A Combined Psycho-pharmacological and Brain Imaging Study of Human Sexuality

A Combined Psycho-pharmacological and Brain Imaging Study of Human Sexuality

The current study combines a molecular genetic perspective, self report and brain imaging to the study of human sexuality in control subjects and individuals from a sexual disorder clinic. The investigators hypothesize that the variability in components of the brain dopaminergic system expressed in the mesolimbic reward system can explain variability in human sexuality, especially in desire and pleasure associated with sex.

We intend to combine molecular genetics of the dopamine receptors (D2, D3 D4 and D5) and brain imaging using 11 C Raclopride in Positron Emission Tomography (PET). 11 C Raclopride is a ligand which binds to the dopamine receptor D2 and can measure dopamine release during pleasure or anticipatory reward associated with sex. The current proposal will measure changes in DRD2 receptor occupancy using 11 C Raclopride following explicit visual sexual desire cues in healthy control subjects and individuals who suffer from sexual dysfunction. This is in order to determine how individual genotypes modulate dopamine release in vivo in the human brain.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Healthy volunteers and patients
• Age 21-65
• Male or female

Exclusion Criteria:

• Psychiatric diagnosis/psychosis
• Neurological damage associated with loss of consciousness
• Infectious disease HIV
• Herpes
• Syphilis
• Hyperactivity treated with ritalin
• Pregnant women
• Under age