2026-10-11T07:53:30Z https://api.figshare.com/v2/oai

oai:figshare.com:article/33829075 2026-09-16T05:37:27Z category_15 portal_316 item_type_3 month_year_09_2026

Table 2_Transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation targets the brain-gut axis to treat functional dyspepsia: a scoping review of clinical evidence and mechanistic research.docx Xue Xiao (200270) Xin Qin (1367004) Jing Tian (335437) Xiaowen Chen (192197) Xiang Luan (24961186) Yuren Sun (8123375) Jifei Sun (11534358) Yutang Ren (6528512) Neuroscience brain–gut axis functional dyspepsia neuromodulation scoping review transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation Background<p>Functional dyspepsia (FD) is a common gut–brain interaction disorder with suboptimal response to pharmacotherapy. Transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS), a non-invasive neuromodulation targeting the vagus nerve, has emerged as a promising brain–gut axis therapy. This scoping review (PRISMA-ScR, JBI methodology) synthesizes clinical and preclinical mechanistic evidence on taVNS for FD.</p>Methods<p>PubMed, Embase, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library were searched up to December 20, 2025, following PRISMA-ScR. Using PICOS (adults with FD; taVNS; sham/non-vagal/active controls; symptoms, gastric function, psychological outcomes, biomarkers; RCTs/clinical trials and controlled animal studies), two reviewers independently screened, extracted data, and assessed bias (RoB2 for RCTs, SYRCLE for animal studies). A narrative synthesis was performed due to heterogeneity.</p>Results<p>Four RCTs (n = 480) and eight preclinical rodent studies met inclusion. All RCTs showed significant improvements in dyspeptic symptoms, gastric accommodation, slow-wave normalization, and comorbid anxiety, depression, sleep disturbance versus sham/non-vagal control, sustained for 4–12 weeks. Stimulation parameters varied (10–30 Hz; 0.5–10 mA; 2–4 weeks); risk of bias low-moderate. Preclinical rodent evidence supported five interconnected candidate mechanisms: (i) autonomic balance and cholinergic modulation; (ii) α7nAChR/NF-κB anti-inflammatory pathway with duodenal barrier restoration; (iii) NGF/TrkA/PLC-γ/TRPV1-mediated visceral hypersensitivity suppression; (iv) HPA axis inhibition; (v) rebalancing of brain-gut peptides (motilin, CCK, GLP-1).</p>Conclusion<p>This review characterizes taVNS as a safe, well-tolerated, mechanistically plausible non-invasive neuromodulation for FD acting on multiple brain–gut axis nodes. However, the small number of trials, parameter heterogeneity, and limited follow-up constrain definitive conclusions. Adequately powered, multicenter RCTs with standardized protocols and long-term follow-up are needed to confirm efficacy and define optimal regimens.</p> 2026-09-16T05:37:27Z Dataset Dataset 10.3389/fnins.2026.1876591 https://figshare.com/articles/dataset/Table_2_Transcutaneous_auricular_vagus_nerve_stimulation_targets_the_brain-gut_axis_to_treat_functional_dyspepsia_a_scoping_review_of_clinical_evidence_and_mechanistic_research_docx/33829075 CC BY 4.0