Genetics in Contemporary Germany

Irmgard Nippert, Westfälische Wilhelms‐Universität, Müunster, Germany

Published online: September 2006

DOI: 10.1002/9780470015902.a0005608

Although medical genetics as a discipline has been successfully reinstitutionalized in postwar Germany, there has been more resistance to developments in modern genetics in Germany than in most other West European and North American countries. The main reason for this resistance is the still prevalent painful collective memory of past scientific excesses and abuses inflicted against people with genetic conditions during the Third Reich.

Keywords: modern genetics in postwar Germany; politics and genetics; genetics in the public debate; legislation of embryonic stem cell research; legacies of Nazi ideology

 References
    Cohen PE, Wertz DC, Nippert I and Wolff G (1997) Genetic counseling practices in Germany: a comparison between East German and West German geneticists. Journal of Genetic Counselling 6: 61–80.
    Gesellschaft für Humangenetik e.V. (GfH) (1996) Positionspapier. Medizinische Genetik 8: 125–131.
    book Kuhlmann A (2001) Politik des Lebens – Politik des Sterbens, Biomedizin in der liberalen Demokratie. Berlin: Alexander Fest Verlag.
    book Mueller-Hill B (1991) "Bioscience in totalitarian regimes: the lesson to be learned from Nazi Germany". In: Roy D, Wynne B and Old R (eds.) Bioscience and Society, pp. 67–76. New York, NY: John Wiley & Sons.
    Nippert I and Wolff G (1999) Ethik und Genetik: Ergebnisse der Umfrage zu Problemaspekten angewandter Humangenetik, Teil I. Medizinische Genetik 11: 53–60.
    book Sperling K (2002) Analysis of the human genome by molecular biology methods. Speech by Head of Department of Human Genetics, Coordinator of the priority program. Charité, Augustenburgerplatz 1, 14059 Berlin, Germany.
    book Vogel F (1998) "Human genetics and the responsibility of the doctor". In: Jonas H, Vogel F, Catenhusen W-M and Reiter J (eds.) Ethics and Genetic Technology, pp. 25–37. Frankfurt: Gesellschaft Gesundheit und Forschung e.V.
    Wolff G, Wertz DC and Nippert I (1999) Ethik und Genetik: Ergebnisse der Umfrage zu Problemaspekten angewandter Humangenetik, Teil II. Medizinische Genetik 11: 308–318.
 Further Reading
    book Burleigh M (1994) Death and Deliverance: ‘Euthanasia’ in Germany c. 1900–1945. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
    book Jonas H, Vogel F, Catenhusen, W-M and Reiter J (eds.) (1998) Ethics and Genetic Technology. Frankfurt: Gesellschaft Gesundheit und Forschung, e.V.

Related Sub-Topics:

Bioethics | Techniques and Tools in Clinical Genetics | Health Care | Science and Society - General
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Article Title: Genetics in Contemporary Germany
 
How to Cite close
Nippert, Irmgard(Sep 2006) Genetics in Contemporary Germany. In: eLS. John Wiley & Sons Ltd, Chichester. http://www.els.net [doi: 10.1002/9780470015902.a0005608]