Professor Turchi received his B.S. (Biochemistry) in 1985 from Clemson University in Clemson, SC and his Ph.D. (Biochemistry) in 1990 from the University of Missouri in Columbia. He did his postdoc work at the University of Rochester in Biochemistry/Cancer. Dr. Turchi's research is broadly focused on nucleic acid enzymology. Dr. Turchi has established a vigorous DNA repair program spanning enzymology, kinetics, chemical biology and protein chemistry. He has published over 70 manuscripts in peer review journals including 12 in the past three years. Dr. Turchi has pursued the detailed understanding of cancer and radio therapy-induced DNA damage. His work has impacted the molecular mechanisms of recognition and repair of cisplatin-induced DNA damage via the nucleotide excision repair pathway and how the non-homologous end joining double strand break repair pathway is activated and responds to ionizing radiation induced DNA damage.