Marjorie Horning

Dr. Marjorie Groothuis Horning
1917-2020
Dr. Marjorie Groothuis Horning died June 11, 2020, at the age of 102. Dr. Horning was predeceased by her husband, Dr. Evan C. Horning (1916-1993) and her long-time companion, John "Jack" Townsend (1931-2017).

Born and raised in Detroit, Marjorie earned her Bachelor of Arts at Goucher College in Baltimore, in 1938. She earned two more degrees—a Master of Science in 1940 and a Doctor of Philosophy in 1943—at the University of Michigan. There, she met her future husband, Evan C. Horning, a chemist and teacher. They married on September 26, 1942. She initially worked as a research assistant in pediatrics at the University of Michigan Hospital, and later, along with her husband, held positions at the University of Pennsylvania and the National Institutes of Health. In 1961, the couple was invited by Dr. Michael DeBakey to move to Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, where they assumed leadership roles in the newly founded Institute for Lipid Research. In addition to her work as a full professor of biochemistry at Baylor, Marjorie was also an adjunct professor of biochemistry and biophysics at the University of Houston.

It was in Houston that Marjorie, with Evan, made transformative contributions to science and women's health. Both were pioneers in the field of analytical biochemistry. She investigated the metabolism of drugs in humans, with a focus on prenatal transmission between a pregnant woman and an unborn child, as well as transmission through a mother's breast milk. Her groundbreaking research in the 1970s showed that drugs travel from the mother's system past the placenta, until then misunderstood as a protective barrier, to the unborn child. Her work prompted changes in medical practice and the prevention of drug-related birth defects; as one result, doctors in the 1980s began to warn women about the risks of medications, alcohol, and smoking during pregnancy. In 1984, Marjorie became the first woman president of the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET). This followed many other important roles in her field, including her work with the National Toxicology Program of the United States in 1978 to identify toxic chemical additives to food, medicine, and household products, and her time as the U.S. delegate to the International Union of Pharmacology. She published over 200 studies on her work and served on numerous editorial boards of prestigious journals. In 1977 she received an Honorary Doctorate from Goucher College and the American Chemical Society Award for Special Achievements of Chemistry Researchers. In 1990, together with her husband, she was awarded the Frank H. Field and Joe L. Franklin Award in Mass Spectrometry from the American Chemical Society. Marjorie was always remembered as a generous and friendly presence both inside and outside of the laboratory.

Following her retirement in 1987, Marjorie found more time to pursue her passion for art. She became an elected Trustee of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston in 1988, and later a Life Trustee in 2000. The Hornings traveled widely for scientific conferences and collected art on many of these trips. Along with their friends Virginia and Ira Jackson, they provided early leadership of the Prints and Drawings Department at the MFAH, and Marjorie and Evan later donated their entire collection of over 300 Old Master and Modern prints and drawings to the Museum. Asian Art was another focus of their collecting, especially important Japanese woodblock prints. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, the Hornings had yearly residences in Denmark, Sweden, and Finland, and collected decorative arts that later transformed the Museum's Scandinavian design collection. Ever thoughtful philanthropists, the Hornings also established generous endowments to support these core collecting interests.

Marjorie is survived by countless devoted friends.

A celebration of her remarkable life will be held at a later date. Those wishing to make a contribution in her memory should consider the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; P.O. Box 25026, Houston, TX 77265-5026.