Last update:

Gastroenterology news

Gut-derived bacterial molecule may drive severe liver disease

Researchers at the University of Oslo and Oslo University Hospital, together with international collaborators, have discovered that a small molecule made exclusively by gut bacteria can actively drive disease in the bile ...

C. difficile colonization in infants reshapes gut development, challenging a long-held assumption

Since its discovery, the highly contagious bacterium Clostridioides difficile (C. difficile or C. diff) has been reported not to cause symptoms in infants, leading to the assumption that colonization was not a serious health ...

Are petting zoos safe?

A 3-year-old girl has died from a rare illness after visiting a petting zoo in Victoria. She developed brain damage and kidney failure after spending weeks in intensive care.

Mini-tumors reveal new drug combinations for liver cancer

Liver cancer is difficult to treat because tumors vary greatly from patient to patient. Researchers at the University of Basel have captured this diversity by creating a collection of mini-tumors, which they use to systematically ...

Supplement plus chemotherapy boosts pancreatic cancer survival

When added to standard chemotherapy, a clinical version of the dietary supplement L-glutamine improved survival in an early-phase trial of patients with advanced pancreatic cancer. The study, led by Cedars-Sinai Health Sciences ...

Gut bacterium and its metabolite found to delay aging

A new study published in Nature Aging on Aug. 25 reports that a single gut bacterium—Bifidobacterium pseudocatenulatum (BP)—together with a small molecule it produces, 5-aminovaleric acid betaine (5-AVAB), can alleviate multiple ...

New global research highlights burden of unsafe food

If it isn't safe, it isn't food. That message sits at the heart of a major new global effort by the World Health Organization (WHO). University of Waterloo public health researcher Dr. Shannon Majowicz contributed research ...

Colon cancer cells may change identity to metastasize

Loss of GATA6—a transcription factor that controls which genes are turned on or off—can reprogram colorectal cancer cells into more primitive, adaptable states that can then spread to the liver and establish new tumors, according ...

Engineered probiotic heads to human trials

A probiotic bioengineered by UBC Okanagan researchers to thrive in the inflamed gut is set to enter human clinical trials in Australia this summer, capping a decade-long effort to turn a beneficial bacterium into a treatment ...

Microplastics may worsen fatty liver disease, new study suggests

Microplastics—minuscule pieces of plastic broken down from larger plastic waste—are a growing concern for human health, especially for the liver. A study from the University of Oklahoma, published in Science Advances, demonstrates ...

Beyond GLP-1s: The next chapter of obesity care

The rapid rise of GLP-1 medications such as semaglutide and tirzepatide has transformed obesity treatment. Still, experts say medications alone are not enough to address one of the nation's most pressing chronic diseases.