H. Robert Horvitz

Biologist

• Born: May 8, 1947
• Place of Birth: Chicago, Illinois

SCIENTIST

Horvitz won the Nobel Prize in 2002 for his work on nematode worms, which helped advance research in cell death, or apoptosis, and organ regulation in humans.

AREA OF ACHIEVEMENT: Science and technology

Early Life

H. Robert Horvitz was born May 8, 1947, in Chicago, Illinois. His mother, Mary Savit, was a Chicago native, and his father, Oscar Horvitz, was from nearby Joliet. Horvitz was a second-generation Jewish American. His maternal grandfather, David Savit, was a native of Russia who in 1904 moved to Chicago, where he became a dress manufacturer and grocer. Chess and reading were among Horvitz's favorite pastimes.

Horvitz was fond of his grandparents, the rest of whom had emigrated from parts of Russia to the United States. Horvitz’s maternal grandmother, Rose Savit, came to live with his family for a time. Rose would often share stories of Chicago speakeasies with Horvitz, since she had seen them firsthand during Prohibition in the 1920s.

Horvitz, who was given the first name Howard, was often called “Bobby” or “Rob” by his parents and schoolmates. In 1950, when Horvitz was three, his sister Carol Cecile Horvitz was born.

Horvitz became an avid fan of the Chicago Cubs and a member of the Boy Scouts. His family often moved to different homes on the north side of Chicago. Horvitz went to high school at Niles East in Skokie, Illinois, where he first developed a love of biology. For college, he flew across the country to Cambridge, where he enrolled at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) as a mathematics major in 1964. While in college, Horvitz pursued a host of different activities, including being a newspaper editor and working in student government. He also enjoyed success working for International Business Machines (IBM) on summer breaks.

Life’s Work

Even though Horvitz graduated from MIT with a degree in mathematics, he had an inherent interest in biology. Even with his lack of academic study in the field, Horvitz was accepted at Harvard University’s biology department, where he struggled to keep up with other graduate classmates who had advanced knowledge of the subject. Despite this handicap, Horvitz succeeded in his studies, earned a doctorate degree, and in 1978 became a professor at MIT.

Horvitz’s best-known work, however, had been set in motion four years earlier when he was studying on a fellowship from the Muscular Dystrophy Association of America. Horvitz focused on the nematode worm Caenorhabditis elegans. He used the worm as a model for his research in the field of genetics and discovered that he could use it to find several important genes that were in charge of cell death, or apoptosis. Horvitz’s research deciphered these genes in the nematode worm, and he was able to relate this discovery to the genes’ human counterparts. This radical discovery provided concrete details surrounding programmed cell death in humans. Horvitz’s discoveries regarding genes and cell death led him to new revelations, which were based on interactions with the nematode, about organ development in humans.

Horvitz’s long and unrelenting research was eventually rewarded in 2002 when he received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for this work. The award was shared by fellow researchers John Sulston and Sydney Brenner, whose research with nematode worms helped propel Horvitz to make more discoveries.

Horvitz’s vast knowledge of biology and life sciences has led to a life of research and travel. He has given speeches and lectures around the world, and he has traveled to places such as Russia, Europe, Tibet, Egypt, India, and Japan. He was awarded the United Kingdom's Genetics Society Mendel Medal in 2007 and was elected as a foreign member of the Royal Society.

Horvitz was named a 2015 fellow of MIT's National Academy of Inventors for his work. Horvitz continued his research using nematode worms, and in 2016 discovered a gene, which he and fellow researchers named vps-50. They learned that the gene helps to regulate the proteins, or neuropeptides, that relay messages between or to and from cell neurons. Some of those who suffer from autism have been found to be missing the vps-50 gene, and Horvitz and his team theorized that an absent vps-50 gene could promote autism in humans.

As of 2024, Horvitz was the David H. Koch Professor of Biology at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and continuted his research to gain insight into human diseases. He was a member of the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research and the MIT McGovern Institute for Brain Research.

Significance

Although biology was not Horvitz’s first choice of career, his contributions in the field earned him numerous awards including a Nobel Prize. His scholarly achievements led to a position as a biology professor at MIT and as a scientist at the McGovern Institute for Brain Research. In addition, Horvitz has worked at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and has been recognized with prizes from Columbia University. Horvitz’s discoveries have many positive implications for the scientific world. The ability to explore organ regulation and cell death could lead to effective methods for disease control and treatment.

Bibliography

Angier, Natalie. “Studies of Cell Death as a Key Life Process Trace a Complex Dance.” New York Times, New York Times, 31 Dec. 1991. Web. 31 Mar. 2016.

Green, David B. "This Day in Jewish History // 1047: Biologist Who Discovered Death Genes' Through Worm Research Is Born." Haaretz. Haaretz Daily Newspaper, 8 May. 2015. Web. 31 Mar. 2016.

"H. Robert Horvitz—Biographical." Nobel Prize. Nobel Media AB, 2002. Web. 31 Mar. 2016.

Potten, Christopher, and James Wilson. Apoptosis: The Life and Death of Cells. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2004. Print.

Trafton, Anne. "Gene Required for the Control of Behavioral State May Be Linked to Autism." Medical Express. Medical Xpress, 4 Mar. 2016. Web. 31 Mar. 2016.