Dr. Mary J. Mycek

Dr. Mary J. Mycek Former professor at New Jersey Medical School Dr. Mary J. Mycek passed away on Wednesday June 2, 2021 at Bishop Wicke Nursing Home in Shelton. She was born in Shelton, CT on Sunday, December 19, 1926, to the late John and Joanna (Dziuba) Mycek. She graduated from St. Michael's School in Derby and from Shelton High School in 1944 as class valedictorian. While in high school and college she worked part-time in Slipco and the B.F. Goodrich Rubber Products Company. In 1948, she received an Artium Baccalaureus Degree in Chemistry from Brown University and in 1955, a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Yale University. After spending two years as a postdoctoral fellow at Rockefeller University in New York City, she took a position at the New York State Psychiatric Institute of Columbia University in the laboratory of Dr. Heinrich Waelsch. It was there that she identified and named the enzyme, transglutaminase, and characterized the reaction it catalyzed. Transglutaminase is now recognized to be a family of enzymes that includes Factor XIII in blood coagulation. In 1961, she accepted a position in the Department of Pharmacology at the Seton Hall College of Medicine, which became the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey - New Jersey Medical School (Newark Campus). As of July 2013 it is a part of Rutgers University. She rose to the rank of Professor and, after retiring in 1991, continued in an adjunct capacity for thirteen years. Her research centered on the mechanism of tolerance to barbiturates in the brain. She was the mentor for 2 Ph.D. students. Professionally, Dr. Mycek authored many publications among them three editions of the widely used Lippincott review text, Pharmacology, which has been translated into many languages. She served on several study sections at the National Institutes of Health, and chaired the Committee on Pharmacological Sciences in 1980-82. She was the secretary of the Biochemical Pharmacology Discussion Group at the New York Academy of Sciences from 1961-71. In addition, she was an emeritus member of the honorary science fraternity, Sigma Xi, the American Chemical Society, the American Society of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, chairing its Sub-committee on Women in Pharmacology, and the American Association for the Advancement of Sciences. In 1994, she was presented with the Outstanding Woman in Science Award from the Metropolitan Chapter of the American Women in Science in New York City. She was a member of The Yale Club of New York City, the Polish Institute of Arts & Sciences of America and the Kosciuszko Foundation. Among her other activities she particularly enjoyed her association with the Derby Historical Society, where she was a Life Member, serving on its Board of Directors and editing its Newsletter for 10 years. The Society honored her with its Dorothy Larson Award in 2004. Her interests in history led to a collaboration with Marion O'Keefe and Carolyn Ivanoff in writing a booklet about Ebenezer Bassett, a Derby man who was the first black man to serve as a United States ambassador. In 2010, the Ebenezer Bassett booklet received the Award of Merit from the Connecticut League of History Organizations. At various times Dr. Mycek volunteered in the cardiac rehabilitation unit of Griffin Hospital, in the Vertebrate Paleontology Section of the Peabody Museum of Natural History at Yale and Recording for the Blind in New Haven. Among her interests were travel especially to see her family in Poland, music, archaeology and genealogy. She took special delight in feeding the birds on her property. Dr. Mycek loved teaching and interacting with students. Over the years, she was fortunate to have had many dear friends and colleagues and is survived by a number of godchildren and many cousins both here and in Poland. A member of St. Michael's Parish in Derby, she belonged to its Ladies Guild and chaired the Jubilee Book Committee on the occasion of St. Michael's Centennial. Friends may call on Wednesday June 9, 2021 from 5:00 to 7:00 PM at the Edward F. Adzima Funeral Home, 253 Elizabeth St., Derby. On Thursday, June 10, 2021 her funeral procession will leave the funeral home at 10:30 am for a Mass of Christian Burial at 11:00 am at St. Michael Church. Burial will follow in the family plot at Mt. St. Peter Cemetery, Derby. At the request of her family if you are not vaccinated, masks are required for attendance. Memorial contributions may be made to St. Michael's Church, 75 Derby Ave. Derby, CT 06418, or to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, www.stjude.org. Friends may leave condolences online at www.adzimafh.com. Edward F. Adzima Funeral Home 253 Elizabeth St. Derby, Conn. 06418 (203) 735-0111