Las prácticas médicas y la biología como ciencia: Paradigmas, asimilación y domesticación social en México

Abstract

The functional paradigms of biology emerged in Europe on the margins of medicine, but medical communities appropriated them into society, thereby generating some friction between them. Originally, cell theory and theories about physiological processes did not concern physicians, but they became assimilated into the new medicine and studies into heredity and microbiology, which since their emergence had been close to medical practice, and were quickly appropriated by this new form of medicine. The 'social domestication' of this knowledge involved a process of translation to the new environment, giving rise to hybrid versions with quite distinct features from their European counterparts. Here, we analyze and discuss the introduction of biology paradigms into Mexico (19th and 20th centuries).