Eine "Pflicht der Humanitaet und Ehre der deutschen Judenheit": Die "Schwachsinnigenfuersorge" am Beispiel der Israelitischen Erziehungsanstalt fuer geistig zurueckgebliebene Kinder Wilhelm-Auguste-Victoria-Stiftung in Beelitz e.V.

A „humanitarian duty and a matter of honour for German Jewry“ „Feeble-minded“ Jewish children and the Institution in Beelitz Seite 167–205 Summary In 1908, in collaboration with the Bnei Briss, the German Association of Israelite Communities founded an institution for intellectually disabled Jewish children in Beelitz with the aim of educating 7–14–year-olds, using therapeutic pedagogy. The institution was part of the philanthropic efforts undertaken by German Jewry in that period. It was set up in the wake of the German Kaiser‘s call to found more philanthropic institutions, and its establishment is indicative of the efforts at integration being made by German Jewry. In their fund-raising material, the German Association of Israelite Communities stressed the „loyalty and patriotism“ of German Jewry and described the establishment of the institution as „a humanitarian duty“ and „a matter of honour for German Jewry“. It was, therefore, demands from the non-Jewish world that led to the foundation of a Jewish institution; however, its establishment was also symbolic of the struggle against anti-Semitism and indicative both of German Jewry‘s dissimilation and their efforts at integration. The article investigates the struggle of Jewish parents to have their children admitted to the institution, the philosophy and teaching methods of the director Sally Bein (1881–1942) and his wife Friederike Rebeka Bein (1883–1942), the background of the students, the causes of intellectual disability, as well as the disagreements that occurred between parents, teachers and the director. The article also discusses the successes and failures of therapeutic pedagogy. The article contributes to the wider discourse on the health of German Jewry, their role in social work and their attitude towards eugenics

The LIM-homeodomain transcription factor Lmx1b plays a crucial role in podocytes

Patients with nail-patella syndrome often suffer from a nephropathy, which ultimately results in chronic renal failure. The finding that this disease is caused by mutations in the transcription factor LMX1B, which in the kidney is expressed exclusively in podocytes, offers the opportunity for a better understanding of the renal pathogenesis. In our analysis of the nephropathy in nail-patella syndrome, we have made use of the Lmx1b knockout mouse. Transmission electron micrographs showed that glomerular development in general and the differentiation of podocytes in particular were severely impaired. The glomerular capillary network was poorly elaborated, fenestrae in the endothelial cells were largely missing, and the glomerular basement membrane was split. In addition podocytes retained a cuboidal shape and did not form foot processes and slit diaphragms. Expression of the α4 chain of collagen IV and of podocin was also severely reduced. Using gel shift assays, we demonstrated that LMX1B bound to two AT-rich sequences in the promoter region of NPHS2, the gene encoding podocin. Our results demonstrate that Lmx1b regulates important steps in glomerular development and establish a link between three hereditary kidney diseases: nail-patella syndrome (Lmx1b), steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome (podocin), and Alport syndrome (collagen IV α4)