Message from the Editor‐in‐Chief

Abstract

It is a great honor for me to follow in the footsteps of my predecessor, Professor Yoshihiro Tsutsui, in the role of Editor-in-Chief of Congenital Anomalies, the official journal of the Japanese Teratology Society (JTS). In the Editorial of the last issue (Vol.46 No.4) Professor Tsutsui reviewed the history and mission of this journal in detail and expressed his strong hope for the future of both the journal and the society. Professor Tsutsui has worked hard to increase the number of academic papers submitted to the journal and to improve the quality of the papers appearing in it, in addition to taking measures to internationalize the journal, for instance by registering it with PubMed/Medline in 2002 and having it published by Blackwell Publishing since 2004. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to him for his devoted endeavors on behalf of all JTS members. I plan to follow the direction taken by Professor Tsutsui, encouraging the academic activity of the JTS and further increasing the number and quality of submitted papers, and I am hoping that the journal will acquire an impact factor in the near future. During the course of these efforts, I plan to discuss the possibility of introducing an electronic submission and review system with the Board of Directors. This would make procedures more efficient and would thus promote the submission of high-quality papers on a world-wide basis. Regarding the field of research interest, in addition to those suggested by Professor Tsutsui, I personally think our society should extend its scope to include studies investigating the mechanisms and prevention of possible developmental origins of disease or disease predisposition during the fetal (histogenetic) period. Although congenital malformations, which mainly occur during the embryonic (organogenetic) period, continue to be major problems requiring resolution, it is clear that disturbances of the maturation of organ structure and function will be considered to have a more serious impact on life-long human health in general in this era of increased longevity. Recent advancement in research on developmental neurotoxicity could be regarded as one of the preeminent examples in this area. Further, the terms ‘congenital malformation’ and ‘teratology’per se possess certain discriminative nuances, whereas the term ‘malformation’ could also be considered to encompass at least in part conditions just outside of the tentative ‘normal’ range of individual variations. Therefore, it might be time for us to reconsider the balance and main focus of our research effort in JTS and the scope of this journal. I will try my best to honor and emulate Professor Tsutsui’s endeavor and very much appreciate the support of JTS members, members of the Editorial Board and reviewers for supporting the publication and further development of Congenital Anomalies.