Kyle joined the Graybiel lab in 2007 after completing his Masters and Ph.D. in  Psychology and Biopsychology at the University of Michigan. He is particularly interested in continuing his work in studying the mechanisms of learning, plasticity and reward.

PUBLICATIONS
Smith KS, Tindell AJ, Aldridge JW, Berridge KC (In preparation; invited review).  Ventral pallidum roles in reward.  Behavioural Brain Research.

Smith KS, Mahler SV, Peciña S, Berridge KC (In press).  Hedonic hotspots:  brain generation of sensory pleasures.  In:  Berridge KS and Kringelbach ML (Eds.), Pleasures of the Brain: the Neural Bases of Sensory Rewards.  Oxford, England:  Oxford University Press.

Mahler SV, Smith KS, Berridge KC (In press).  Endocannabinoids modulate taste ‘liking’ in the nucleus accumbens.  Neuropsychopharmacology.

Smith KS, Berridge KC (2007).  Nucleus accumbens and ventral pallidum interact as opioid hotspots to amplify ‘liking’ and ‘wanting’ for food reward. The Journal of Neuroscience, 27(7):1594-1605. Editorial focus:  “Liking,” “Wanting,” and Hedonic Hotspots. The Journal of Neuroscience, 27(7):i.

Peciña S, Smith KS, Berridge KC (2006).  Hedonic hotspots in the brain.  The Neuroscientist, 12(6):500-11. 

Tindell AJ, Smith KS, Peciña S, Berridge KC, Aldridge JW (2006).  Ventral pallidum firing codes hedonic reward:  when a bad taste turns good.  Journal of Neurophysiology, 96:2399-2409. Editorial focus:  Wheeler, R.A., & Carelli, R.M. (2006). The neuroscience of pleasure.  Focus on “Ventral pallidum firing codes hedonic reward: when a bad taste turns good”. Journal of Neurophysiology, 96:2175-2176.

Smith KS, Berridge KC (2005).  The ventral pallidum and food reward:  neurochemical maps of ‘liking’ and food intake.  The Journal of Neuroscience, 25(38):8637-8649.  [Erratum in 25(41):9554]

GRANTS & AWARDS
2007   
--Co-PI, NSF conference grant, Gordon-Kenan Research Seminar on Catecholamines.
--Travel award, Motivational Neural Network conference.
--International travel grant, Rackham/Hewlett/International Institute, UMich.
--One-term fellowship, Rackham graduate school, UMich.
--Honorable Mention, Irwin Kopin Young Investigator Award, Gordon Research Conference on Catecholamines.

2006
--Poster competition award, Michigan Society for Neuroscience meeting.
--Elected departmental associate in psychology, UMich.
--Outstanding graduate student instructor honor roll, department of psychology, UMich.

2005
--Early research award, American Psychological Association
--Psychology department dissertation grant, UMich.

2003-05
-- Rackham graduate school travel grants, UMich.

2002-05
-- Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award Institutional Research Training Grant.

TEACHING
2006
-- Graduate student instructor for Drugs of Abuse, UMich.

2005
-- Graduate student instructor for Introduction to Biopsychology, UMich.
--Mentor to graduate student instructors for Introduction to Biopsychology, UMich.

2004
-- Graduate student instructor for Introduction to Biopsychology, UMich.