Ups and Downs of a Sexologist and One-Time Phytologist.

This article charts the history of a scientific career that began in the plant sciences and is ending in research on the placenta-brain axis and on the developmental origins of the mammalian placenta. In the middle was the characterization of uteroferrin and interferon-τ, the role of the latter in maternal recognition of pregnancy, and the development of a commercial pregnancy test for dairy cows. The article also emphasizes the roles personal upheavals and happenchance played in shaping a professional life and dealing with an incident of scientific malfeasance that threatened it. The article concludes with a discussion of the difficulties of practicing science during the twilight years.