In 2016, the World Journal of Gastroenterology (WJG) has published the 40^th issue which containing 20 articles including one Editorial, one Therapeutics Advances, six Reviews, nine Original Articles, two Case Report and one Letters To The Editor contributed by scientists worldwide. Among these comprehensive articles are (1) “Pathophysiological and clinical aspects of gastric hyperplastic polyps”, a Review article by Katarzyna Guzinska-Ustymowicz, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor, et al from Department of General Pathomorphology, Medical University of Bialystok, Poland; (2) “Ansa pancreatica as a predisposing factor for recurrent acute pancreatitis”, a Retrospective Study by Wataru Gonoi, MD, PhD, et al from Department of Radiology, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Japan; and (3) “Efficacy of thioguanine treatment in inflammatory bowel disease: A systematic review”, a Systematic Review article by Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, VU University Medical Center, The Netherlands, etc. We invite you to peruse all 20 articles in this issue, as they present the latest research progress/findings and provide insightful comments in gastroenterology and hepatology that will guide basic research and clinical practice in these fields.

Figure 1 The cover of the issue. Editorial board member of World Journal of Gastroenterology, Michihiro Mutoh, MD, PhD, Head, Division of Cancer Prevention Research, National Cancer Center Research Institute , 5-1-1 Tsukiji, Chuo-Ku 1040045, Tokyo, Japan.

We encourage gastroenterologists and hepatologists worldwide to submit manuscripts to the WJG describing their original basic or clinical research findings that are of high academic value and which report new diagnostic techniques or summarize their treatment experiences.

We invited the readers to download and read the E-Journal of this issue, WJGv22i40.