Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide and Asthma

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Abstract
To the Editor: The recent observation that nerve fibers immunoreactive to vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP) are absent in the airways of patients with asthma is of great interest,1 and appears to support the idea that the absence of this bronchodilator peptide might contribute to bronchial hyperresponsiveness in patients with asthma.Inhibitory nonadrenergic, noncholinergic nerves constitute the only bronchodilator pathway in human airways in vitro,2 and there is now evidence that such nerves may be activated in normal subjects in vivo by laryngeal stimulation.3 , 4 Studies in animals strongly suggest that VIP (and the closely related peptide histidine isoleucine or methionine) may . . .