A $3 million gift from USC alumnus Randy Kendrick ’86 has established the Kelly Tarantello Chair in Pediatric Cardiac Surgery at Keck Medicine of USC. The endowed chair, held by John David Cleveland, MD, chief of cardiothoracic surgery at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles and assistant professor of surgery and pediatrics at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, will support research to expand lifesaving options for babies with severe congenital heart disease.

The gift honors Kendrick’s mentor, former USC Marshall School professor Rocky Tarantello, and Tarantello’s daughter Kelly, who was born with single-ventricle heart disease. Cleveland’s team is studying genetically engineered pig hearts as a potential bridge to transplant—and potentially a longer-term therapy—for critically ill infants who face limited options because of the shortage of donor hearts and complications associated with existing mechanical heart-support devices. 

This NIH-funded research builds directly on the discovery of Bachmann-Bupp syndrome (BABS), an ultra-rare genetic disorder caused by mutations in the ODC1 gene that disrupt the body’s polyamine pathway. The funding will advance research into polyaminopathies, a group of rare genetic disorders that can cause neurodevelopmental challenges, and support clinical studies, molecular diagnosis and treatment development.