About this Research Topic

Background

Atrial fibrillation is a major public health epidemic that impairs quality of life and is associated with increased risk for stroke, heart failure, dementia, and death. Atrial fibrillation is becoming increasingly prevalent in today's aging population. As in other common cardiovascular diseases, AF is a complex, multi-factorial disorder involving major changers in metabolic, structural, and electrophysiological properties that are modulated by environmental and genetic factors. Indeed, an increasing body of evidence indicates a substantial genetic component to the development and progression of atrial fibrillation.

As part of our journal’s mission to further accelerate developments in the rapidly expanding field of cardiovascular systems medicine, with the overall aim of improving cardiovascular health in both patients and healthy individuals, Frontiers in Genetics and Systems Medicine is organizing a Research Topic focused on Genetic Contributors in Atrial Fibrillation. Led by an expert team of specialists, the Research Topic will accept manuscripts within this area of research, with the aim of giving the reader an overview of the latest discoveries and new findings, analysis of previously published data, new opinions and perspectives, and methods and protocols (when relevant). For that reason, all article types accepted by Frontiers are encouraged.

This article collection will highlight research on the role of common and rare genetic variants and non-coding RNAs in the susceptibility to atrial fibrillation. challenging the traditional view of atrial fibrillation as primarily an electrical disorder. The identification of genes which influence the development of atrial fibrillation could lead to novel mechanism-based therapeutic approaches as well as risk stratification strategies for early prevention.

Keywords: Atrial fibrillation, genetics, genome, microRNA, non-coding, polymorphism, arrythmia

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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