Clement Markert
Clement Lawrence Markert (April 11, 1917 – October 1, 1999) was an American biologist credited with the discovery of
Markert was born in
Markert's Ph.D. research, and subsequent postdoctoral work at
In 1950 he began teaching at the University of Michigan, part of the new wave of what later became molecular biology. In 1954, Markert became a victim of McCarthyism; he was suspended from teaching because he refused to testify before the House Un-American Activities Committee. He was later reinstated, and continued at the University of Michigan until moving to Johns Hopkins in 1957, followed by Yale University—as head of the Department of Biology.[3] In 1966, he served as president of the American Institute of Biological Sciences.[4] He remained at Yale until retiring in 1986 to North Carolina State University, where he continued researching until 1993.[5]
Early in his career, Markert developed the concept of
Markert was Editor-in-Chief of the
In 1990, the University of Michigan created the annual "Davis, Markert, Nickerson Lecture on Academic and Intellectual Freedom" series, in honor of Markert and two other Michigan faculty suspended for refusing to testify in 1954.[7]
In 1992, it was reported in National Geographic that Markert was attempting an experiment to create a "superpig" by crossbreeding the extremely fertile Meishan pig with domestic pigs, speeding up the process by altering the genes of fertilized embryos.[8] It was hoped that this would, within 5 years of beginning the program, create a hybrid that combined the fertility and early sexual maturation of the Meishan pig with the lean physique and quick growing times of domestic pigs.
References
- ^ a b c d D. L. Nanney and G. S. Whitt, "Clement L. Markert (1917-1999): The Academic Odyssey of a Developmental Biologist", Journal of Heredity, vol. 91, no. 3 (2000), pp. 265-267
- ^ "Pioneering biologist Clement L. Markert dies at age 82 Archived 2011-10-21 at the Wayback Machine", Yale Bulletin and Calendar, Volume 28, Number 10 (October 25-November 1, 1999). Accessed September 8, 2007
- ^ Clement L. Markert Archived 2007-08-27 at the Wayback Machine, accessed September 8, 2007
- ^ Past AIBS Presidents, accessed September 8, 2007
- ^ Clement L. Markert (1917-1999), accessed September 8, 2007
- ^ Jon W. Gordon, "In memorial: Clement L. Markert", Journal of Experimental Zoology, vol. 286, no. 6 (2000), p. 551.
- ^ Academic Freedom Lecture Archived 2007-08-21 at the Wayback Machine, accessed September 8, 2007
- ^ "Biologist Sees the Future and Calls It Hog Heaven". National Geographic. Washington, D.C., USA: National Geographic Society. September 1992.