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Overview

USC Stem Cell scientists are advancing our understanding of how the body develops, maintains and regenerates the heart, lungs and blood. They are also developing new regenerative treatments for the millions of patients with diseases of the heart, lungs, immune system and blood.

Statistics

  • Heart disease is the leading cause of death worldwide. In the US every year, about 610,000 people die of heart disease—the cause of one in four deaths.
  • An estimated 1.29 million people in the US are living with or in remission from blood cancer—leukemia, lymphoma or myeloma.
  • Globally, 36.7 million people are living with the autoimmune disease HIV, and 1.8 million of these are children. An estimated 35 million people have died from HIV-related causes so far.
  • More than 30,000 people in the US and 70,000 worldwide are living with the inherited lung disease cystic fibrosis, which limits the ability to breathe.

Researchers

Heart, Lung and Blood News

From left, study authors Jiya Eerdeng, Ivon Garcia, Rong Lu, Charles Bramlett, Mary Vergel-Rodriguez, and Yeachan Lee (Photo by Bowen Wang)

Why does a leukemic mutation not always lead to leukemia? A new clue from a mouse study at USC

Why do some people with a genetic mutation associated with leukemia remain healthy, while others with the same mutation develop the blood cancer? In a new study published in Blood, scientists from …

The new lab’s collaborative structure promises to play a key role in the development of groundbreaking advancements in health care. (Photo/Steve Cohn)

New USC/CHLA cGMP Lab opens to accelerate next-generation cell therapy

A new laboratory designed to advance early-stage research into lifesaving, commercially viable therapies was celebrated on the USC Health Sciences Campus Tuesday night. Housed at the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, the …

Rong Lu Lab (Photo by Chris Shinn)

Why multipotent progenitor cells matter for patients receiving bone marrow transplants

When patients receive bone marrow transplants, they are infused with complex admixtures of many different cell types with the power to regenerate their blood and immune systems. In a new study in …

All Heart, Lung and Blood News

Heart, Lung and Blood Videos

Dr. Rong Lu’s lab studies stem cell coordination, regulation and malfunction from a single cell perspective. If you’re interested in studying stem cells or cancer at the single cell level, please email your CV to Dr. Rong Lu at ronglu@usc.edu. For more information, visit https://ronglulab.usc.edu.
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