Vagus Nerve Stimulation Research

The vagus nerve, running from the brainstem through the chest and abdomen, carries signals that do more than regulate heart rate and digestion — it also communicates directly with the immune system through a pathway known as the cholinergic antiinflammatory reflex, in which nerve activity triggers the release of acetylcholine to suppress inflammatory responses in peripheral tissues. Researchers are working to understand how electrically stimulating this nerve can be harnessed therapeutically, with established applications in epilepsy and growing interest in conditions driven by systemic inflammation, including heart failure and sepsis. Central open questions include identifying exactly which neural circuits and immune cell populations mediate these effects, and determining how stimulation parameters — frequency, intensity, timing — can be tuned to achieve reliable immunomodulation without off-target consequences. The broader aim is to establish whether the nervous system can serve as a precise, drug-free lever for controlling inflammation across a range of diseases.

Works

22,632

Total citations

305,796

Keywords

Vagus Nerve StimulationCholinergic Antiinflammatory PathwayInflammation RegulationNeural ReflexesImmunomodulationNeuro-Immune Communication