Reproductive medicine and the law: egg donation in Germany, Spain and other European countries.

This paper analyzes the key legal issues raised by Reproductive Medicine practiced in Europe, with special attention to the rules prevailing in countries such as Germany and Spain. Thus, the paper involves a detailed study of the regulation in force in those countries, comparing their solutions with the rules adopted in other EU countries. It also highlights the high risk of com-modification in oocyte donation. In light of this, the differences between the laws of EU countries -some of them, very restrictive with prohibitions or requirements for recipient women and others more permissive with the use of reproductive technologies- can lead to a "reproductive tourism" between countries, as indeed is happening nowadays.

Reproductive Medicine and the Law: Egg Donation in Germany, Spain and other European Countries

El presente trabajo analiza los problemas jurídicos más importantes que plantea la Medicina Reproductiva que se practica en Europa, con una atención a la normativa imperante en países como Alemania y España. Así, los autores realizan un estudio pormenorizado de la regulación vigente en dichos países, comparando sus soluciones con las normas adoptadas en otros países comunitarios. Igualmente, se pone de relieve el ato riesgo de que la donación de ovocitos se mercantilice y se forme un comercio específico de compraventa. De esta forma, las diferencias existentes entre las legislaciones de los países, unas muy restrictivas, con prohibiciones o exigencias para las mujeres receptoras, y otras más permisivas con el uso de las técnicas de reproducción, puede dar lugar a un "turismo reproductivo" entre países, como efectivamente está sucediendo (AU)

This paper analyzes the key legal issues raised by Reproductive medicine practiced in Europe, with special attention to the rules prevailing in countries such as Germany and Spain. Thus the paper involves a detailed study of the regulation in force in those countries, comparing their solutions with the rules adopted in other EU countries. It also highlights the high risk of commodification in oocyte donation. In light of this, the differences between the laws of EU countries - some of them, very restrictive with prohibitions or requirements for recipient women and others more permissive with the use of reproductive technologies - can lead to a "reproductive tourism" between countries, as indeed is happening nowadays (AU)

A legal framework for biobanking: the German experience.

Although biobanks are vital for modern medical research, serious concerns have been raised about the legal basis and framework of such endeavours. This led the German 'Telematics Platform for Medical Research Networks' ('Telematikplattform für Medizinische Forschungsnetze', TMF) to initiate a project in 2004 that was designed to place German biobanks on a sound legal footing. This project involved the planning, writing and evaluation of an expert report that addresses in great detail the legal issues concerning property rights, medical professional regulations, general liability insurance, resource continuity and research secrecy. Here, we provide a brief summary of the major results of this project.

Social risks and social perception of animal cloning

La percepción social de la ciencia ha experimentado un notable cambio en los últimos 20 años. De existir una mera sensibilidad sobre los riesgos de la biotecnología, se ha pasado a una total desconfianza en la misma. Esto se ve claramente en temas como la ingeniería genética. Pero existen miedos que van más allá de la propia ética, como el hecho de que todos los experimentos realizados sobre animales se lleven al campo de los humanos. Esto nos lleva a buscar desde una perspectiva sociológica razones para apoyar O combatir estas nuevas tecnologías (AU)

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