Home Depot founder’s foundation gives $28.7 mn for heart stem cell research

The foundation of late Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus has committed $28.7 million to stem cell research at the University of Southern California, the Economic Times and Times of India report. The funding will support physician-scientist Chuck Murry, director of USC's Stem Cell Center, whose team is studying whether stem-cell-derived heart muscle cells can regenerate tissue damaged by heart attacks. The research aims to advance gene-edited cellular therapy towards clinical trials.

The treatment remains experimental, with challenges including the risk of abnormal heart rhythms if transplanted cells do not beat in sync with existing tissue. Murry's team has used gene-editing techniques to address this, with promising preclinical findings in animal studies, but clinical trials are needed to prove safety and efficacy in humans. The donation is the largest the Marcus Foundation has given to USC.

The Marcus family had a personal connection to medicine: Marcus had dreamed of becoming a doctor but could not afford medical school, so he studied pharmacy at Rutgers. The foundation, established in 1989, has awarded over $2.7 billion in grants, including for the Marcus Stroke and Neuroscience Center and the Marcus Autism Center.