Biographical Memoirs Volume 78 (2000) / Chapter Skim
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Clifford Grobstein
Clifford Grobstein
Pages 64-93
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From page 65... ...
Development of public policy on assisted human reproduction, on recombinant DNA usage, en cl on other controversial topics where science en c! society meet contributions of Clifforcl Grobstein as biomeclical ethicist.
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From page 66... ...
wouIcl result in morphogenesis or cellular differentiation. Those results, amplifiecl over 40 years by new techniques and molecular biology, have establishecl the importance of the extracellular materials and matrix, cell adhesion molecules, and extracellular enzymes that mollify those materials in a variety of normal clevelopmental processes, as well as in cancer metastasis, wound healing, en cl relatecl biological processes.
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From page 67... ...
Graduation was at the age of sixteen en cl enrollment at City College of New York followocI. By his junior year Cliff hacl cleciclecl on biology en cl graduate school, it was the practice of many unclergracluate biology majors, most of whom were clestinecl for meclical schools, to walk home with a particularly friencIly CCNY professor to talk en c!
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From page 68... ...
The hormone studies continued at Oregon State Univers~ty in the zoology department en cl then were resumed after World War II at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda. Aviation physiology was CTiff's wartime job en c!
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From page 69... ...
the four papers that establishecl Grobstein's eminent position in American biology. THE CORE YEARS ACTION AT A DISTANCE Grobstein switched his research focus to mammalian embryos en c!
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From page 70... ...
Furthermore, he founcl that there is specificity in the interaction between epithelial en cl mesenchymal cell populations, so that salivary mesenchyme will not support kidney morphogenesis or kidney mesenchyme salivary morphogenesis. Grobstein also cliscoverecl that not all systems are so specific in their requirements, for instance, kiciney mesenchyme will respond to salivary epithelium by forming proper kiciney tubules that, in an intact embryo, would become the tubular portion of nephrons (the sites where urine initially forms)
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From page 71... ...
by Grobstein over the following 17 years built on the 1953 foundation. A search for the kinds of extracellular materials involvecl in embryonic tissue interactions focuses!
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From page 72... ...
with Stanforc! unclergracluate Nicholas Golosow en cl showocl that the clifferentiation of mammalian pancreatic epithelial cells (ones that synthesize en c!
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From page 73... ...
Incluclecl were the very first observations of localizecl effects in morphogenetic systems of what we call tociay matrix metalloproteases enzymes that can clegracle such substances as colIagens, laminin, fibronectin, niclogen, en cl other stabilizing agents to which the integrin cell surface adhesion molecules of epithelial cells are linkocI. Others have extenclecl these studies to cleveloping mammary glancis en cl other systems as a general explanation has emerges!
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From page 74... ...
the Grobsteins from La Jolla were especially close. Some visitors workocl closely with Cliff on tissue interactions and cell differentiation en cl morphogenesis.
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From page 75... ...
I clon't know who macle the coffee, but I think we three spent a Tot of time in front of the blackboarcl in the hallway in very stimulating discussion about tissue interactions en cl other such matters. His personal generosity to me was just increclible, en c!
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From page 76... ...
Herbert Stern on cell biology, Donald Kennedy and William Telfer on organismal biology, en cl Robert MacArthur en cl Joseph Connell on population biology. He proselytizer!
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From page 77... ...
Cliff's experience in academic administration by that time Department chairman at both Stanforc!
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From page 78... ...
the whole complex issue of in vitro fertilization, human embryos, en cl assistecl reproduction were two topics he stucliecl at length and which he could interpret cogently for the public. The so-called self-policing by scientists of recombinant DNA procedures began with the Asilomar conference in 1973.
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From page 79... ...
cancer. The evidence that clietary fat intake increases the risk of breast, prostate, en cl colorectal cancers came from searching studies of worIc~wicle ciata en cl provided compelling arguments that lifestyle, specifically cliet, correlates with cancer incidence.
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From page 80... ...
In 1985 Grobstein workocl hard to stimulate the National Science Foundation to support a formal study of these aspects of human reproduction. The result was a series of articles en cl books aciciressecl to the lay public, the meclical research en cl practice communities, en cl the government and foundations involved in regulating or supporting such new science en cl medicine.
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From page 81... ...
During the late 1950s en c! early 1960s, it was the newly arrival easterners Charles Yanofsky from Western Reserve University en cl Cliff from the NIH who were shockocl by how little concern there was among oicler department faculty about Milling new faculty who couIcl become outstancling researchers.
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From page 82... ...
by the recruitment of Arthur Kornberg, Paul Berg, Joshua Lederberg, David Hogness, Dale Kaiser, Yanofsky, Grobstein, en cl others. In the words of participant Melvin Cohn, who spent the rest of his career at the Salk Institute, Stanforcl's Garden of Eclen was becoming a battlefielcl about who owned the apple tree.
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From page 83... ...
The aciministrative path began in a formal way when Cliff assumer! the chairmanship of the biological sciences department at Stanford in 1963, where he soon playact a pivotal role in convincing the university administration that expansion en c!
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From page 84... ...
was well suited to leading recruitment efforts that successfully attracted many eminent physicians en c! scientists from arounc!
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From page 85... ...
time: the Salk Institute was emerging with great strengths, the biological components of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography just clown the hill were getting stronger, en c! the new basic sciences on the UCSD campus were attracting fine young faculty in many disciplines.
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From page 86... ...
Right then en cl there Cliff created a new position program director for basic sciences in medicine that wouIcl entitle me to a seat on the Council of Chairs. I was not actually a chair, but I couIcl participate in the planning en c!
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From page 87... ...
be undertaken at once.~° Much hard work, failure, en cl success ensuccI, some involving intense efforts by Ruth Grobstein, the result was that the UCSD Meclical School, along with those at the University of California, San Francisco, en cl Stanford became national leaclers in attracting minority en cl women cancliciates. In this case, en c!
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From page 88... ...
Embracing warmth, intensity of involvement in social ant] medical and scientific issues, and savoring enjoyment of life at its fullest those phrases describe the Grobsteins during their 32 years in l a JolIa.
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From page 89... ...
Membership on editorial boards, on literally dozens of committees of the National Academy of Sciences, NIH, National Science Founciation, and the Institute of Medicine, and service to various foundations filled many hours, involved innumerable flights across the country, ant] were generous uses of Grobstein's special insights and wisdom.
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From page 90... ...
fundamental concern for the well-being of others and of our society marked Clifford Grobstein as a very special human being, remembered with affection by so many who knew him. ~ THANK DONALD KENNEDY, Charles Yanofsky, Melvin Cohn, Daniel Steinberg, Harold I
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From page 91... ...
Kidney tubule induction in mouse metanephric mesenchyme without cytoplasmic contact.
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From page 92... ...
Mendeloff. External human fertilization: An evaluation of policy.
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From page 93... ...
New York: Basic Books. From Chance to Purpose, an Appraisal of External Human Fertilization.
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