Celeb hotspot Old Mates hosts Murdoch Children’s Research Institute talk on groundbreaking technology to prevent pediatric heart disease

Aussie pub Old Mates has become a celebrity hotspot since it first opened earlier this year downtown.

But the three-story NYC watering hole steps from Pier 17 at South Street Seaport was also home to a fascinating talk on modern medicine last week when the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) held a Friends of MCRI New York 2025 event in the space’s cozy upstairs Harbor Room.

Old Mates co-owner Nicholas Stone — a founder of Bluestone Lane, who’s also on the Global Advisory Board for MCRI — moderated a chat at the casual gathering with Professor Enzo Porrello, MCRI’s Theme Director of Stem Cell Medicine and Head of the Heart Regeneration group.

While Hollywood star Hugh Jackman is a partner in Old Mates — along with Aussie celebs like NBA star Patty Mills, surfer Mick Fanning, tennis ace Ashleigh Barty, cricketer Pat Cummins and comedy duo Hamish & Andy — Stone explained when sitting next to Porrello, “There’s no one who’s as big a superstar as this guy sitting next to me today, and we are going to tell you why.”

“MCRI is one of Australia’s best success stories and a global leader in pediatric research,” added Stone. “Top three ranked globally… and the leader in stem cells. And the person who is at the forefront, who is breaking new ground… is Professor Enzo Porrello.”

Porrello told the crowd of his research: “Children’s heart disease is very common… it effects 1 in 100 live births, so that’s one child born in the US every 15 minutes with a heart defect. It remains the most common birth defect, and a leading cause of death in children under the age of five.”

He added, “My own research focused on childhood heart disease is an area that I am deeply passionate about, and stems from my own family history.”

He explained that he had two relatives with childhood congenital heart disease, including a cousin who sadly passed away at just 9 years old. “His story has really been the motivation for my own career,” Porrello shared.

“We’re really looking to transform health outcomes for children with heart disease,” the medical professor added, citing MCRI’s “Decoding Broken Hearts” initiative which aims to utilize stem cell technologies as well as advanced AI capabilities in conjunction with Gladstone Institutes in San Francisco.

The organization’s goal is to raise $5 million for Decoding Broken Hearts.

Despite advances in surgical procedures, “We don’t have a single therapy that can target the underlying root cause… what this project is all about is trying to understand the root causes… so we can intervene early with targeted therapies that can prevent the development of disease before it begins, and prevent ultimately that progression.”

“The most common question we get from families is why did this happen,” said Porrello, adding the initiative tries to “build a foundational AI model to predict the underlying causes… and turn those predictions into [therapies].”

Over the past year alone, “the pace of progress has been astounding,” he said. “It’s completely changed the way we can study childhood heart disease.”

The event was sponsored by Goldman Sachs, Formstack and Asena — and guests included Australian musician Oliver Cronin who was in town writing new music, we hear, and dropped by the event as one of the key Aussies on the guest list.

Stone added of the MCRI overall, “There’s over 1,800 researchers involved with the institute. And their focus right now [is] across over 150 diseases. Enzo is not only such an accomplished professor… he’s the global recognized leader in pediatric cardiac regeneration.”

The packed room enjoyed signature Old Mates cocktails, as well as elevated Aussie pub fare including sausage rolls, oysters and fried calamari.