Immunohistochemical observation on the correlation between substance P- and vasoactive intestinal polypeptide-like immunoreactivities in the feline dental pulp.

The correlation between substance P (SP) and vasoactive intestinal polypeptide (VIP)-containing nerve fibres in the pulp was examined by double immunofluorescence. Both SP- and VIP-containing fibres entered the pulp in bundles with the blood vessels and spread throughout the pulp. In the coronal pulp, both SP- and VIP-containing nerve fibres formed networks on the walls of blood vessels, but both peptide-containing nerve fibres were not observed together in relation to vessels. There were more SP-containing fibres than VIP-containing ones. In the odontoblast layer, there were many SP-containing fibres but few VIP-containing ones.