Definition and research guide
This page combines a MeSH definition, publication statistics and selected research abstracts. It is a starting point for reading the literature, not a medical textbook or a systematic evidence review.
Content available: 4 complete abstracts (662 words), 10 references. Full article text is not stored or reproduced here; follow the PMID, DOI or PMC links to read the original sources and their access terms.
Definition
A highly basic, 28 amino acid neuropeptide released from intestinal mucosa. It has a wide range of biological actions affecting the cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, and respiratory systems and is neuroprotective. It binds special receptors (receptors, vasoactive intestinal peptide).
Definition: NLM Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) scope note (Public domain (U.S. National Library of Medicine); attribution requested). View the MeSH record.
Also known as: Intestinal Peptide, Vasoactive; Peptide, Vasoactive Intestinal; Vasointestinal Peptide; Peptide, Vasointestinal; Vasoactive Intestinal Polypeptide; Intestinal Polypeptide, Vasoactive; Polypeptide, Vasoactive Intestinal; VIP (Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide).
Where it fits in the MeSH classification
- Broader topics
- Gastrointestinal Hormones; Peptide Hormones; Neuropeptides
Related concepts
- Receptors
- Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide
Research landscape
PubMed indexes 11,141 records tagged with the MeSH heading “Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide” (counts retrieved 2026-10-31). 564 of them (5.1%) were published from 2020 onward, and the busiest period so far is through 1999 with 7,512 records.
Reviews account for 841 records (7.5%) and meta-analyses for 0. Randomized controlled trials number 69 (0.6%) as a share of all records on the topic. Randomized trials make up only a small share of this literature, so much of what is known comes from laboratory, observational or descriptive work.
Show the data
| Period | Records |
|---|---|
| through 1999 | 7,512 |
| 2000-2009 | 1,958 |
| 2010-2019 | 1,107 |
| 2020 onward | 564 |
Publication-type chart data
| Type | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Reviews | 841 | 7.5% |
| Meta-analyses | 0 | 0.0% |
| Randomized controlled trials | 69 | 0.6% |
Method: PubMed query "Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide"[MeSH Terms] with publication-type and date filters, retrieved 2026-10-31.
Reading the evidence in drugs and chemicals
Studies of a chemical or drug can answer very different questions: what it is and how it behaves in cells and animals, how the body handles it, and whether it changes outcomes in people. Laboratory and animal findings often do not carry over to patients, and observational studies of exposures are confounded by who uses a substance and why. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to use, avoid, start or stop any substance or medicine; talk to a qualified clinician or pharmacist about your own situation. Check the dose, the species, the comparison group and whether a patient-relevant outcome was measured.
Evidence from open-access studies
These open-access studies come from PubMed’s best-match results for this heading (papers whose main topic it is), ranked here by citation count, with one recent addition. Each abstract is reproduced in full under its recorded open licence so that you can read the authors’ own words. They illustrate the literature; they are not a systematic summary of it. Citation counts measure attention, not reliability or clinical benefit.
| Study / authors | Year | Source label / design | Europe PMC citations | Licence / source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Recent advances in vasoactive intestinal peptide physiology and pathophysiology: focus on the gastrointestinal system | 2019 | Review article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 134 | cc by PMID 31559013 · DOI · PMC6743256 |
| Experience shapes activity dynamics and stimulus coding of VIP inhibitory cells | 2020 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 101 | cc by PMID 32101169 · DOI · PMC7043888 |
| VIP interneurons in mouse primary visual cortex selectively enhance responses to weak but specific stimuli | 2020 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 93 | cc by PMID 33108272 · DOI · PMC7591255 |
| Identification and characterization of vasoactive intestinal peptide receptor antagonists with high-affinity and potent anti-leukemia activity | 2026 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 2 | cc by PMID 41478571 · DOI · PMC13080581 |
Recent advances in vasoactive intestinal peptide physiology and pathophysiology: focus on the gastrointestinal system [1]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), a gut peptide hormone originally reported as a vasodilator in 1970, has multiple physiological and pathological effects on development, growth, and the control of neuronal, epithelial, and endocrine cell functions that in turn regulate ion secretion, nutrient absorption, gut motility, glycemic control, carcinogenesis, immune responses, and circadian rhythms.
- Closing excerpt
- Here, we discuss the impact of VIP on gastrointestinal function and diseases based on recent findings, also providing insight into its possible therapeutic application to diabetes, autoimmune diseases and cancer.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (110 words)
Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP), a gut peptide hormone originally reported as a vasodilator in 1970, has multiple physiological and pathological effects on development, growth, and the control of neuronal, epithelial, and endocrine cell functions that in turn regulate ion secretion, nutrient absorption, gut motility, glycemic control, carcinogenesis, immune responses, and circadian rhythms. Genetic ablation of this peptide and its receptors in mice also provides new insights into the contribution of VIP towards physiological signaling and the pathogenesis of related diseases. Here, we discuss the impact of VIP on gastrointestinal function and diseases based on recent findings, also providing insight into its possible therapeutic application to diabetes, autoimmune diseases and cancer.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 31559013 · DOI · PMC6743256
Experience shapes activity dynamics and stimulus coding of VIP inhibitory cells [2]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Cortical circuits can flexibly change with experience and learning, but the effects on specific cell types, including distinct inhibitory types, are not well understood.
- Closing excerpt
- This prominent change in VIP activity suggests that these cells may adopt different modes of processing under novel versus familiar conditions.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (148 words)
Cortical circuits can flexibly change with experience and learning, but the effects on specific cell types, including distinct inhibitory types, are not well understood. Here we investigated how excitatory and VIP inhibitory cells in layer 2/3 of mouse visual cortex were impacted by visual experience in the context of a behavioral task. Mice learned a visual change detection task with a set of eight natural scene images. Subsequently, during 2-photon imaging experiments, mice performed the task with these familiar images and three sets of novel images. Strikingly, the temporal dynamics of VIP activity differed markedly between novel and familiar images: VIP cells were stimulus-driven by novel images but were suppressed by familiar stimuli and showed ramping activity when expected stimuli were omitted from a temporally predictable sequence. This prominent change in VIP activity suggests that these cells may adopt different modes of processing under novel versus familiar conditions.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 32101169 · DOI · PMC7043888
VIP interneurons in mouse primary visual cortex selectively enhance responses to weak but specific stimuli [3]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Vasoactive intestinal peptide-expressing (VIP) interneurons in the cortex regulate feedback inhibition of pyramidal neurons through suppression of somatostatin-expressing (SST) interneurons and, reciprocally, SST neurons inhibit VIP neurons.
- Closing excerpt
- Network modeling indicates that VIP-SST mutual antagonism regulates the gain of the cortex to achieve sensitivity to specific weak stimuli without compromising network stability.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (154 words)
Vasoactive intestinal peptide-expressing (VIP) interneurons in the cortex regulate feedback inhibition of pyramidal neurons through suppression of somatostatin-expressing (SST) interneurons and, reciprocally, SST neurons inhibit VIP neurons. Although VIP neuron activity in the primary visual cortex (V1) of mouse is highly correlated with locomotion, the relevance of locomotion-related VIP neuron activity to visual coding is not known. Here we show that VIP neurons in mouse V1 respond strongly to low contrast front-to-back motion that is congruent with self-motion during locomotion but are suppressed by other directions and contrasts. VIP and SST neurons have complementary contrast tuning. Layer 2/3 contains a substantially larger population of low contrast preferring pyramidal neurons than deeper layers, and layer 2/3 (but not deeper layer) pyramidal neurons show bias for front-to-back motion specifically at low contrast. Network modeling indicates that VIP-SST mutual antagonism regulates the gain of the cortex to achieve sensitivity to specific weak stimuli without compromising network stability.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 33108272 · DOI · PMC7591255
Identification and characterization of vasoactive intestinal peptide receptor antagonists with high-affinity and potent anti-leukemia activity [4]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) is a neuropeptide involved in cancer proliferation and immune suppression.
- Closing excerpt
- Combining in silico modeling, in vitro T cell activation properties, and in vivo anti-leukemia activity has identified promising VIP-R antagonist candidates for further development as novel immunotherapies for patients with AML having relapsed disease.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (250 words)
Vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) is a neuropeptide involved in cancer proliferation and immune suppression. The limited potency of the VIP antagonist peptide VIPhyb in T-cell activation and murine anti-leukemia models prompted the development of a more potent antagonist. We screened a combinatorial library of VIPhyb C-terminal peptide sequence variants to identify a higher-affinity VIP-receptor (VIP-R) antagonist, hypothesizing that specific amino acid substitutions could improve receptor binding and/or plasma stability. In silico screening analyses identified sequences with docking scores predicting increased binding affinity to human VIP receptors VPAC1 and VPAC2. 15 peptides were synthesized and tested for their ability to potentiate activation of purified mouse and human T cells and enhance T cell-dependent anti-leukemia responses in murine acute myeloid leukemia models. Treating C57Bl/6 mice engrafted with a C1498 leukemia cell line with daily subcutaneous injections of VIP-R antagonist peptides induced anti-leukemia responses. Strikingly, the predicted binding of the VIP-R antagonists to VIP receptors correlated positively with their ability to augment mouse T-cell proliferation and anti-leukemia activity. ANT308 and ANT195 emerged as top candidates due to high predicted VIP-R binding, low EC50 for in vitro T cell activation, and potent anti-leukemia activities. ANT308 decreased CREB phosphorylation, a downstream signaling pathway of the VIP receptor, and stimulated granzyme B and perforin expression in CD8+ T cells from AML patients. Combining in silico modeling, in vitro T cell activation properties, and in vivo anti-leukemia activity has identified promising VIP-R antagonist candidates for further development as novel immunotherapies for patients with AML having relapsed disease.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 41478571 · DOI · PMC13080581
Key reviews and meta-analyses
The most cited review-type papers among PubMed’s best-match results for this heading, listed with bibliographic details only. Follow the links for the full text and access terms.
- Research article Pharmacology and functions of receptors for vasoactive intestinal peptide and pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide: IUPHAR review 1 [5]
- Research article The significance of vasoactive intestinal peptide in immunomodulation [6]
- Research article Vasoactive intestinal polypeptide: measurement, distribution and putative neurotransmitter function [7]
- Research article Vasoactive intestinal peptide: cardiovascular effects [8]
- Research article VIP and PACAP: neuropeptide modulators of CNS inflammation, injury, and repair [9]
- Research article Vasoactive intestinal peptide and the mammalian circadian system [10]
References
- Iwasaki M, Akiba Y, Kaunitz JD. Recent advances in vasoactive intestinal peptide physiology and pathophysiology: focus on the gastrointestinal system. . 2019. PMID 31559013 · DOI · PMC6743256
- Garrett M, Manavi S, Roll K, Ollerenshaw DR, Groblewski PA, Ponvert ND, et al.. Experience shapes activity dynamics and stimulus coding of VIP inhibitory cells. . 2020. PMID 32101169 · DOI · PMC7043888
- Millman DJ, Ocker GK, Caldejon S, Kato I, Larkin JD, Lee EK, et al.. VIP interneurons in mouse primary visual cortex selectively enhance responses to weak but specific stimuli. . 2020. PMID 33108272 · DOI · PMC7591255
- Wang Y, Sen-Majumdar A, Li JM, Sarkar S, Passang T, Mecorapaj S, et al.. Identification and characterization of vasoactive intestinal peptide receptor antagonists with high-affinity and potent anti-leukemia activity. . 2026. PMID 41478571 · DOI · PMC13080581
- Harmar AJ, Fahrenkrug J, Gozes I, Laburthe M, May V, Pisegna JR, et al.. Pharmacology and functions of receptors for vasoactive intestinal peptide and pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide: IUPHAR review 1. Br J Pharmacol. 2012. PMID 22289055 · DOI · PMC3415633
- Delgado M, Pozo D, Ganea D. The significance of vasoactive intestinal peptide in immunomodulation. Pharmacol Rev. 2004. PMID 15169929 · DOI
- Fahrenkrug J. Vasoactive intestinal polypeptide: measurement, distribution and putative neurotransmitter function. Digestion. 1979. PMID 39014 · DOI
- Henning RJ, Sawmiller DR. Vasoactive intestinal peptide: cardiovascular effects. Cardiovasc Res. 2001. PMID 11121793 · DOI
- Waschek JA. VIP and PACAP: neuropeptide modulators of CNS inflammation, injury, and repair. Br J Pharmacol. 2013. PMID 23517078 · DOI · PMC3682700
- Vosko AM, Schroeder A, Loh DH, Colwell CS. Vasoactive intestinal peptide and the mammalian circadian system. Gen Comp Endocrinol. 2007. PMID 17572414 · DOI · PMC1994114
About this article
- Sources
- NLM Medical Subject Headings (definition, synonyms); NCBI PubMed (counts, identifiers); Europe PMC (open-access abstracts and citation counts).
- Verification
- Every reference was resolved against PubMed on 2026-10-31; title, year and DOI matched.
- Review state
- automated source verified; no human expert review has been recorded yet.
- Version
- 1, last updated 2026-10-31.
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Evidence strength
EvidenceHelix's computed view of the study designs behind this topic: how common meta-analyses, randomized trials and reviews are, how recent the literature is, and a plain-language reading. It describes the design mix of the literature. It is not a quality appraisal of any study, and it is not medical advice.