Dr. Donald D. Ourth

Dr. Donald D. Ourth of Millington, TN passed away on November 17, 2020 . He was born

January 18, 1938 in Los Angeles, CA, only son of Oskar, an English teacher, and Clarice Howell

nee, an accountant. He was Professor of Immunology and Microbiology in the

Department of Biological Sciences at the University of Memphis, Memphis, TN for 42 years, later becoming Professor Emeritus. He received the Distinguished Research Faculty Award and three Superior Performance in University Research Awards from the university. He is a member Who’s Who in Sciences Academia USA.

He received B.A. and M.A. degrees from the University of Northern Iowa and

Ph.D. in 1969 from the University of Iowa College of Medicine. He served in the U. S. Army

Medical Corps durning the Vietnam War and was of the Lutheran faith. He was a National

Institutes of Health post-doctorate research fellow from 1969-72 in the Department of

Microbiology at Harvard University School of Public Health and visiting research professor from

1972-73 at University of Bergen Medical School, Bergen, Norway. His research focused on

immunochemistry, particularly channel catfish immunology and insect immunity, innate

immunity of insects and fish, the complement system and immune response of catfish, and

isolation of antibacterial, antiviral, antifungal and anticancer compounds. Antimicrobial

peptides and proteins from insects and fish were characterized. He had 172 research

publications and presentation abstracts.

Dr. Ourth is survived by his wife Sandra Lee Staubitz, a speech-language pathologist, and three

children, Geoffrey, Dr. Karen Elmore, Frederick and five grandchildren, James, Benjamin,

Austin, Lauren, and Conner.

Funeral services will be private with burial in Nauvoo City Cemetery in Nauvoo, Illinois. Military Honors will be rendered by the Hancock County Honor Guard and the United States Army.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the Lausanne Collegiate School Science Department, 1381 West Massey Road, Memphis, Tennessee 38120, or online at www.lausanneschool.com/giveonline. If sending a memorial by mail, please write “In Memory of Donald Ourth” in the memorial check line item. Online donors should select “In Memory of” and add Don’s name.

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