Oxytocin, a hormone involved in social bonding, may help improve social behavior in individuals with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders (HF-ASD). A study involving 13 patients with HF-ASD found that after inhaling oxytocin, they showed increased interaction with a socially cooperative partner and reported feeling more trust and preference for that partner. Additionally, during face perception tasks, patients spent more time looking at the eyes of faces, a socially relevant cue. These findings suggest that oxytocin may enhance social behavior and affect in individuals with HF-ASD. The study also examined the effects of oxytocin on social decision-making in a simulated ball-toss game. Patients under placebo showed little discrimination between players, while those under oxytocin showed increased interaction with the cooperative player and sent more balls to them. This effect was not due to monetary incentives, as a similar experiment without monetary rewards showed the same results. Patients also reported feeling more trust toward the cooperative player under oxytocin. In face perception tasks, patients under oxytocin spent more time looking at the eyes of faces compared to the placebo condition. This suggests that oxytocin may enhance the processing of socially relevant information. However, patients still spent less time looking at faces and eyes compared to healthy controls, indicating that oxytocin does not fully restore normal visual exploration patterns. Plasma oxytocin levels were measured before and after nasal administration, and a significant increase was observed after oxytocin administration, indicating successful delivery of the hormone. Individual variability in response to oxytocin was observed, with some patients showing strong responses while others showed no change. The study suggests that oxytocin may have therapeutic potential for improving social behavior in individuals with HF-ASD by enhancing social engagement and processing of social cues. However, further research is needed to understand the long-term effects of oxytocin on social behavior in individuals with autism.Oxytocin, a hormone involved in social bonding, may help improve social behavior in individuals with high-functioning autism spectrum disorders (HF-ASD). A study involving 13 patients with HF-ASD found that after inhaling oxytocin, they showed increased interaction with a socially cooperative partner and reported feeling more trust and preference for that partner. Additionally, during face perception tasks, patients spent more time looking at the eyes of faces, a socially relevant cue. These findings suggest that oxytocin may enhance social behavior and affect in individuals with HF-ASD. The study also examined the effects of oxytocin on social decision-making in a simulated ball-toss game. Patients under placebo showed little discrimination between players, while those under oxytocin showed increased interaction with the cooperative player and sent more balls to them. This effect was not due to monetary incentives, as a similar experiment without monetary rewards showed the same results. Patients also reported feeling more trust toward the cooperative player under oxytocin. In face perception tasks, patients under oxytocin spent more time looking at the eyes of faces compared to the placebo condition. This suggests that oxytocin may enhance the processing of socially relevant information. However, patients still spent less time looking at faces and eyes compared to healthy controls, indicating that oxytocin does not fully restore normal visual exploration patterns. Plasma oxytocin levels were measured before and after nasal administration, and a significant increase was observed after oxytocin administration, indicating successful delivery of the hormone. Individual variability in response to oxytocin was observed, with some patients showing strong responses while others showed no change. The study suggests that oxytocin may have therapeutic potential for improving social behavior in individuals with HF-ASD by enhancing social engagement and processing of social cues. However, further research is needed to understand the long-term effects of oxytocin on social behavior in individuals with autism.