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Obesity is a known risk factor for pancreatic cancer. Now, a new study reports that obesity accelerates early pancreatic cancer development and growth in mice through local perturbations in the pancreatic microenvironment and implicates pancreatic islet-derived cholecystokinin as a driving factor.
Single-cell transcriptomic technologies are transforming our understanding of cellular diversity and function in health and disease. This Review discusses how these technologies have been applied in hepatology, advancing our understanding of cellular heterogeneity and providing novel insights into liver biology such as metabolic zonation and the mechanisms underpinning liver regeneration.
Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection remains a global public health issue. This Review provides insights into the evolution of HBV and discusses the mechanisms by which HBV and hepatitis delta virus diversity occurs and the influence of this diversity on disease progression and treatment response.
Two new position papers convincingly propose that nonalcoholic fatty liver disease needs a new name — metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD). A new name for this disease affecting nearly one billion people globally is overdue, as knowledge gained from the past decades has assuringly demonstrated that MAFLD is a purely metabolic disorder.
Details about IgE-producing B cells in the gut in the context of food allergy are scarce, despite the frequent exposure of the gut and its associated lymphoid tissues to dietary antigens. A new study finds that IgE-producing B cells are enriched in gut tissues and are probably generated from local antibody isotype switching.
The neoplastic epithelium of pancreatic cancer exists within a dense stroma that is recognized as a critical mediator of disease progression. This Review discusses our current understanding of the three principal constituents of pancreatic cancer stroma, their effect on the prevalent immune landscape and promising therapeutic targets within this compartment.
New national hepatitis C virus (HCV) screening guidance from the United States Preventive Services Task Force includes a recommendation for one-time testing for all adults aged 18 to 79 years. Implicit in the new guidance is that all people diagnosed with chronic HCV infection should be offered HCV treatment.
The microbial communities that occupy the intestinal tract are shaped by a variety of different factors, including the immune system. A new study has observed and quantified, at unprecedented depth, regionally distinct microbial and immune niches along the human colon using simultaneous analyses of the gut microbiota and neighbouring immune cells.
Colibactin-producing bacteria are abundant in the gut microbiota of colorectal cancer tumours and promote colon tumorigenesis in mouse models. Now, a new study demonstrates a direct link between exposure of human intestinal epithelial cells to colibactin and two unique mutational fingerprints found in human colorectal tumours.
As the number of novel drugs for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) increases, comparison of therapeutic options has become a key challenge in IBD trials. Here, the authors provide an overview of IBD trial design with a focus on comparative research and the head-to-head trials format.
Irritable bowel syndrome is one of the most common gut disorders worldwide and is defined according to patterns of gastrointestinal symptoms that might be limited in their applicability to all countries and cultures. This Review provides an overview of the global burden of irritable bowel syndrome and discusses the implications for the care of patients worldwide.
The evidence base for robotic gastrointestinal surgery does not yet support its widespread adoption. Here, Kinross et al. discuss this evidence base and the principles on which future gastrointestinal surgical trials should be based, as well as emerging technologies.
Mammalian livers are characterized by an alteration of chromosome numbers, or polyploidy. In this Review, Desdouets and collaborators describe the regulation of polyploidy in liver development and pathophysiology, and discuss the mechanisms of hepatocyte polyploidization and its role in liver tumorigenesis.
Genomic alterations are well-described in Barrett oesophagus and its sequela, oesophageal adenocarcinoma, but epigenomic events have not been so widely investigated. In a new study, Jammula et al. analysed the DNA methylation profiles of Barrett oesophagus, oesophageal adenocarcinoma and control tissues. Four molecular subtypes were identified, revealing four distinct epigenomic classes and potential therapeutic targets.
The biological effects of cytokines in intestinal homeostasis and disease occur as a result of JAK–STAT signalling. This Review describes the current understanding of JAK–STAT signalling in intestinal homeostasis and inflammatory bowel disease as well as the rationale for therapeutically targeting this pathway.
Rectal cancer treatment has evolved towards a multidisciplinary approach to disease management. This Review examines the essential components of rectal cancer management through a multidisciplinary team, with a focus on the effect of this approach and the elements used for staging and developing the treatment plan.
The enteric nervous system (ENS) is essential for life and controls the function of the gastrointestinal tract. Here, an overview of sensory transduction and neural circuits in the ENS is provided, yielding insights into the generation of gastrointestinal motility.
The gut microbiota has been linked to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), but metabolic confounding factors, such as obesity and diabetes, complicate analysis. This Review provides a broad insight into microbiome signatures for human NAFLD and explores issues with disentangling them from underlying metabolic disorders.
Exclusion diets are popular in the management of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). This Review outlines the mechanisms by which food might lead to symptoms in IBS and discusses different approaches to how exclusion diets can be evaluated in randomized controlled trials.
In a new study, cryopreserved human hepatocytes retrieved from livers deemed unsuitable for transplantation were thawed and encapsulated into alginate microbeads and then infused into the peritoneal cavity of a group of children with acute liver failure who were awaiting liver transplantation.
