Claudia Turro
Dr. Melvin L. Morris Endowed Professorship in Inorganic Chemistry
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry
College of Arts and Sciences
Claudia Turro has changed how researchers understand and use the photoreactivity of metal complexes, shifting the paradigm of inorganic photochemistry. Her discoveries have also led to new molecular designs for cancer photochemotherapy and other light-driven energy chemistry. In solar-energy conversion, she was the first to show that a single-molecule photocatalyst can use low-energy red light to produce hydrogen, a clean fuel.
In cancer-related research, she has helped develop platforms that selectively target tumors while reducing off-target effects of drugs, including photoactivated compounds switched on with visible light that combine two therapeutic actions in a single molecule. Her work also advances solar-fuel chemistry, and she has created light-harvesting systems that move electrons into catalytic reactions, advancing molecular strategies for solar fuels. Together, these advances signal safer therapies and more sustainable energy.
A member of the Ohio State faculty since 1996, Turro is a recognized mentor and academic leader. She was honored with the College of Arts and Sciences Susan M. Hartmann Mentoring and Leadership Award in 2014, and her students have regularly advanced to tenure-track faculty positions as well as high-level roles in industry. Turro has served as department chair since 2019 and has provided scholarly leadership at Ohio State through extensive university service, as well as nationally through professional societies and her role as executive editor of the Journal of the American Chemical Society.
Among her many honors are election to the National Academy of Sciences in 2024 and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2023, as well as the 2026 Josef Michl American Chemical Society Award in Photochemistry. A Fellow of the American Chemical Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, she also received Ohio State’s Distinguished Scholar Award in 2017 and the Harlan Hatcher Arts and Sciences Distinguished Faculty Award in 2019. Her work continues to shape the direction of inorganic photochemistry and its applications in medicine and sustainable energy.
