Hormones from the gastrointestinal (GI) tract are released following food ingestion and trigger a range of physiological responses including the coordination of appetite and glucose homoeostasis. The aim of this review is to discuss the pathways by which food ingestion triggers secretion of cholecystokinin (CCK), glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and the altered patterns of gut hormone release observed following gastric bypass surgery. Our understanding of how ingested nutrients trigger secretion of these gut hormones has increased dramatically, as a result of physiological studies in human subjects and animal models and in vitro studies on cell lines and primary intestinal cultures. Specialised enteroendocrine cells located within the gut epithelium are capable of directly detecting a range of nutrient stimuli through a range of receptors and transporters. It is concluded that the arrival of nutrients at the apical surface of enteroendocrine cells is a major stimulus for gut hormone release, thereby coupling these endocrine signals to the arrival of absorbed nutrients in the bloodstream.Glucagon-like peptide-1: Cholecystokinin: Glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide:Enteroendocrine: Diabetes: Obesity Physiological responses to food ingestion include the regulation of appetite and glucose homoeostasis as well as the control of gastric motility and secretion. Although rising circulating nutrient concentrations act as a sign of recent food intake, however, they do not indicate whether the nutrients are of alimentary origin and therefore do not convey sufficient information to enable the body to handle them appropriately. This role is fulfilled by neurohormonal signals from the gut, which indicate the volume and content of ingested food. A number of enteric peptides have been implicated in signalling from the gut to the brain and the pancreas. These include cholecystokinin (CCK), glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP) and peptide YY (PYY), which target receptors in the pancreas and enteric and central nervous systems. Interest in gut peptides has increased in recent decades, with the finding that they have profound and sustained physiological effects on appetite and insulin release (1)(2)(3)(4) . GLP-1, an incretin hormone that stimulates insulin release and reduces food intake, has been very successfully exploited for the treatment of type-2 diabetes. Injectable GLP-1 mimetics and orally available inhibitors of GLP-1 degradation (DPP4 inhibitors) are now widely prescribed and match the effectiveness of other oral therapies on glycaemic control, but are additionally weight-lowering, or at least weight-neutral, and are associated with a low incidence of hypoglycaemic side effects (5) . Recent excitement in the gut peptide field has been triggered by the results of using gastric bypass surgery as a treatment for morbid obesity. Somewhat unexpectedly, it was observed that a number of bariatric procedures have effec...