Genomics of heart failure.

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in men and women, and heart failure (HF) is associated with high rates of morbidity and mortality. Most common forms of HF are non-mendelian and the evidence for heritability is modest. Study of the genetic susceptibility to HF has been limited to patients with rare familial forms of HF and candidate gene association studies in patients with distinct subtypes of HF. However, with the completion of the human genome project and the development of the HapMap template, new large-scale genome-wide association studies are possible. This article reviews the status of these and other important developments in genomics, in particular genome-wide sequencing, and other "omics".