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Steven J. Bensinger

Professor of Immunology and Immune Therapeutics and Cancer Biology

Chair, Department of Immunology and Immune Therapeutics

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Email [email protected]
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Overview

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.

Research Funding

  • Targeting host lipid metabolism to limit tissue damage in necrotizing fasciitis
    NIH · R01AI175831 · Feb 1, 2023 – Jan 31, 2028 · Role: Principal Investigator
  • CDKN2A couples lipid metabolism to ferroptosis in glioblastoma
    NIH · R01NS121319 · Apr 1, 2021 – Jan 31, 2026 · Role: Co-Principal Investigator
  • Investigating the impact of a fatty acid-cRel inflammatory circuit in atherosclerosis
    NIH · R01HL157710 · Apr 1, 2021 – Mar 31, 2025 · Role: Principal Investigator
  • Understanding the influence of SREBP signaling on CD4 T helper cell biology
    NIH · R01AI122282 · Nov 10, 2015 – Oct 31, 2020 · Role: Principal Investigator
  • Investigating the crosstalk between lipid metabolism and HIV
    NIH · R21HL126556 · Sep 17, 2014 – Jun 30, 2016 · Role: Principal Investigator
  • Determining the Impact of SREBP on Adaptive Immunity
    NIH · R01AI093768 · Apr 1, 2012 – Mar 31, 2017 · Role: Principal Investigator
  • Apoptosis in the Generation of T-cell Memory
    NIH · K01RR021975 · Sep 30, 2005 – Jun 30, 2010 · Role: Principal Investigator

Publications

  • 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
  • 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
  • Calculation of ATP production rates using the Seahorse XF Analyzer. EMBO Rep. 2023 10 09; 24(10):e56380.. 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
  • Decoding the crosstalk between mevalonate metabolism and T cell function. Immunol Rev. 2023 08; 317(1):71-94.. 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

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