Editorial

Article Outline

• Copyright

Trophoblast Research is a record of meetings held under the auspices of the International Federation of Placental Associations (IFPA). The present volume, Placenta: Platform for Life, is a report of IFPA Meeting 2007 and comprises 14 review articles based on plenary presentations and seven workshop reports. The meeting was hosted by the Placenta Association of the Americas and Queen's University Research Group in Reproduction, Development and Sexual Function. We owe a great debt to Dr. B. Anne Croy, Dr. Charles Graham and their colleagues for developing an exciting programme that reflected the state of the art in placental research. The high quality of the contributions will be apparent from the papers in this volume.

It is a pleasure to acknowledge the dedication and thoroughness with which Kathleen Shiverick has developed Trophoblast Research as an independent annual supplement to Placenta. Both Kathleen and the Editors of Placenta, Michael Nelson and Gernot Desoye, have given me invaluable support and guidance in my first year as Editor of Trophoblast Research. I am delighted to report that Kathleen will continue as Emeritus Editor together with Richard Miller. Several long-standing members of the Editorial Board have stepped down this year and it is important to recognize their contribution to maintain the high quality of the journal and speeding up the review process. Sincere thanks are due to John Aplin, Danielle Evain-Brion, Olga Genbacev-Krtolica, Leslie Myatt, Caroline Salafia, Henning Schneider, and Masaomi Takayama.

All articles in this volume of Trophoblast Research were invited and underwent peer review. The dedication of the authors, reviewers and Editorial Board has made it possible to publish the volume within six months of the meeting in Kingston with most papers being available on-line well before that. This rapid publication is also a reflection of the excellent and professional work of the Elsevier Health Sciences publication team. In particular, it is a pleasure to acknowledge Joanne Merrett and Greyling Peoples for their sturdy support of our journals and our organization.

The contents of this volume convey the scientific spirit of the Kingston meeting and a sense of optimism about the future of placental research. We look forward to meeting you again during IFPA Meeting 2008 at Seggau Castle, Austria, and IFPA Meeting 2009 in Adelaide, Australia.