Voters reject antigenetics initiative
Koenig, R.
Science 280(5370): 1685
1998
ISSN/ISBN: 0036-8075 PMID: 9660703 Document Number: 489318
In Switzerland, a proposal to prohibit research involving transgenic animals and the patenting of genetically altered organisms was rejected in a nationwide referendum. The referendum concluded an intense public campaign by Swiss biologists and Swiss-based pharmaceutical companies to convince the occasionally skeptical public that transgenic laboratory animals are necessary for biomedical research and that genetic engineering can be beneficial without being environmentally hazardous. Although supporters of the antigenetics proposal were disappointed by the vote, Florianne Koechlin, one of their leaders, said that they were pleased the proposal prompted widespread discussion about bioethics.