Vittorio de Franciscis is Co-Founder of AptaDir Therapeutics and a Research Director at the Italian National Research Council (CNR), where he leads the Institute of Experimental Endocrinology and Oncology in Naples, Italy.

He earned his academic credentials at the University of Naples Federico II and built a distinguished career at CNR, becoming a globally recognized leader in RNA biology, aptamer science, and DNA methylation research.

De Franciscis pioneered the development of RNA aptamers as targeting agents for selective delivery of therapeutic miRNAs to tumor sites, and co-discovered the landmark class of RNA inhibitors called DNMTs Interacting RNAs (DiRs) that underpin AptaDir's platform.

Alongside co-founder Annalisa Di Ruscio and scientific partners Daniel Tenen and Marcin Kortylewski, he translated decades of CNR research into AptaDir Therapeutics, which launched in 2024 with $1.6M in pre-seed funding from the EXTEND initiative.

AptaDir's proprietary DiR platform targets intractable conditions including Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS) in adults and Fragile X Syndrome in children, with lead asset Aptadir Ce-49 projected to enter clinical trials by end of 2025.