The Fundamental papers on the creation of the Contraception Pill - Gregory Pincus Archive Documenting his Research on Reproduction and Contraception (1926-1936)

Pincus, Gregory

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[Science] [Contraception] Gregory Pincus. Father of The Oral Contraceptive Pill. Bound collection of 29 rare offprints of Pincus s scientific publications on fertility research and in vitro fertilization. 10.5 x 7.5 in. Dark red textured cloth boards. "Gregory Pincus Vol. 1 (1926-1936)" gilt on front cover. "Gregory Pincus Vol. 1" gilt on spine. Most offprints bound with original paper wrappers. 6 articles are contemporary photocopies. Written at the beginning of his career, these papers demonstrate Pincus s early interests in reproduction and fertility science. In the 1930s, Pincus faced one of the earliest challenges in his career--he was working as a leading researcher at Harvard University, conducting experiments on mammalian biology, when he made one of the major breakthroughs in his career: successful in vitro fertilization of a rabbit in 1934. The offprints here are related to scientific questions surrounding the differences between in vivo and in vitro environments for embryonic development, fertility stimulation in mammals, and results of his successful in vitro rabbit experiment. The 1934 article "Can mammalian eggs undergo normal development in vitro?" directly addresses this experiment, describing the rabbit experiment which produced "seven dark grey young….We believe, therefore, that this is the first certain demonstration that mammalian eggs can be fertilized in vitro." He clearly describes the process in the 1936 abstract on "The experimental activation of rabbit eggs." "Fertilization can be accomplished in vitro, but activation by simple sperm extracts does not occur.Activation at this stage can be induced by treating the ova with hypertonic solutions or by exposing the ova to high temperature (45?) for a few minutes. Ova so activation can be transplanted to the fallopian tubes of recipient females, and the subsequent development followed." National headlines about "test-tube babies" and "fatherless rabbits" brought his research to wide audiences, but it also elicited fears about the limits of scientific experimentation. The popular controversy surrounding these experiments was overwhelming, and it cost Pincus his faculty position at Harvard. The importance of this research was acknowledged by the entire scientific community, however, and in 1936 Harvard University cited Pincus s work as one of the university s outstanding scientific achievements in its 300-year history. In the years following this breakthrough, Pincus continued fertility research and was one of the lead scientists behind developing the oral contraceptive pill. Offprints are the rarest and most collectible forms that a journal article can take. Few are printed, perhaps only two or three, and these are usually given to the authors of the piece. Sometimes authors give them away to colleagues, so it s not unusual to find offprints with presentation inscriptions or important ownership signatures. This collection comes with 2 Typed Letters Signed by Pincus on official Biological Laboratories of Harvard University letterhead. A colleague in California wrote to Pincus requesting copies of his paper on "ectogenic research with rabbits." In his response dated April 22, 1936 Pincus writes about the lack of offprints available. "The reprints of the articles that you mention have all been distributed and I have none left." He also writes on the forthcoming publication of his 1936 book Eggs of Mammals. "In this monograph a summary of the material appearing in the papers you mention will be presented." Signed "Gregory Pincus". Second TLS dated October 15, 1936 signed "G. Pincus". Selection of the 29 offprints listed below. Complete index included in object photographs. All are incredibly rare. At the time that this description was written, there are no copies of this work in American institutions and OCLC search results are at best an estimate that can vary over time. "On the interaction of oestrin and the ovary-stimulation principles of extracts of the. Seller Inventory # 15171

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Title: The Fundamental papers on the creation of ...
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