Vasoactive Intestinal Polypeptide Plays a Key Role in the Microbial-Neuroimmune Control of Intestinal Motility.

Background & Aims: Although chronic diarrhea and constipation are common, the treatment is symptomatic because their pathophysiology is poorly understood. Accumulating evidence suggests that the microbiota modulates gut function, but the underlying mechanisms are unknown. We therefore investigated the pathways by which microbiota modulates gastrointestinal motility in different sections of the alimentary tract.