Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is an acute intestinal emergency in preterm infants, which is often later complicated by cognitive delay and neurodevelopmental disability. A new study performed in mice suggests that CD4⁺ T cells can travel from the NEC-inflamed gut to the brain and cause IFNγ-mediated brain injury.

Oesophageal cancer is a global health problem with two main histological subtypes, oesophageal adenocarcinoma and oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma. This Review establishes the current epidemiology of oesophageal cancer, with a particular focus on the increasing incidence of oesophageal adenocarcinoma and its precursor, Barrett oesophagus.

Although COVID-19 is a respiratory disease and its causative agent, SARS-CoV-2, principally infects the respiratory tract, extrapulmonary manifestations are observed. This Perspective explores the gastrointestinal symptoms associated with COVID-19 and the putative underlying mechanisms, discussing experimental evidence on SARS-COV-2 gastrointestinal infection and the potential for faecal–oral transmission.

Liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs) form the wall of the hepatic sinusoids and have essential roles in hepatic homeostasis. This Review describes the phenotypic dysregulations of LSECs in the context of liver disease and hepatocellular carcinoma, and provides an update of the role of LSECs as therapeutic targets.