Cells (Image courtesy of Amy Ryan (Firth))

Regenerating the Heart

Overview

USC Stem Cell scientists are developing new regenerative treatments for the millions of patients with heart disease, which is the leading cause of death worldwide. Each year in the U.S. alone, approximately 700,000 people die of heart disease—the cause of one in five deaths.

Projects

  • Chuck Murry’s lab is using stem cells to regenerate the heart muscle damaged by heart attacks. The approach will enter clinical trials within the next few years.
  • Megan McCain’s lab is using tissue engineering to fabricate functional tissue and other platforms to study heart disease.
  • Ching-Ling (Ellen) Lien’s lab is using zebrafish to improve our understanding of congenital heart defects.

Researchers

Regenerating the Heart News

USC CIRM COMPASS scholars with stem cell faculty members Senta Georgia, Francesca Mariani and Louise Menendez (Photo courtesy of Senta Georgia)

Guided by COMPASS, USC undergraduates navigate stem cell research at inaugural symposium

By  Cristy Lytal

Posted

Thirty undergraduates gathered to share their research at the first year-end symposium for USC CIRM COMPASS, a comprehensive two-year program designed to prepare juniors and seniors for careers in stem cell biology …

Preet M. Chaudhary, MD, PhD, a professor of medicine, the Bloom Family Chair in Lymphoma Research, chief of the Nohl Division of Hematology (Photo courtesy of USC)

Two USC innovators—Preet Chaudhary and Michael Selsted—honored by the National Academy of Inventors

By  Stacia Pelletier

Posted

Harnessing the body’s natural defenses, these researchers are advancing the future of immune-based treatments to develop breakthroughs in treating diseases ranging from rheumatoid arthritis and sepsis to cancer. Two researchers from the …

Ellis Meng, the Shelly and Ofer Nemirovsky Chair in Convergent Bioscience and professor of biomedical engineering and electrical and computer engineering (Photo courtesy of USC Viterbi)

Revolutionizing heart care for newborns

By  Matúš Munka

Posted

Ellis Meng’s team pioneers non-invasive shunt monitoring to improve survival rates for young patients with congenital heart defect. In pediatric cardiology, every heartbeat counts, especially for the one in 4,000 newborns born …

All Regenerating the Heart News

Regenerating the Heart Videos

Learn how Leonardo Morsut, PhD, with USC Stem Cell and USC Viterbi School of Engineering is leading the way in the field of regenerative medicine to ignite discovery in stem cell research.
All Regenerating the Heart Videos