Gary Brudvig

About

Gary Brudvig is the Benjamin Silliman Professor of Chemistry and Professor of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry at Yale University. He has been a member of the Yale faculty since 1982. His research focuses on biophysical chemistry, inorganic chemistry, and materials chemistry, with a particular emphasis on understanding how nature efficiently performs light-driven, four-electron oxidation of water to oxygen. Brudvig's work employs spectroscopic, biophysical, and molecular biological methods to investigate the structure and function of redox centers, the kinetics and yields of electron-transfer reactions, and the chemistry of water oxidation in photosystem II. His research aims to inform the design of artificial systems for solar energy conversion, including the development of water-oxidation catalysts and bioinspired processes for solar fuel production. Brudvig has made significant contributions to the understanding of photosystem II and has collaborated on developing inorganic model complexes of the manganese active site, leading to the creation of the first homogeneous oxomanganese water-oxidation catalyst. Recognized for his contributions to science, he has received numerous honors, including election as a Fellow of the AAAS and membership in the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering. He is also a recipient of the Graduate Mentor Award in the Natural Sciences and has been featured in various news outlets for his work in solar energy and photosynthesis.

Research topics

• Chemistry
• Biochemistry
• Organic chemistry
• Materials science
• Biology
• Engineering
• Biophysics
• Photochemistry
• Environmental science
• Metallurgy

Selected publications

• Photocatalytically recovering hydrogen energy from wastewater treatment using MoS2 @TiO2 with sulfur/oxygen dual-defect

  Applied Catalysis B Environment and Energy · 2021 · 164 citations

  DOI

• Observation of a potential-dependent switch of water-oxidation mechanism on Co-oxide-based catalysts

  Chem · 2021 · 125 citations

  DOI

• High-resolution cryo-electron microscopy structure of photosystem II from the mesophilic cyanobacterium, <i>Synechocystis</i> sp. PCC 6803

  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · 2021 · 106 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding

  sp. PCC 6803 at 1.93-Å resolution. A number of differences are observed relative to thermophilic PSII structures, including the following: the extrinsic subunit PsbQ is maintained, the C terminus of the D1 subunit is flexible, some waters near the active site are partially occupied, and differences in the PsbV subunit block the Large (O1) water channel. These features strongly influence the structural picture of PSII, especially as it pertains to the mechanism of water oxidation.

  DOI

• Structure of a monomeric photosystem II core complex from a cyanobacterium acclimated to far-red light reveals the functions of chlorophylls d and f

  Journal of Biological Chemistry · 2021 · 80 citations

  position of the electron transfer chain and four Chl f molecules in the core antenna. We also make observations that enhance our understanding of PSII biogenesis, especially on the acceptor side of the complex where a bicarbonate molecule is replaced by a glutamate side chain in the absence of the assembly factor Psb28. In conclusion, these results provide a structural basis for the lower energy limit required to drive water oxidation, which is the gateway for most solar energy utilization on ea…

  DOI

• pH-Dependent Electrocatalytic Aqueous Ammonia Oxidation to Nitrite and Nitrate by a Copper(II) Complex with an Oxidation-Resistant Ligand

  Journal of the American Chemical Society · 2025-01-06 · 18 citations

  articleSenior authorCorresponding

  The electrocatalytic aqueous ammonia oxidation (AO) represents a more sustainable alternative to accessing nitrite (NO2–) and nitrate (NO3–). We now report that Cu(pyalk)2 {pyalk = 2-(pyridin-2-yl)propan-2-oate}, previously employed as a homogeneous water oxidation (WO) catalyst, is also active for selective AO in aqueous environments. The traditional Griess analytical test for NO2–/NO3– was modified to permit the operation in the presence of the otherwise interfering Cu2+ ion. Choosing the righ…

  PublisherDOI

Recent grants

• NIH Grant R01GM032715

  NIH · $5.5M · 2011

• Predoctoral Program in Biophysics

  NIH · $12.8M · 1988–2023

• Terahertz Spectroelectrochemical Methods to Study Semiconductors, 2D Materials, and Metal Organic Frameworks (MOFs)

  NSF · $500k · 2020–2024

Frequent coauthors

• Robert H. Crabtree

  Stanford University

  405 shared

• Víctor S. Batista

  Yale University

  170 shared

• Brandon Q. Mercado

  Yale University

  138 shared

• David Balcells

  University of Oslo

  96 shared

• Marie‐Noëlle Collomb

  Université Grenoble Alpes

  76 shared

• James D. Blakemore

  University of Kansas

  74 shared

• Dimitar Y. Shopov

  Washington University in St. Louis

  70 shared

• Nilay Hazari

  Yale University

  65 shared

Awards & honors

• Searle Scholar (1983-86)
• Camille and Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar (1985-90)
• Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellow (1986-88)
• Elected Fellow of the AAAS (1995)
• Outstanding Achievement Award, University of Minnesota (2016…

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