Mary Maynard Daly

1921 – 2003

First African-American Woman Chemist: Connected Proteins to Human Health

Biochemist

Cardiovascular System

Diet and Heart Health

Dr. Marie Maynard Daly dedicated her professional endeavours to pioneering work in protein science, specifically examining its implications for human health. Her research significantly contributed to our understanding of the intricate relationships between proteins and their impact on areas such as cardiovascular health and nutrition.

Early Life and Education

Daly was born in Queens, New York to Helen Page Daly, a homemaker, and Ian C. Daly, a postal worker. It seems that her parents (and, later, her teachers at Hunter College High School) encouraged and supported her interest in the sciences. Her father had pursued chemistry at Cornell University but lacked the financial means to complete his studies. In a 2002 interview, Daly told Contemporary Black Biography that,

“My father wanted to become a scientist but there weren't opportunities for him as a Black man at that time.”

(CBB, 2021)

Daly graduated summa cum laude, the highest distinction for a college graduate, with a Bachelor of Science from Queens College, New York, in 1942. One year later, Daly received a Master of Science in chemistry from New York University. She went on to study amylase biochemistry under the supervision of Dr. Mary Letitia Caldwell — another woman who forged new paths in the male-dominated field of chemistry — and received her Ph.D. in 1948. Daly was the first African-American woman in the United States to earn a doctorate in chemistry.

At Columbia University, Daly completed her thesis titled “A Study of the Products Formed by the Action of Pancreatic Amylase on Corn Starch” under the supervision of Dr. Mary Letitia Caldwell. She received her Ph.D. in 1948, becoming the first African-American woman in the United States to earn a Doctorate in Chemistry.

Research and Teaching Career

After two years as an instructor at Howard University, a historically Black private research institution, she received a grant from the American Cancer Society that enabled her to become a postdoctoral researcher at the Rockefeller Institute under molecular biologist Alfred Mirsky. Her work at the Rockefeller Institute in basic science resulted in key papers on the structure and function of histones and protein synthesis. Daly identified the order of amino acids in histones and researched the structure of pyrimidines and purines. James Watson, in his lecture after receiving the Nobel Prize for the discovery of the DNA double helix, cited the work that Daly, Mirsky, and Vincent Allfrey had conducted into the role of RNA in protein synthesis. Daly worked at the Rockefeller Institute (which became Rockefeller University in 1954) from 1948 to 1955.

*Through her work with several institutions, Daly discovered key insights into the nature of proteins and their implications for human health.*

Daly continued on to a successful career as a researcher, teacher, and mentor. As a biochemistry associate (1955–1959) at Columbia University working with Quentin Deming, she demonstrated the role of cholesterol in atherosclerosis using animal models. This work was some of the earliest to relate diet to cardiovascular health. Daly's interest in heart health would continue throughout her career, and between 1958 and 1963 she was an investigator for the American Heart Association. Over the course of her career, Daly would also make significant contributions to our understanding of the effects of sugar and other nutrients on heart health, the relationship of hypertension to atherosclerosis, and the uptake of creatine by muscle cells. In 1960, she joined the Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University, New York City as an assistant professor of biochemistry and medicine. Daly was promoted to associate professor in 1971 and remained at Yeshiva until her retirement in 1986. Daly was a cancer scientist with the Health Research Council of New York for a decade, as well as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and a Fellow of the American Heart Association.

Daly was a passionate instructor who taught first at Howard University and then, later, at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University. She also developed ways to support African-American students pursuing studies in science, through the Martin Luther King-Robert F. Kennedy Program at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the Ivan C. and Helen H. Daly Scholarship Endowment at Queen’s University.

Advocacy

Daly forged a rich career in science in defiance of the "double bind" of being both racialized and female. In 1975, she took part in a conference of 30 minority women in the sciences that resulted in the report The Double Bind: The Price of Being a Minority Woman in Science. Jewel Plummer Cobb, Chair of the conference, writes in this report's foreword,

"Science careers in the context of gender and race or ethnic bias have been a major part of our lives, setting us apart at every turn."

(Malcom et al, 1976, p. ix)

The report surveys the diverse experiences of the participants, and concludes with policy recommendations to address the barriers facing racialized women in science. No record of Daly's specific contributions to this conference seems to have survived, but she was active in promoting careers in science for minority students. She is credited with developing and helping run the Martin Luther King-Robert F. Kennedy Program at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, which recruited and prepared African-American students to enter the school. After her retirement, she set up a scholarship for African-American science students at her alma mater, Queens College.

Honours

In 1999, Daly was named one of the top fifty women in STEM by the National Technical Association — an organization founded in 1925 to develop "a safe haven and 'the voice' for minorities in architecture, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics." In 2016, an elementary school in St. Albans, New York, was founded as the Dr. Marie M. Daly Academy of Excellence. In 2023, the Protein Society inaugurated the annual Marie Maynard Daly Award to recognize "ground-breaking research at the interface between protein science and human health.”

Daly built a rich life and legacy through her scientific achievements, mentorship, and investment in the future of her students (and minority students in particular). She married physician Vincent Clark in 1961. The Marie M. Daly Memorial Celebration (Einstein College), The Dr. Marie M. Daly Academy of Excellence, and The Marie Maynard Daly Award (The Protein Society) also bear her name in memory of her achievements.

Personal Life

Daly married physician Vincent Clark in 1961; they had no children. Some sources say that her husband predeceased her; an obituary published in Chemical & Engineering News states that he outlived her.

The Matilda Effect

Perhaps the Matilda Effect is most evident in the scant information about Dr. Marie Maynard Daly that survives. When science journalist Megan Scudellari set out to research this trailblazing scientist, she discovered that "[w]hat we know about Daly comes primarily from her record of scientific publications" (2022). Few other records exist; no notes or recordings of the interview she gave to Contemporary Black Biography in 2002 survive. "And so," writes Scudellari, "Daly's voice might also be lost. While we can read her papers and recite a few basic facts, there's a whole wealth of her life missing" (2022). In spite of the historic first of her doctoral degree in chemistry, of her significant research contributions, and of her long and productive career, the woman herself remains a cipher.

We have authored and illustrated this entry with care and respect, aiming to achieve the highest standards through diligent, balanced research. We also strive to maintain the highest standards of accuracy and fairness to ensure information is diligently researched and regularly updated. Please contact us should you have further perspectives or ideas to share on this article.

Allfrey, V., Daly, M. M., & Mirsky, A. E. (1953). Synthesis of protein in the pancreas. Journal of General Physiology, 37(2), 157–175. https://doi.org/10.1085/jgp.37.2.157
Brown, J. E. (2012). African American Women Chemists. Oxford University Press.
Daly, M. M., & Mirsky, A. E. (1955). Histones with high lysine content. The Journal of General Physiology, 38(3), 405–413. https://doi.org/10.1085/jgp.38.3.405
Daly, M. M., & Mirsky, A. E. (1952). Formation of protein in the pancreas. Journal of General Physiology, 36(2), 243–254. https://doi.org/10.1085/jgp.36.2.243
Daly, Marie M., Mirsky, A. E., & Ris, H. (1951). The amino acid composition and some properties of histones. Journal of General Physiology, 34(4), 439–450. https://doi.org/10.1085/jgp.34.4.439
Deming, Q. B., Mosbach, E. H., Bevans, M., Daly, M. M., Abell, L. L., Martin, E., Brun, L. M., Halpern, E., & Kaplan, R. (1958). Blood pressure, cholesterol content of serum and tissues, and atherogenesis in the rat. The Journal of Experimental Medicine, 107(4), 581–598. https://doi.org/10.1084/jem.107.4.581
Gilman, V. (2023, March 27). [Marie M. Daly obituary]. Obituaries. Chemical & Engineering News. https://cen.acs.org/articles/82/i32/People.html
Malcom, S. M., Hall, P. Q. & Brown, J. W. (1976). The Double Bind: The Price of Being a Minority Woman in Science. (Report No. 76-R-3). American Association for the Advancement of Science. https://web.mit.edu/cortiz/www/Diversity/1975-DoubleBind.pdf
National Technical Association. (2020). Our History The Minority Technical Voice ... since 1925. https://ntaonline.org/our-history/
Scudellari, M. (2022, March 2). Trailblazing biochemist Marie Maynard Daly’s full story may be lost. Science News. https://www.sciencenews.org/article/marie-maynard-daly-biochemistry-chemistry-history
The Protein Society. (2022). Protein Society Awards. https://www.proteinsociety.org/protein-society-awards
Watson, J. D. (1964). The involvement of RNA in the synthesis of proteins: Nobel lecture, December 11, 1962. In Nobel Lectures, Physiology or Medicine 1942-1962. Elsevier Publishing Company, Amsterdam. https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/medicine/1962/watson/lecture/
Website Name: The Matilda Project
Title of Entry: Mary Maynard Daly
Author: Shelley Wall
Illustrator: Sarah Crawley
Editors: Sandy Marshall & Shehroze Saharan
Original Publication Date: February 16, 2024
Last Updated: March 31, 2024
Copyright: CC BY-NC-ND
Webpage Specific Tags: Mary Maynard Daly; First African-American woman Ph.D. in chemistry; Biochemistry pioneer; Cellular nucleus; Protein synthesis; Cholesterol metabolism; Enzyme research; Heart disease; Columbia University; Queens College; Breaking racial barriers in science; Advocacy for minority students in STEM; DNA and RNA research; Nuclear proteins; Effects of smoking on lung health; Mentorship in biochemistry; Women scientists in the 20th century; Contributions to medical science; Role model for African-American women; Education and diversity in science; Health disparities research.
Website Tags: The Matilda Project, The Matilda Effect; Margaret W. Rossiter; Matilda Joslyn Gage; Implicit bias; Unconscious bias; Gender attribution bias; Scientific recognition bias; Gender discrimination in academia; Stereotype threat; Pay gap in STEM; Glass ceiling in science; Sexism in scientific research; Gender stereotypes in education; Gender bias in peer review; Bias in STEM hiring practices; Impact of gender bias on scientific innovation; Underrecognition of female scientists; History of women in science; Women scientists in history; Notable women in science; Pioneering women scientists; Women Nobel laureates; Female role models in science; Gender disparities in scientific research; Women's suffrage movement; Historical women's rights leaders; Historian of science; STEM gender gap; Women in STEM; STEM education; Challenges faced by women in STEM; Representation of women in tech; Initiatives to support women in STEM; Gender equity in STEM education; Encouraging girls in STEM; STEM outreach programs; Diversity in STEM curriculum; Equity, Diversity, Inclusion; Equity in education and workplace; Diversity training; Inclusion strategies; Inclusive leadership; Gender equality; Racial equity; Pay equity and transparency; Representation in media.
APA Citation
Wall, S. (2024, March 31). Mary Maynard Daly. The Matilda Project. https://www.thematildaproject.com/scientists/mary-maynard-daly

Author

Dr. Shelley Wall

Associate Professor - Biomedical Communications Graduate Program, Institute of Medical Science, Temerty Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto

Dr. Shelley Wall is an associate professor in the Biomedical Communications graduate program at the University of Toronto with an educational background in literature, fine art, and medical illustration. Her research interests include graphic medicine, patient education, the visual construction of gender in medical discourse, the history of medical and bioscientific illustration, and the socio-cultural dimensions of medical visualization.

Illustrator

Sarah Crawley

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