Different types of bariatric surgery have different effects on glucose processing in the intestine, according to new research. Obese male rats underwent Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB), vertical sleeve gastrectomy (VSG) or sham surgery. Levels of the mRNAs for SGLT1, GLUT1, GLUT2, GLUT3, GLUT4 and GLUT5 (sugar transporters) were measured and intestinal segments were histologically analysed. Sections of Roux limbs from patients who had undergone RYGB 1–5 years previously were also analysed. The Roux limbs of rats and humans who underwent RYGB were hyperplastic; however, no hyperplasia occurred in the intestines of rats that underwent VSG. Expression of the genes encoding sugar transporters increased after RYGB, along with intestinal disposal of glucose. By contrast, intestinal absorption of glucose was decreased after VSG, and the density of cells secreting glucagon-like peptide 1 increased. The investigators note that although the intestine adapts differently to the two surgeries, all the changes contribute to improved glycaemia.