Marianne Plehn

Marianne Plehn (30 Oktober 1863 – 18 January 1946) was a German zoologist. She was the first woman to be awarded a doctorate at the ETH Zurich and the first woman to be appointed as professor in Bavaria in 1914. Plehn is commemorated in the names of three polyclads and 12 disease agents of fishes. The breadth of her research on diseases of fishes defined the scientific study in this area. She published 114 scientific papers on the subject. She worked with Bruno Hofer and has been honoured as one of the founders of fish pathology.

Plehn was born 1863 in Lubochen, then part of west Prussia. She had five siblings and her father was a manor lord. Her older brothers studied medicine. At the age of 27 Plehn moved to Zurich to take up university education in zoology, botany and geology. With financial support from her uncle she studied at the ETH Zurich, where she passed the examination as instructor for natural science in 1893. In 1896 she received her PhD in zoology, making her the first women who was awarded a doctorate by the ETH Zurich. Natural science was part of the philosophy department of the University of Zurich and while preparing for her doctorate she met and formed a lifelong friendship with Ricarda Huch, with whom she continued to exchange letters.

In 1898 she was appointed as assistant lecturer at the Bavarian Biological Experimental Institute (Bayerische Biologische Versuchsanstalt), at the School of Veterinary Medicine in Munich, Bavaria. There she worked with Bruno Hofer, who is considered as the founder of fish pathology. Plehn dedicated her life to research and her working day was spent in the laboratory and in the field. She turned down an appointment in Vienna and continued to work in Hofer's shadow, who as director presented their work in public appearances. From 1899 Plehn published her findings on fish disease and parasites, often producing several papers a year. At the time knowledge of fish physiology was limited, and little information was available on diseases and methods for their prevention. Very few scientists in Germany or abroad carried out research in fish pathology. Plehn's research agenda was determined by the needs of breeders supplying stock to lakes and streams in and around Munich and upper Bavaria. Her research was pioneering and often conducted under time pressure as breeders faces considerable financial losses. She carried out work at the institute's research station in Starnberg, which had been established in 1900 prompted by criticism that the institute did not diagnose deadly diseases and issued advice on their control quickly enough. Her most important tools were the microscope and her dissecting instruments, as she tried to determine the reasons for fish die-offs.

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