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Enteric Nervous System in the Small Intestine: Pathophysiology and Clinical Implications

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Abstract

The digestive system is endowed with its own, local nervous system, referred to as the enteric nervous system (ENS). Given the varied functions of small intestine, its ENS has developed individualized characteristics relating to motility, secretion, digestion, and inflammation. The ENS regulates the major enteric processes such as immune response, detecting nutrients, motility, microvascular circulation, intestinal barrier function, and epithelial secretion of fluids, ions, and bioactive peptides. Remarkable progress has been made in understanding the signaling pathways in this complex system and how they work. In this article, we focus on recent advances that have led to new insights into small intestinal ENS function and the development of new therapies.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the following grants: National Institutes of Health DK080684 (Dr. Srinivasan) and Veterans Administration Merit award (Dr. Srinivasan).

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No potential conflict of interest relevant to this article was reported.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Digestive Diseases, Emory University School of Medicine and VAMC, Whitehead Research Building, Suite 246, 615 Michael St., Atlanta, GA, 30307, USA

    Behtash Ghazi Nezami & Shanthi Srinivasan

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  1. Behtash Ghazi Nezami
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  2. Shanthi Srinivasan
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Correspondence to Shanthi Srinivasan.

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Nezami, B.G., Srinivasan, S. Enteric Nervous System in the Small Intestine: Pathophysiology and Clinical Implications. Curr Gastroenterol Rep 12, 358–365 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11894-010-0129-9

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