Andy McMahon is one of the most understated, humble and low-key people you are ever likely to meet. He’s also one of the smartest. And he has a collection of titles to prove it. He is the W.M. Keck Provost and University Professor in USC’s departments of Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine at the Keck School of Medicine, and Biological Sciences at the Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the European Molecular Biology Organization, and the Royal Society.

Now you can add to that list that Andy is a member of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). Election to the NAS is no ordinary honor. It’s one of the highest in the scientific world.

In a USC news release Dean Laura Mosqueda from the Keck School praised Andy saying: “We’re delighted that Dr. McMahon is being recognized as a newly elected member of the National Academy of Sciences. Because new members are elected by current members, this represents recognition of Dr. McMahon’s achievements by his most esteemed peers in all scientific fields.”

Not surprisingly CIRM has funded some of Andy’s work – well, we do pride ourselves on working with the best and brightest scientists – and that research is taking on added importance with the spread of COVID-19. Andy’s area of specialty is kidneys, trying to develop new ways to repair damaged or injured kidneys. Recent studies show that between 3 and 9 percent of patients with COVID-19 develop an acute kidney injury; in effect their kidneys suddenly stop working and many of these patients have to undergo dialysis to stay alive.

Even those who recover are at increased risk for developing more chronic, even end-stage kidney disease. That’s where Andy’s work could prove most useful. His team are using human stem cells to create mini artificial kidneys that have many of the same properties as the real thing. These so-called “organoids” enable us to study chronic kidney disease, come up with ideas to repair damage or slow down the progression of the disease, even help improve the chances of a successful transplant if that becomes necessary.

You can hear Andy talk about his work here:

CIRM is now funding a number of projects targeting COVID-19, including a clinical trial using convalescent plasma gel, and intends investing in more in the coming weeks and months. You can read about that here.

We are also funding several clinical trials targeting kidney failure. You can read about those on our Clinical Trials Dashboard page – diseases are listed alphabetically.