How ethical is Northwestern University?
More allegations concerning unethical behavior
By Curtis E. Hinkle, Founder of OII
15 March 2008
OII has been involved in investigating certain allegations concerning misconduct and ethical issues of certain researchers and professors at Northwestern University. We have been contacted by many people from many places around the world. We have the permission to share the following very serious allegations.
I have received reports which have led me to believe that Dr. Turner, Dr. Wal Torres and M. Italiano were victims of unethical conduct by J Larry Jameson, Jeffrey Weiss, and Tom Kotlar of Northwestern University.
It is important that taxpayers and other interested citizens and members of the intersex and trans community be aware of these allegations of unethical behavior.
According to what our informants have told OII, these are the allegations:
An e-mail was sent out to several researchers that Dr. William J. Turner had found a linkage to gender variations as published in an edition of GIDJ (Brazil). A presentation of these findings was being planned. Dr. Larry Jameson, of Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine responded and suggested that the findings of Dr. Turner may involve a candidate gene known as SOX3. Dr. Torres of Gendercare (Brazil), and an OII member, and her assistant, M. Italiano, also an assistant of Dr. Turner, offered to recruit subjects. Dr. Jameson offered to test SOX3 and other genes. Dr. Torres and Italiano recruited transsexuals through several avenues, including Dr. Torres' clients, as well as through support groups. HIPAA and IRB consent forms were sent by Jameson to M. Italiano who distributed them to Dr. Torres, as well as other recruited subjects. Subjects called Jameson's office to verify that the study was legitimate, and one transsexual was eager to have these tests, as it would legitimize, in their minds and to their family, that their condition was not willful. Subjects were confused because the forms provided by Jameson and staff indicated that the IRB approval was to study gonadal tumors and spermatogenesis impairment. Jameson's group then stated they would request an IRB addition to include the transsexual subjects. Evidence of this was never presented to Dr. Turner, Dr, Torres or M. Italiano. Subsequently, Jameson retracted his offer to do the testing and denied knowing that subjects were being recruited de novo, despite e-mail communication to the contrary.
Although it may be suggested that Dr. Jameson tried to avoid behaving unethically by rescinding his offer of testing, it is suggested and alleged here, that J Larry Jameson, and others who are colleagues of his, had actually engaged in unethical behavior and violated the Northwestern University IRB guidelines. The alleged reasons include the following:
1) It appears that without IRB approval for gender variant individuals, J Larry Jameson NEVER should have offered to test the subjects, recruited or otherwise.
2) Even if foregoing item A, Jameson's group added confusion because they should have clearly indicated initially, WHO needed to sign the authorization forms (HIPAA and IRB), WHO could give acceptable and adequate information about the authorization forms and the testing, and WHO could answer questions the subjects had about the testing.
3) Since the subjects (and others who were receiving the forms were contacting and receiving instructions and communications from Jameson's group) had prepared for blood samples (instructions on sample preparation were given by Jameson's lab manager Tom Kotlar) to Jameson's laboratory, the subjects were indeed ACTIVELY participating in a study which Jameson did not have IRB approval for.
4) Jameson's group did not present clear information about their inquiries, into seeking inclusion of transsexuals in their IRB study of SOX3 to include transsexuals.
5) Subjects and others, who were anticipating what they believed might be benefits from being tested, were indeed troubled and/or inconvenienced by the retraction of Jameson's offer to do blood testing.
OII has e-mails from the different parties involved which have caused us to take these allegations very seriously.
It is an interesting coincidence that I lodged a complaint with J Larry Jameson myself against Alice Dreger. I lodged that complaint in July 2007 and still have not even received any acknowledgment of receipt. As a result, I decided to file a complaint through Ethicspoint and am waiting to see if any sincere effort will be taken to deal with the serious complaints I have against Alice Dreger concerning academic misconduct.
