
Available to mentor

John Varga MD attended Columbia University in New York, and obtained his medical degree from New York University. He completed Internal Medicine Residency at Rhode Island Hospital in Providence and Rheumatology Fellowship at Boston University. Following post-doctoral research at the University of Pennsylvania, he was on the faculty of the University of Illinois and Northwestern University in Chicago, and recently was recruited to Chief of Rheumatology at the University of Michigan. For the past three decades, Varga’s research has focused on fibrosis and the application of precision medicine approaches to improve patient outcomes. His lab, continuously funded by the NIH, investigates immunological and cellular mechanisms of fibrosis. He has served as a charter member of the NIH ACTS Study section and Co-Editor of Arthritis and Rheumatology, and is a member of the ACR Board of Directors. He is the author of more than 380 journal articles and book chapters and three textbooks. He has mentored over 20 post-doctoral MD and PhD trainees, many of whom have gone on to develop successful academic or industry careers.
John Varga Sclerolab
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Post-doctoral Research Fellow, T32University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, 1987
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Rheumatology FellowBoston University School of Medicine, Boston, 1985
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Intern and Resident in MedicineRhode Island Hospital/Brown, United States, 1983
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MDNew York University School of Medicine, 1980
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BAColumbia University, 1975
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Center MemberGlobal REACH
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Center MemberCenter for Computational Medicine and Bioinformatics
My lab studies inflammation and metabolism in the context of chronic autoimmune and fibrotic diseases. We use mouse models, patient samples, genetics and genomics to identify mechanisms of disease and novel targets for therapy. Our research is patient-oriented and we embrace of a tight "bench-to-bedside-to bench" approach. Our Michigan Scleroderma Program afford unique access to patients including genetics and biological specimen, for our research, including early-stage clinical trials.
Visit the John Varga Sclerolab website: https://medresearch.umich.edu/labs-departments/labs/sclerolab
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Abraham DJ, Black CM, Denton CP, Distler JHW, Domsic R, Feghali-Bostwick C, Gourh P, Hinchcliff M, Kolling F, Kuwana M, Lafyatis R, Landegren U, Mahoney JM, Martin J, Matucci-Cerinic M, McMahan ZH, Mora AL, Mouthon L, Rabinovitch M, Rojas M, Rubin K, Trojanowska M, Varga J, Whitfield ML, Gabrielli A, Krieg T. Nature Reviews Rheumatology, 2025 Apr 1; 21 (4): 249Journal ArticleCorrection to: An international perspective on the future of systemic sclerosis research (Nature Reviews Rheumatology, (2025), 21, 3, (174-187), 10.1038/s41584-024-01217-2)
DOI:10.1038/s41584-025-01231-y PMID: 40032952 -
Abraham DJ, Black CM, Denton CP, Distler JHW, Domsic R, Feghali-Bostwick C, Gourh P, Hinchcliff M, Kolling F, Kuwana M, Lafyatis R, Landegren U, Mahoney JM, Martin J, Matucci-Cerinic M, McMahan ZH, Mora AL, Mouthon L, Rabinovitch M, Rojas M, Rubin K, Trojanowska M, Varga J, Whitfield ML, Gabrielli A, Krieg T. Nature Reviews Rheumatology, 2025 Mar 1; 21 (3): 174 - 187.Journal ArticleAn international perspective on the future of systemic sclerosis research
DOI:10.1038/s41584-024-01217-2 PMID: 39953141 -
Artlett CM, Varga J. Nature Reviews Rheumatology, 2025 Mar 1; 21 (3): 135 - 136.Journal ArticleGenome-wide mutagenesis reported in systemic sclerosis: Systemic sclerosis
DOI:10.1038/s41584-025-01219-8 PMID: 39915699 -
Bale S, Verma P, Yalavarthi B, Bajželj M, Hasan SAM, Silverman JN, Broderick K, Shah KA, Hamill T, Khanna D, Sigalov AB, Bhattacharyya S, Varga J. JCI Insight, 2024 Dec 6; 9 (23):Journal ArticleInhibiting triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells 1 signaling to ameliorate skin fibrosis
DOI:10.1172/jci.insight.176319 PMID: 39418109 -
Kortam N, Liang W, Shiple C, Huang S, Gedert R, Clair JS, Sarosh C, Foster C, Tsou PS, Varga J, Knight JS, Khanna D, Ali RA. Arthritis Research and Therapy, 2024 Dec 1; 26 (1):Journal ArticleElevated neutrophil extracellular traps in systemic sclerosis-associated vasculopathy and suppression by a synthetic prostacyclin analog
DOI:10.1186/s13075-024-03379-6 PMID: 39054558 -
Dal Santo T, Golberg M, Nassar EL, Carrier ME, Hu S, Kwakkenbos L, Bartlett SJ, Fox RS, Lee YC, Varga J, Benedetti A, Thombs BD, Lapointe McKenzie JA, Lawrie-Jones A, Mieszczak T, Petrozza S, Sauve M, Wixson G. BMC Rheumatology, 2024 Dec 1; 8 (1):Journal ArticleProtocol for the development of a tool to map systemic sclerosis pain sources, patterns, and management experiences: a Scleroderma Patient-centered Intervention Network patient-researcher partnership
DOI:10.1186/s41927-024-00398-3 -
O'Reilly S, Tsou PS, Varga J. Trends in Molecular Medicine, 2024 Dec 1; 30 (12): 1113 - 1125.Journal ArticleSenescence and tissue fibrosis: opportunities for therapeutic targeting
DOI:10.1016/j.molmed.2024.05.012 PMID: 38890028 -
Ma F, Tsou PS, Gharaee-Kermani M, Plazyo O, Xing X, Kirma J, Wasikowski R, Hile GA, Harms PW, Jiang Y, Xing E, Nakamura M, Ochocki D, Brodie WD, Pillai S, Maverakis E, Pellegrini M, Modlin RL, Varga J, Tsoi LC, Lafyatis R, Kahlenberg JM, Billi AC, Khanna D, Gudjonsson JE. Nature Communications, 2024 Dec 1; 15 (1):Journal ArticleSystems-based identification of the Hippo pathway for promoting fibrotic mesenchymal differentiation in systemic sclerosis
DOI:10.1038/s41467-023-44645-6 PMID: 38172207
