Kyle S. Smith
Associate Professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences
I conduct research on how the brain works to generate reward, motivation, actions, and habits. My work incorporates techniques to record neural activity, modulate neuronal activity at sub-second timescales, study brain chemistry, and map brain connections. The research is relevant to understanding disorders of reward and action, like addiction, Parkinson's disease, and obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders.
Contact
Department(s)
Psychological and Brain Sciences
Education
- B.A., Indiana University
- M.S., University of Michigan
- Ph.D., University of Michigan
- Post-doc, M.I.T.
Selected Publications
Graybiel AM, Smith KS (2014). How the brain makes and breaks habits. Scientific American, June issue (cover article). Link to site.
Bien EA, Smith KS (2023). The role of sex on sign-tracking acquisition and outcome devaluation sensitivity in Long Evans rats. Behavioural Brain Research, 455:114656.
Townsend ES, Smedley EB, Amaya KA, Smith KS (2023). Nucleus accumbens core acetylcholine receptors modulate the balance of flexible and inflexible cue-directed motivation. Scientific Reports, 13, 13375
Amaya KA, Smith KS (2021). Spatially restricted inhibition of cholinergic interneurons in the dosrolateral striatum promotes behavioral exploration. European Journal of Neuroscience, 53(8):2567-2579.