John Nicosia
Co-Founder Vasarya Therapeutics
John Nicosia, PhD is a biotechnology entrepreneur and Co-Founder of Vasarya Therapeutics, where he leads the development of novel targeted therapies for fibrotic diseases. As co-inventor of Vasarya’s proprietary anti-fibrotic targeting platform, he has secured $3M in non-dilutive funding and established key partnerships while managing all operational aspects of the growing biotech.
With deep expertise in fibrosis research and technology commercialization, Dr. Nicosia previously served as Associate Director at Biolocity, where he managed a life sciences accelerator program at Georgia Tech/Emory that deployed $10M+ in funding and generated 16x follow-on investment. His academic foundation includes a PhD in Biomedical Engineering from Georgia Tech, where his thesis investigated fibronectin-integrin interactions in pulmonary fibrosis.
A translational leader with experience spanning academic research (Emory, Georgia Tech), technology transfer (Emory OTT), and startup incubation, Dr. Nicosia bridges scientific innovation with commercial development to advance next-generation fibrosis treatments.
Seminars
Fibrosis begins through different organ-specific injuries, but many pathways may converge around fibroblast activation, immune-stromal crosstalk, mechanotransduction, ECM remodeling, and failed repair. This workshop will compare fibrogenic cascades across lung, liver, kidney, gut, and skin to determine where fibrosis becomes targetable, when intervention is most likely to succeed, and whether mechanisms support panfibrotic or indication-specific strategies.
Discussion Topics Include:
- Mapping common downstream fibrotic pathways involving fibroblast activation, ECM deposition, and mechanotransduction across organs
- Understanding organ-specific inciting injuries, epithelial responses, and immune microenvironments that drive early disease
- How spatial omics, niche-specific activation cues, and cross-organ learnings are enabling more precise, safer antifibrotic strategies
- Determining at which disease stage cross-indication therapeutic approaches become most viable versus requiring tissue-specific targeting
