Seth Herzon, Professor of Chemistry, Honored by American Chemical Society  

Seth Herzon, Milton Harris ’29 Ph.D. Professor of Chemistry in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, has been awarded the American Chemical Society Award for Creative Work in Synthetic Organic Chemistry.  

The award recognizes Herzon’s contributions over the course of his 16-year career at Yale. His lab specializes in recreating secondary metabolites, small molecules that are primarily produced by bacteria, and studying their properties, which often include anticancer effects. 

By recreating these molecules, Herzon’s team can elucidate the molecular basis of their anticancer properties and design novel molecules that recapitulate these effects. Herzon has established several collaborations with colleagues at Yale School of Medicine to evaluate the therapeutic potential of his molecules. His work has helped lead to the development of novel cancer-fighting compounds and the successful synthesis of anticancer molecules found in marine invertebrates that had challenged chemists for decades.  

“I am extremely honored to receive this award,” Herzon told Yale News. “Yale has a longstanding tradition of excellence in organic chemistry, and I am proud to be a part of it.” 

 Herzon is also Professor of Pharmacology and Therapeutic Radiology at the Yale School of Medicine and a member of the Yale Cancer Center.  

Two other members of Herzon’s department – Jonathan Ellman, Eugene Higgins Professor of Chemistry and Professor of Pharmacology, and Scott Miller, Sterling Professor of Chemistry – have received this award in the past. With three research-active awardees, Yale Chemistry draws even with Scripps Research for the most research-active award recipients of any department in the country. 

 “That reflects the role that this department has played in the field of synthetic organic chemistry,” Herzon said. 

Herzon’s own graduate advisor, Andrew G. Myers, received this same award from the ACS the summer Herzon started his PhD at Harvard University. “To receive the same award as him is also gratifying,” Herzon said. ”He’s the first person I called when I found out I got it.”  

Herzon and other recipients of this year’s awards will be recognized at the American Chemical Society’s March 2025 meeting in San Diego.