Otto Grosser: doyen of embryology and national socialist

Otto Grosser (1873-1951) was a prominent embryologist in the first half of the twentieth century. This paper summarizes his scientific contributions and controversial politics.

Grosser developed a classification of placental types, based on the tissues in the interhaemal barrier, published as influential monographs in 1909 and 1927. He was professor of anatomy at the German University in Prague for 36 years, first under the Habsburg empire, then in Czechoslovakia, and finally during the German occupation. Grosser was a German nationalist and strove to promote German science and culture as president of the German Academy of Science in Prague. Following the German occupation of Bohemia and Moravia, however, Grosser became a member of the Nazi party and collaborated in pursuing their agenda.

The lesson for scientists is we need to recognize the potential of taking a wrong turn at the crossroads between our professional and political environments.