Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Published online: 02 January 2026; doi:10.1038/s41575-025-01164-7Glycans are essential components of the gut mucosa that modulate epithelial barrier integrity, host–microbiota interactions and gut immune response. This Review discusses the role of mucosal glycans in gut homeostasis, in intestinal inflammation and their therapeutic potential for inflammatory bowel disease.

A tiny population of cells that are passed across the placenta between mother and baby challenge basic tenets of human immunology.

Transposable elements can insert into genes, disrupting protein-coding potential. Researchers discover a mode of RNA processing, ‘SOS splicing’, that provides a quick fix.

The protein, reverse transcriptase, has become an essential tool for making DNA copies of RNA.

Engineered T cells that have been used to treat ulcerative colitis, rheumatoid arthritis and lupus show promising results.

Nature Reviews Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Published online: 03 November 2025; doi:10.1038/s41575-025-01140-1The gut microbiome presents in a multi-kingdom form and tunes host health in various ways. Studies published in 2025 have further pushed this frontier by unveiling the enigmatic roles of the gut fungi and bacteria in cross-organ regulations of host homeostasis through metabolite and immune cell-mediated pathways.

Insects colonized with Metarhizium fungi emit longifolene to lure new hosts for infection to disperse spores. A fungal strain was engineered to emit longifolene to attract and eliminate mosquitoes.

Combining fossil-based and molecular calibrations with data on horizontal gene transfer events, the authors develop a time-calibrated phylogeny of Fungi. This timescale, which integrates analytic uncertainties, suggests an older age of crown Fungi (1,401–896 million years ago), as well as a minimum age for ancient interactions involving fungi and the algal ancestors of embryophytes in terrestrial ecosystems (1,253–797 Ma).

Commensal Candida albicans enhances the virulence and dissemination of Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Typhimurium.

Molecular Psychiatry - Glucagon-like Peptide-1 receptor agonists as emerging therapeutics in bipolar disorder: a narrative review of preclinical and clinical evidence

Genetic-sequencing techniques have uncovered the oldest host-associated microbial DNA ever recorded — inside samples of teeth and bones from woolly and steppe mammoths.

Now that the US has stopped funding Gavi, the vaccine alliance will likely become more dependent on philanthropy than ever before.