Vasoactive Intestinal Peptide, Whose Receptor-Mediated Signaling May Be Defective in Alopecia Areata, Provides Protection from Hair Follicle Immune Privilege Collapse

August 2016 in “ British journal of dermatology/British journal of dermatology, Supplement ”

Marta Bertolini, M. Pretzlaff, Mathias Sulk, Mathias Bähr, Jennifer Gherardini, Yuichiro Uchida, M. Reibelt, Michael Kinori, Alfredo Rossi, Tamás Bı́ró, Ralf Paus

vasoactive intestinal peptide VIP alopecia areata immune privilege hair follicles immunoinhibitory neuropeptide VIP receptor-mediated signaling AA IP HFs

TLDR A substance called VIP might protect hair follicles from being attacked by the immune system, and problems with VIP signaling could lead to hair loss in alopecia areata.

The document discusses the role of vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) in the pathogenesis of alopecia areata (AA), a condition characterized by the loss of immune privilege (IP) in hair follicles (HFs). VIP is an immunoinhibitory neuropeptide that is released by nerve fibers surrounding hair follicles and is crucial for maintaining immune homeostasis. The paper suggests that defective VIP receptor-mediated signaling may contribute to the collapse of HF-IP, leading to the development of AA. This implies that VIP has a protective role in preventing the immune system from targeting hair follicles, and disruptions in VIP signaling could be a factor in AA onset.

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