affects brain function and optimising methods for the administration of oxytocin in humans. I also have a keen interest in educating the next generation of brain scientists. I am the Director of the BSc in Neuroscience and Psychology, a program that cuts across disciplinary boundaries to provide students with the required knowledge and skills to understand the workings of the brain and the relationship between mental and neural processes in health and disease.

Please see my  Research Staff Profile  for more detail.

Key publications:

• Martins et al., 2020. Effects of route of administration on oxytocin-induced changes in regional cerebral blood flow in humans. Nature Communications.
• Martins et al., 2020. Investigating resting brain perfusion abnormalities and disease target-engagement by intranasal oxytocin in women with bulimia nervosa and binge-eating disorder and healthy controls. Translational Psychiatry. 
• Martins et al., 2020. Intranasal oxytocin increases heart-rate variability in men at clinical high-risk for 2 psychosis: a proof-of-concept study. Translational Psychiatry.
• Paloyelis et al., 2016. A Spatiotemporal Profile of In Vivo Cerebral Blood Flow Changes Following Intranasal Oxytocin in Humans. Biological Psychiatry. 
• Paloyelis et al., 2016. The Analgesic Effect of Oxytocin in Humans: A Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Cross-Over Study Using Laser-Evoked Potentials. Journal of Neuroendocrinology.

View all publications.

Key collaborators:

• Professor Katerina Fotopoulou, University College London
• Professor Janet Treasure, King’s College London
• Dr Alexis Bailey, St George's, University of London
• Dr Paolo Fusar-Poli, King’s College London