Ari Molofsky, MD, PhD
Associate Professor
Laboratory Medicine
School of Medicine

Dr. Molofsky uses foundation models to study organ development and remodeling, with a particular focus on stromal - immune niches, with studies that span brain, lung, liver, adipose tissue, skin, and intestine. Dr. Ari Molofsky is also an affiliate member of the UCSF Microbiology and Immunology Department, ImmunoX Program, Liver Center, Pulmonary Research Group, NeuroImmunology Center for Excellence, and the UCSF Diabetes Center.

• Type-I-interferon-responsive microglia shape cortical development and behavior.
  Cell 2024 Escoubas CC, Dorman LC, Nguyen PT, Lagares-Linares C, Nakajo H, Anderson SR, Barron JJ, Wade SD, Cuevas B, Vainchtein ID, Silva NJ, Guajardo R, Xiao Y, Lidsky PV, Wang EY, Rivera BM, Taloma SE, Kim DK…
• Circumvention of luteolysis reveals parturition pathways in mice dependent upon innate type 2 immunity.
  Immunity 2023 Siewiera J, McIntyre TI, Cautivo KM, Mahiddine K, Rideaux D, Molofsky AB, Erlebacher A
• Microglial pattern recognition via IL-33 promotes synaptic refinement in developing corticothalamic circuits in mice.
  The Journal of experimental medicine 2022 Han RT, Vainchtein ID, Schlachetzki JCM, Cho FS, Dorman LC, Ahn E, Kim DK, Barron JJ, Nakao-Inoue H, Molofsky AB, Glass CK, Paz JT, Molofsky AV
• Sentinel p16INK4a+ cells in the basement membrane form a reparative niche in the lung.
  Science (New York, N.Y.) 2022 Reyes NS, Krasilnikov M, Allen NC, Lee JY, Hyams B, Zhou M, Ravishankar S, Cassandras M, Wang C, Khan I, Matatia P, Johmura Y, Molofsky A, Matthay M, Nakanishi M, Sheppard D, Campisi J, Peng T
• Advancing Lung Immunology Research: An Official American Thoracic Society Workshop Report.
  American journal of respiratory cell and molecular biology 2022 Rahimi RA, Cho JL, Jakubzick CV, Khader SA, Lambrecht BN, Lloyd CM, Molofsky AB, Talbot S, Bonham CA, Drake WP, Sperling AI, Singer BD
• Bile acid-sensitive tuft cells regulate biliary neutrophil influx.
  Science immunology 2022 O'Leary CE, Sbierski-Kind J, Kotas ME, Wagner JC, Liang HE, Schroeder AW, de Tenorio JC, von Moltke J, Ricardo-Gonzalez RR, Eckalbar WL, Molofsky AB, Schneider C, Locksley RM
• ILC2s - development, divergence, dispersal.
  Current opinion in immunology 2022 Ricardo-Gonzalez RR, Molofsky AB, Locksley RM
• Early-life inflammation primes a T helper 2 cell-fibroblast niche in skin.
  Nature 2021 Boothby IC, Kinet MJ, Boda DP, Kwan EY, Clancy S, Cohen JN, Habrylo I, Lowe MM, Pauli M, Yates AE, Chan JD, Harris HW, Neuhaus IM, McCalmont TH, Molofsky AB, Rosenblum MD
• Regulatory T-cells inhibit microglia-induced pain hypersensitivity in female mice.
  eLife 2021 Kuhn JA, Vainchtein ID, Braz J, Hamel K, Bernstein M, Craik V, Dahlgren MW, Ortiz-Carpena J, Molofsky AB, Molofsky AV, Basbaum AI
• Perivascular stromal cells: Directors of tissue immune niches.
  Immunological reviews 2021 Sbierski-Kind J, Mroz N, Molofsky AB
• Early Life Imprinting of a Th2-Stromal Cell Niche in Skin.
  The Journal of Immunology 2021 Ian C Boothby, Devi P Boda, Elaine Y Kwan, Jarish N Cohen, Ireneusz Habrylo, Ari B Molofsky, Michael D Rosenblum
• Gli1+ mesenchymal stromal cells form a pathological niche to promote airway progenitor metaplasia in the fibrotic lung.
  Nature cell biology 2020 Cassandras M, Wang C, Kathiriya J, Tsukui T, Matatia P, Matthay M, Wolters P, Molofsky A, Sheppard D, Chapman H, Peng T
• Microglial Remodeling of the Extracellular Matrix Promotes Synapse Plasticity.
  Cell 2020 Nguyen PT, Dorman LC, Pan S, Vainchtein ID, Han RT, Nakao-Inoue H, Taloma SE, Barron JJ, Molofsky AB, Kheirbek MA, Molofsky AV
• Tissue immunity broadcasts near and far.
  Nature reviews. Immunology 2020 Molofsky AB, Locksley RM
• Adventitial Cuffs: Regional Hubs for Tissue Immunity.
  Trends in immunology 2019 Dahlgren MW, Molofsky AB
• Group 2 Innate Lymphoid Cells Are Redundant in Experimental Renal Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury.
  Frontiers in immunology 2019 Cameron GJM, Cautivo KM, Loering S, Jiang SH, Deshpande AV, Foster PS, McKenzie ANJ, Molofsky AB, Hansbro PM, Starkey MR
• Nur77 Links Chronic Antigen Stimulation to B Cell Tolerance by Restricting the Survival of Self-Reactive B Cells in the Periphery.
  Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950) 2019 Tan C, Mueller JL, Noviski M, Huizar J, Lau D, Dubinin A, Molofsky A, Wilson PC, Zikherman J
• Tissue signals imprint ILC2 identity with anticipatory function.
  Nature immunology 2018 Ricardo-Gonzalez RR, Van Dyken SJ, Schneider C, Lee J, Nussbaum JC, Liang HE, Vaka D, Eckalbar WL, Molofsky AB, Erle DJ, Locksley RM
• All along the watchtower: group 2 innate lymphoid cells in allergic responses.
  Current opinion in immunology 2018 Dahlgren MW, Molofsky AB
• Astrocyte-derived interleukin-33 promotes microglial synapse engulfment and neural circuit development.
  Science (New York, N.Y.) 2018 Vainchtein ID, Chin G, Cho FS, Kelley KW, Miller JG, Chien EC, Liddelow SA, Nguyen PT, Nakao-Inoue H, Dorman LC, Akil O, Joshita S, Barres BA, Paz JT, Molofsky AB, Molofsky AV
• B Lymphoblastic Leukemia/Lymphoma With Burkitt-like Morphology and IGH/MYC Rearrangement: Report of 3 Cases in Adult Patients.
  The American journal of surgical pathology 2018 Li Y, Gupta G, Molofsky A, Xie Y, Shihabi N, McCormick J, Jaffe ES
• The Skinny: Pancreatic ILC2s Promote Insulin Secretion.
  Immunity 2017 Cautivo KM, Molofsky AB
• A tissue checkpoint regulates type 2 immunity.
  Nature immunology 2016 Van Dyken SJ, Nussbaum JC, Lee J, Molofsky AB, Liang HE, Pollack JL, Gate RE, Haliburton GE, Ye CJ, Marson A, Erle DJ, Locksley RM
• Regulation of metabolic health and adipose tissue function by group 2 innate lymphoid cells.
  European journal of immunology 2016 Cautivo KM, Molofsky AB
• Interleukin-33 in Tissue Homeostasis, Injury, and Inflammation.
  Immunity 2015 Molofsky AB, Savage AK, Locksley RM
• A worm of one's own: how helminths modulate host adipose tissue function and metabolism.
  Trends in parasitology 2015 Guigas B, Molofsky AB
• Activated type 2 innate lymphoid cells regulate beige fat biogenesis.
  Cell 2014 Lee MW, Odegaard JI, Mukundan L, Qiu Y, Molofsky AB, Nussbaum JC, Yun K, Locksley RM, Chawla A
• Interleukin-5-producing group 2 innate lymphoid cells control eosinophilia induced by interleukin-2 therapy.
  Blood 2014 Van Gool F, Molofsky AB, Morar MM, Rosenzwajg M, Liang HE, Klatzmann D, Locksley RM, Bluestone JA
• Chitin activates parallel immune modules that direct distinct inflammatory responses via innate lymphoid type 2 and γδ T cells.
  Immunity 2014 Van Dyken SJ, Mohapatra A, Nussbaum JC, Molofsky AB, Thornton EE, Ziegler SF, McKenzie AN, Krummel MF, Liang HE, Locksley RM
• Peripheral T-Cell Lymphoma, Not Otherwise Specified Presenting as Erythroderma
  Pathology Case Reviews 2014 Dawson, A.L., LeBoit, P.E., Molofsky, A.B., Ai, W.Z., and Pincus, L.B
• Type 2 innate lymphoid cells control eosinophil homeostasis.
  Nature 2013 Nussbaum JC, Van Dyken SJ, von Moltke J, Cheng LE, Mohapatra A, Molofsky AB, Thornton EE, Krummel MF, Chawla A, Liang HE, Locksley RM
• Two septic transfusion reactions presenting as transfusion-related acute lung injury from a split plateletpheresis unit.
  Critical care medicine 2012 Rollins MD, Molofsky AB, Nambiar A, Pandey S, Weiskopf RB, Toy P
• Eosinophils sustain adipose alternatively activated macrophages associated with glucose homeostasis.
  Science (New York, N.Y.) 2011 Wu D, Molofsky AB, Liang HE, Ricardo-Gonzalez RR, Jouihan HA, Bando JK, Chawla A, Locksley RM
• Inflammatory Immune Response to Cytosolic Flagellin Protects Mice from Legionella pneumophila Infection.
  2006 Michele S. Swanson, Brenda G. Byrne, Natalie W. Whitfield, Etsu T. Fuse, Kazuhiro Tateda, Ari B. Molofsky
• Autophagy and inflammatory cell death, partners of innate immunity.
  Autophagy 2005 Swanson MS, Molofsky AB
• Components of the Legionella pneumophila flagellar regulon contribute to multiple virulence traits, including lysosome avoidance and macrophage death.
  Infection and immunity 2005 Molofsky AB, Shetron-Rama LM, Swanson MS
• Differentiate to thrive: lessons from the Legionella pneumophila life cycle.
  Molecular microbiology 2004 Molofsky AB, Swanson MS
• Legionella pneumophila CsrA is a pivotal repressor of transmission traits and activator of replication.
  Molecular microbiology 2003 Molofsky AB, Swanson MS