Steven J. Bensinger

Steven Bensinger, VMD, PhD, serves as Chair of the Department of Immunology and Immune Therapeutics. He previously served at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), where he held the positions of Professor and Vice Chair for Academic Personnel in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics, as well as Director of the UCLA Lipidomics Laboratory. Since 2008, Dr. Bensinger has performed innovative research and pioneered advanced analytical methods to elucidate how lipid metabolism influences innate and adaptive immunity. Continuously funded by the NIH for the past 17 years, he has earned notable professional honors, including the Sontag Foundation Distinguished Scientist Award, the UCLA Life Sciences Excellence Award for Outstanding Research, and the Sherie and Donald Morrison Endowed Chair in Immunology. His leadership roles have included serving as Director of the Inflammation, Immunology, Infection, and Transplantation (I3T) Research Theme at the David Geffen School of Medicine and Director of Shared Resources at the Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center at UCLA.

• Beyond ATP: Lipid-Driven Plasticity and the Immunometabolism of ILC2s. Cells. 2026 May 03; 15(9).. View in PubMed
• SCD1 and SCD5 modulate PARP-dependent DNA repair via fatty acid desaturation in glioblastoma. Cell Rep. 2026 Apr 13; 45(4):117223.. View in PubMed
• p21+TREM2+ senescent macrophages fuel inflammaging and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease. Nat Aging. 2026 Apr; 6(4):792-815.. View in PubMed
• Tegavivint triggers TECR-dependent nonapoptotic cancer cell death. Nat Chem Biol. 2025 Dec; 21(12):1873-1884.. View in PubMed
• Early Human Pulmonary Lesions Define a Permissive Alveolar Niche for Mycobacterium tuberculosis. bioRxiv. 2025 Oct 17.. View in PubMed
• T cell cholesterol transport links intestinal immune responses to dietary lipid absorption. Science. 2025 Oct 09; 390(6769):eadt4169.. View in PubMed
• Defining STING-sterol interactions with chemoproteomics. RSC Chem Biol. 2025 Aug 27; 6(9):1451-1464.. View in PubMed
• SCD1 and SCD5 Modulate PARP-Dependent DNA Repair via Fatty Acid Desaturation in Glioblastoma. bioRxiv. 2025 Jul 27.. View in PubMed
• Oropharyngeal Administration of Bleomycin in the Murine Model of Pulmonary Fibrosis. J Vis Exp. 2025 05 09; (219).. View in PubMed
• Psychological stress increases skin infection through the action of TGFβ to suppress immune-acting fibroblasts. Sci Immunol. 2025 04 11; 10(106):eads0519.. View in PubMed
• Targeting SCD triggers lipotoxicity of cancer cells and enhances anti-tumor immunity in breast cancer brain metastasis mouse models. Commun Biol. 2025 Apr 04; 8(1):562.. View in PubMed
• Disrupting cholesterol homeostasis in T cells boosts antitumour responses. Nat Metab. 2025 Mar; 7(3):441-443.. View in PubMed
• A clinical drug candidate that triggers non-apoptotic cancer cell death. Res Sq. 2025 Feb 11.. View in PubMed
• Pro-inflammatory macrophage activation does not require inhibition of oxidative phosphorylation. EMBO Rep. 2025 Feb; 26(4):982-1002.. View in PubMed
• The metabolic cofactor Coenzyme A enhances alternative macrophage activation via MyD88-linked signaling. bioRxiv. 2025 Jan 20.. View in PubMed
• Flow-Mediated Modulation of the Endothelial Cell Lipidome. bioRxiv. 2024 Jun 15.. View in PubMed
• IL-4 Licenses B Cell Activation Through Cholesterol Synthesis. bioRxiv. 2024 May 15.. View in PubMed
• Pro-inflammatory macrophage activation does not require inhibition of mitochondrial respiration. bioRxiv. 2024 May 14.. View in PubMed
• Targeting SCD triggers lipotoxicity of cancer cells and enhances anti-tumor immunity in breast cancer brain metastasis mouse models. bioRxiv. 2024 May 09.. View in PubMed
• T cell cholesterol transport is a metabolic checkpoint that links intestinal immune responses to dietary lipid absorption. bioRxiv. 2024 Mar 11.. View in PubMed
• IL-10 constrains sphingolipid metabolism to limit inflammation. Nature. 2024 03; 627(8004):628-635.. View in PubMed
• Flow-mediated modulation of the endothelial cell lipidome. Front Physiol. 2024; 15:1431847.. View in PubMed
• Calculation of ATP production rates using the Seahorse XF Analyzer. EMBO Rep. 2023 10 09; 24(10):e56380.. View in PubMed
• Metabolic programs of T cell tissue residency empower tumour immunity. Nature. 2023 09; 621(7977):179-187.. View in PubMed
• Commensal Cutibacterium acnes induce epidermal lipid synthesis important for skin barrier function. Sci Adv. 2023 08 18; 9(33):eadg6262.. View in PubMed
• Decoding the crosstalk between mevalonate metabolism and T cell function. Immunol Rev. 2023 08; 317(1):71-94.. View in PubMed
• CDKN2A deletion remodels lipid metabolism to prime glioblastoma for ferroptosis. Cancer Cell. 2023 06 12; 41(6):1048-1060.e9.. View in PubMed
• IL-10 constrains sphingolipid metabolism via fatty acid desaturation to limit inflammation. bioRxiv. 2023 May 08.. View in PubMed
• Targeting de novo lipid synthesis induces lipotoxicity and impairs DNA damage repair in glioblastoma mouse models. Sci Transl Med. 2023 01 18; 15(679):eabq6288.. View in PubMed
• Hepatic nonvesicular cholesterol transport is critical for systemic lipid homeostasis. Nat Metab. 2023 01; 5(1):165-181.. View in PubMed
• Context-dependent regulation of ferroptosis sensitivity. Cell Chem Biol. 2022 Oct 20; 29(10):1568.. View in PubMed
• Context-dependent regulation of ferroptosis sensitivity. Cell Chem Biol. 2022 09 15; 29(9):1409-1418.e6.. View in PubMed
• Reprogramming cholesterol metabolism in macrophages and its role in host defense against cholesterol-dependent cytolysins. Cell Mol Immunol. 2022 03; 19(3):327-336.. View in PubMed
• Cardiomyocytes disrupt pyrimidine biosynthesis in nonmyocytes to regulate heart repair. J Clin Invest. 2022 01 18; 132(2).. View in PubMed
• Neoadjuvant PD-1 blockade induces T cell and cDC1 activation but fails to overcome the immunosuppressive tumor associated macrophages in recurrent glioblastoma. Nat Commun. 2021 11 26; 12(1):6938.. View in PubMed
• A DMS Shotgun Lipidomics Workflow Application to Facilitate High-Throughput, Comprehensive Lipidomics. J Am Soc Mass Spectrom. 2021 Nov 03; 32(11):2655-2663.. View in PubMed
• Serum lipids are associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: a pilot case-control study in Mexico. Lipids Health Dis. 2021 Oct 10; 20(1):136.. View in PubMed
• Dopamine Receptor Antagonists, Radiation, and Cholesterol Biosynthesis in Mouse Models of Glioblastoma. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2021 08 02; 113(8):1094-1104.. View in PubMed
• Dysregulation of mannose-6-phosphate-dependent cholesterol homeostasis in acinar cells mediates pancreatitis. J Clin Invest. 2021 08 02; 131(15).. View in PubMed
• Profiling of mouse macrophage lipidome using direct infusion shotgun mass spectrometry. STAR Protoc. 2021 03 19; 2(1):100235.. View in PubMed
• Toll-Like Receptors Induce Signal-Specific Reprogramming of the Macrophage Lipidome. Cell Metab. 2020 07 07; 32(1):128-143.e5.. View in PubMed
• Interferon-mediated reprogramming of membrane cholesterol to evade bacterial toxins. Nat Immunol. 2020 07; 21(7):746-755.. View in PubMed
• (Sterol)ized Immunity: Could PI3K/AKT3 Be the Answer? Immunity. 2020 01 14; 52(1):4-6.. View in PubMed
• Cellular Fatty Acid Analysis in Macrophage Using Stable Isotope Labeling. Methods Mol Biol. 2020; 2184:47-60.. View in PubMed
• Development and Application of FASA, a Model for Quantifying Fatty Acid Metabolism Using Stable Isotope Labeling. Cell Rep. 2018 12 04; 25(10):2919-2934.e8.. View in PubMed
• Etomoxir Actions on Regulatory and Memory T Cells Are Independent of Cpt1a-Mediated Fatty Acid Oxidation. Cell Metab. 2018 09 04; 28(3):504-515.e7.. View in PubMed
• Macrophages release plasma membrane-derived particles rich in accessible cholesterol. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2018 09 04; 115(36):E8499-E8508.. View in PubMed
• Etomoxir Inhibits Macrophage Polarization by Disrupting CoA Homeostasis. Cell Metab. 2018 09 04; 28(3):490-503.e7.. View in PubMed
• Transcription Factor Zhx2 Deficiency Reduces Atherosclerosis and Promotes Macrophage Apoptosis in Mice. Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2018 09; 38(9):2016-2027.. View in PubMed
• Maintenance of CD4 T cell fitness through regulation of Foxo1. Nat Immunol. 2018 08; 19(8):838-848.. View in PubMed
• Mechanobiological Mimicry of Helper T Lymphocytes to Evaluate Cell-Biomaterials Crosstalk. Adv Mater. 2018 Jun; 30(23):e1706780.. View in PubMed
• Cytokine Secreting Microparticles Engineer the Fate and the Effector Functions of T-Cells. Adv Mater. 2018 Feb; 30(7).. View in PubMed
• Cytoplasmic p53 couples oncogene-driven glucose metabolism to apoptosis and is a therapeutic target in glioblastoma. Nat Med. 2017 Nov; 23(11):1342-1351.. View in PubMed
• Transgenic tomatoes expressing the 6F peptide and ezetimibe prevent diet-induced increases of IFN-β and cholesterol 25-hydroxylase in jejunum. J Lipid Res. 2017 08; 58(8):1636-1647.. View in PubMed
• Reviewing the impact of lipid synthetic flux on Th17 function. Curr Opin Immunol. 2017 Jun; 46:121-126.. View in PubMed
• Reelin Deficiency Delays Mammary Tumor Growth and Metastatic Progression. J Mammary Gland Biol Neoplasia. 2017 03; 22(1):59-69.. View in PubMed
• Bruton Tyrosine Kinase Inhibition Attenuates Liver Damage in a Mouse Warm Ischemia and Reperfusion Model. Transplantation. 2017 02; 101(2):322-331.. View in PubMed
• An optimized method for measuring fatty acids and cholesterol in stable isotope-labeled cells. J Lipid Res. 2017 02; 58(2):460-468.. View in PubMed
• Cholesterol Accumulation in CD11c+ Immune Cells Is a Causal and Targetable Factor in Autoimmune Disease. Immunity. 2016 12 20; 45(6):1311-1326.. View in PubMed
• Fatostatin Inhibits Cancer Cell Proliferation by Affecting Mitotic Microtubule Spindle Assembly and Cell Division. J Biol Chem. 2016 08 12; 291(33):17001-8.. View in PubMed
• Transintestinal transport of the anti-inflammatory drug 4F and the modulation of transintestinal cholesterol efflux. J Lipid Res. 2016 07; 57(7):1175-93.. View in PubMed
• Modulating Cholesterol Homeostasis to Build a Better T Cell. Cell Metab. 2016 06 14; 23(6):963-964.. View in PubMed
• Skeletal muscle action of estrogen receptor α is critical for the maintenance of mitochondrial function and metabolic homeostasis in females. Sci Transl Med. 2016 Apr 13; 8(334):334ra54.. View in PubMed
• Type I and Type II Interferon Coordinately Regulate Suppressive Dendritic Cell Fate and Function during Viral Persistence. PLoS Pathog. 2016 Jan; 12(1):e1005356.. View in PubMed
• Limiting Cholesterol Biosynthetic Flux Spontaneously Engages Type I IFN Signaling. Cell. 2015 Dec 17; 163(7):1716-29.. View in PubMed
• Resveratrol and para-coumarate serve as ring precursors for coenzyme Q biosynthesis. J Lipid Res. 2015 Apr; 56(4):909-19.. View in PubMed
• Modulation of PICALM Levels Perturbs Cellular Cholesterol Homeostasis. PLoS One. 2015; 10(6):e0129776.. View in PubMed
• Lipids rule: resetting lipid metabolism restores T cell function in systemic lupus erythematosus. J Clin Invest. 2014 Feb; 124(2):482-5.. View in PubMed
• Selective regulation of lymphopoiesis and leukemogenesis by individual zinc fingers of Ikaros. Nat Immunol. 2013 Oct; 14(10):1073-83.. View in PubMed
• Subverting sterols: rerouting an oxysterol-signaling pathway to promote tumor growth. J Exp Med. 2013 Aug 26; 210(9):1653-6.. View in PubMed
• Immunology. Fueling function over expansion in T cells. Science. 2013 Jul 05; 341(6141):37-8.. View in PubMed
• De-repression of PDGFRβ transcription promotes acquired resistance to EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibitors in glioblastoma patients. Cancer Discov. 2013 May; 3(5):534-47.. View in PubMed
• Sterol regulatory element-binding proteins are essential for the metabolic programming of effector T cells and adaptive immunity. Nat Immunol. 2013 May; 14(5):489-99.. View in PubMed
• An essential requirement for the SCAP/SREBP signaling axis to protect cancer cells from lipotoxicity. Cancer Res. 2013 May 01; 73(9):2850-62.. View in PubMed
• Doxycycline alters metabolism and proliferation of human cell lines. PLoS One. 2013; 8(5):e64561.. View in PubMed
• Liver X receptor and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor as integrators of lipid homeostasis and immunity. Immunol Rev. 2012 Sep; 249(1):72-83.. View in PubMed
• New aspects of the Warburg effect in cancer cell biology. Semin Cell Dev Biol. 2012 Jun; 23(4):352-61.. View in PubMed
• Emergence of distinct multiarmed immunoregulatory antigen-presenting cells during persistent viral infection. Cell Host Microbe. 2012 May 17; 11(5):481-91.. View in PubMed
• Coordinate regulation of neutrophil homeostasis by liver X receptors in mice. J Clin Invest. 2012 Jan; 122(1):337-47.. View in PubMed
• Interleukin-2 rescues helpless effector CD8+ T cells by diminishing the susceptibility to TRAIL mediated death. Immunol Lett. 2011 Sep 30; 139(1-2):25-32.. View in PubMed
• Myeloid-specific estrogen receptor alpha deficiency impairs metabolic homeostasis and accelerates atherosclerotic lesion development. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2011 Sep 27; 108(39):16457-62.. View in PubMed
• Liver X receptor signaling is a determinant of stellate cell activation and susceptibility to fibrotic liver disease. Gastroenterology. 2011 Mar; 140(3):1052-62.. View in PubMed
• EGFR signaling through an Akt-SREBP-1-dependent, rapamycin-resistant pathway sensitizes glioblastomas to antilipogenic therapy. Sci Signal. 2009 Dec 15; 2(101):ra82.. View in PubMed
• Apoptotic cells promote their own clearance and immune tolerance through activation of the nuclear receptor LXR. Immunity. 2009 Aug 21; 31(2):245-58.. View in PubMed
• A Nurr1 pathway for neuroprotection. Cell. 2009 Apr 03; 137(1):26-8.. View in PubMed
• Expression of sprouty2 inhibits B-cell proliferation and is epigenetically silenced in mouse and human B-cell lymphomas. Blood. 2009 Mar 12; 113(11):2478-87.. View in PubMed
• Inhibition of adipocyte differentiation by Nur77, Nurr1, and Nor1. Mol Endocrinol. 2008 Dec; 22(12):2596-608.. View in PubMed
• HRASLS3 is a PPARgamma-selective target gene that promotes adipocyte differentiation. J Lipid Res. 2008 Dec; 49(12):2535-44.. View in PubMed
• Integration of metabolism and inflammation by lipid-activated nuclear receptors. Nature. 2008 Jul 24; 454(7203):470-7.. View in PubMed
• LXR signaling couples sterol metabolism to proliferation in the acquired immune response. Cell. 2008 Jul 11; 134(1):97-111.. View in PubMed
• PTEN inhibits IL-2 receptor-mediated expansion of CD4+ CD25+ Tregs. J Clin Invest. 2006 Sep; 116(9):2521-31.. View in PubMed
• Enhanced bacterial clearance and sepsis resistance in caspase-12-deficient mice. Nature. 2006 Apr 20; 440(7087):1064-8.. View in PubMed
• Developmental alterations in thymocyte sensitivity are actively regulated by MHC class II expression in the thymic medulla. J Immunol. 2006 Feb 15; 176(4):2229-37.. View in PubMed
• CD4+ T-cell help controls CD8+ T-cell memory via TRAIL-mediated activation-induced cell death. Nature. 2005 Mar 03; 434(7029):88-93.. View in PubMed
• Vhlh gene deletion induces Hif-1-mediated cell death in thymocytes. Mol Cell Biol. 2004 Oct; 24(20):9038-47.. View in PubMed
• Distinct IL-2 receptor signaling pattern in CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells. J Immunol. 2004 May 01; 172(9):5287-96.. View in PubMed
• Homeostatic proliferation is a barrier to transplantation tolerance. Nat Med. 2004 Jan; 10(1):87-92.. View in PubMed
• Distinct effects of STAT5 activation on CD4+ and CD8+ T cell homeostasis: development of CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells versus CD8+ memory T cells. J Immunol. 2003 Dec 01; 171(11):5853-64.. View in PubMed
• Stemming the tide of rejection. Nat Med. 2002 Feb; 8(2):107-8.. View in PubMed

• Papadopoulos, Vassilios