DALLAS, Aug. 25, 2008 -- The American Heart Association has set an October launch date for its sixth new cardiology subspecialty journal -- Circulation: Cardiovascular Genetics. This is the last in the launch of six new journals, appearing under the banner of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a part of Wolters Kluwer Health.

Ramachandran S. Vasan, M.D., D.M., of Boston University School of Medicine and The Framingham Heart Study, has been named editor of Circulation: Cardiovascular Genetics. "The field of cardiovascular genetics is exploding, with exponential increases in scientific investigations and manuscripts," Vasan said. "These rapid advances bring with them the urgent need for continuous education of cardiologists, scientists and practitioners. The pages of Circulation: Cardiovascular Genetics will constitute a premier forum for scientific debate where experts can weigh in on issues that challenge the field."

Circulation: Cardiovascular Genetics will exclusively highlight genetics as related to cardiovascular medicine. "As such, it represents the 'one-stop' journal to both publish findings and read the literature that is specifically of interest to cardiologists and scientists with a focus on cardiovascular medicine," Vasan added.

The main focus of Circulation: Cardiovascular Genetics will be original research on population genetics and biomarkers, as well as clinical trials in the burgeoning field of pharmacogenetics. The journal will also feature current and comprehensive reviews in the areas of advances in molecular genetics, genomics, proteomics, metabolomics and systems biology; methods in genetics and clinical interpretation; and controversies in cardiovascular genetics.

A "news round-up" section will summarize new developments in the field, highlighting articles likely to impact the management of cardiovascular disorders. Other features will include case studies with dynamic interactions between readers and experts, book reviews, and letters to the editor.

"Circulation: Cardiovascular Genetics represents the sixth member of the Circulation portfolio of cardiovascular subspecialty journals," said Joseph Loscalzo, M.D., Editor-in-Chief of Circulation and the Circulation portfolio of journals. "This new journal will serve as a venue for publishing highly relevant studies in the rapidly expanding fields of cardiovascular genetics, genomics, proteomics, and metabolomics. Under the able leadership of Dr. Ramachandran Vasan as editor, the journal will emphasize the growing importance of these new scientific disciplines in defining cardiovascular risk, prognosis and therapeutic response and in laying the groundwork for the evolution of the field of personalized cardiovascular medicine."

The editors urge clinicians and researchers to submit new studies and other papers to Circulation: Cardiovascular Genetics. "As high-priority manuscripts seek a home in the leading journals in the field, we expect that our journal will become one of the pre-eminent publications for cardiovascular scientists," Vasan said.

Information on submitting a manuscript can be found at http://circ.ahajournals.org/misc/ifora_genetics.shtml.

The new title completes the updated Circulation portfolio of journals, designed to meet the need for tightly focused information at the cutting edge of cardiology. The first three journals in the series -- Circulation: Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology, Circulation: Heart Failure and Circulation: Cardiovascular Imaging commenced publication over the past few months. Circulation: Cardiovascular Interventions launches this month and Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes will debut in September.

Circulation: Cardiovascular Genetics and all of the Circulation portfolio journals will be available in both print and online formats. The journal Web site, http://circgenetics.ahajournals.org/, will launch when the first issue is posted in October and will also present "Publish Ahead of Print" articles and other online features.

American Heart Association/American Stroke Association Premium Professional members will have free, full-text access to journal articles through December 31, 2008. The first issue of each of the six new journals will be available to the public for free as sample issues.

NR08-1107 (Circ: Genetics Launch)  


About the American Heart Association

Founded in 1924, the American Heart Association is the nation's oldest and largest voluntary health organization dedicated to building healthier lives, free of heart disease and stroke. These diseases, America's No. 1 and No. 3 killers, claim more than 870,000 lives a year. In fiscal year 2006-07 the association invested more than $554 million in research, professional and public education, advocacy and community service programs to help all Americans live longer, healthier lives. To learn more, call 1-800-AHA-USA1 or visit http://www.americanheart.org.

About Wolters Kluwer Health

Wolters Kluwer Health (Conshohocken, PA), a division of Wolters Kluwer, is a leading provider of information and business intelligence for students, professionals and institutions in medicine, nursing, allied health, pharmacy and the pharmaceutical industry. Major brands include traditional publishers of medical and drug reference tools and textbooks, such as Lippincott Williams & Wilkins [http://www.lww.com]/ and Facts & Comparisons®; electronic information providers, such as Ovid, Medi-Span® and ProVation; and pharmaceutical information providers such as Adis International and Source®. Wolters Kluwer Health has annual revenues (2007) of $1,044 million (euro 761 million) and employs approximately 2,700 employees globally. For more information, visit http://www.wkhealth.com/.

CONTACT: Cathy Lewis, American Heart Association, (214) 706-1324