Kate Wassum

Dr. Kate Wassum is a Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), within the College of Letters and Science. Her research focuses on the neural mechanisms underlying reward processing, habit formation, and cue-motivated behavior, with particular emphasis on the nucleus accumbens and amygdala circuits.

• Research Areas: Neuroscience, Psychology, Addiction, Neurobiology
• Grants: NIH R01MH126285 (Co-PI), R01DA046679 (PI), R01DA035443 (PI), F31DA023774 (PI)

Her work explores how dopamine and opioid signaling regulate reward expectation, decision-making, and the transition from goal-directed to habitual behavior. She employs techniques like fast-scan cyclic voltammetry and optogenetics to study these processes in both animal models and human clinical contexts.

Recent publications highlight her investigation into stress-induced habit formation, striatal cell-type specificity, and the role of anterior cingulate cortex in reward tracking. Her studies span preclinical (animal) and clinical (human) domains, particularly in substance-related disorders.

Scientific Collaborations:

• Co-Principal Investigator: Alcino Silva (UCLA)
• Co-Investigator: Lara Ray (UCLA), Sean Ostlund (UCI)