Transnational science and collaborative networks. The case of Genetics and Radiobiology in Mexico, 1950-1970

The transnational approach of the science and technology studies (S&TS) abandons the nation as a unit of analysis in order to understand the development of science history. It also abandons Euro-US-centred narratives in order to explain the role of international collaborative networks and the circulation of knowledge, people, artefacts and scientific practices. It is precisely under this perspective that the development of genetics and radiobiology in Mexico shall be analyzed, together with the pioneering work of the Mexican physician-turnedgeneticist Alfonso León de Garay who spent two years in the Galton Laboratory in London under the supervision of Lionel Penrose. Upon his return de Garay funded the Genetics and Radiobiology Program of the National Commission of Nuclear Energy based on local needs and the aim of working beyond geographical limitations to thus facilitate the circulation of knowledge, practices and people. The three main lines of research conducted in the years after its foundation that were in line with international projects while responding to the national context were, first, cytogenetic studies of certain abnormalities, and the cytogenetics and anthropological studies of the Olympic Games held in Mexico in 1968; second, the study of the effects of radiation on hereditary material; and third, the study of population genetics in Drosophila and in Mexican indigenous groups. The program played a key role in reshaping the scientific careers of Mexican geneticists, and in transferring locally sourced research into broader networks. This case shows the importance of international collaborative networks and circulation in the constitution of national scientific elites, and also shows the national and transnational concerns that shaped local practices (AU)

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Review of existing issues, ethics and practices in general medical research and in radiation protection research.

A literature review was carried out in relation to general medical research and radiation protection research. A large number of documents were found concerning the subject of ethics in general medical research. For radiation protection research, the number of documents and the information available is very limited. A review of practices in 13 European countries concerning general medical research and radiation protection research was carried out by sending a questionnaire to each country. It was found that all countries reviewed were well regulated for general medical research. For research that involves ionising radiation, the UK and Ireland are by far the most regulated countries. For other countries, there does not seem to be much information available. From the literature review and the review of practices, a number of existing ethical issues were identified and exposed, and a number of conclusions were drawn.

Radiobiology and gray science: flaws in landmark new radiation protections.

The International Commission on Radiological Protection--whose regularly updated recommendations are routinely adopted as law throughout the globe--recently issued the first-ever ICRP protections for the environment. These draft 2005 proposals are significant both because they offer the commission's first radiation protections for any non-human parts of the planet and because they will influence both the quality of radiation risk assessment and environmental protection, as well as the global costs of nuclear-weapons cleanup, reactor decommissioning and radioactive waste management. This piece argues that the 2005 recommendations are scientifically and ethically flawed, or gray, in at least three respects: first, in largely ignoring scientific journals while employing mainly "gray literature;" second, in relying on non-transparent dose estimates and models, rather than on actual radiation measurements; and third, in ignoring classical ethical constraints on acceptable radiation risk.

Medical ethics, clinical research, and special aspects in nuclear medicine.

Medical ethics is the science of survival. It studies the working out of judgments on right or wrong referred to the human being as a biological entity interacting with the whole ecosystem. Medical ethics in clinical research raises numerous moral and technical issues. Methodological aspects are essential for carrying out the aim of clinical research. Medical ethics documents are inspired by the Nuremberg Code and culminate in the recently updated Helsinki Declaration of 1964. In Italy 2 ministerial decrees in 1997 and 1998 laid the basis for the work of a medical ethics committee. They acknowledge the European Good Clinical Practice Guidelines and set professional needs within ethical committees. In clinical research the use of ionising radiation merits special consideration. In the recent past, serious human rights abuses in radiation experiments of the 1950s and 1960s have been found. As regards research in this field we can refer to the publication of the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP) and to the report of the World Health Organisation (WHO). Legislative decree no. 187 of May 26, 2000, which transposed the 97/43/ EURATOM Directive represents the most comprehensive and recent normative reference to clinical research using ionising radiation. However, law no. 39 of March 1, 2002 is important for the partial modifications of previous decrees (art. 108 of L.D. no. 230 of March 17, 1995 and, art. 4 and attachment III of L.D. no. 187 of May 26). In this paper medical ethics, research, methodological issues and aspects of ionizing radiation are discussed.