Steve Reilly, Ph.D.

Professor
Department of Psychology

Office: 1042B BSB
Phone: (312) 413-2625
Lab: (312) 413-9566
Email: sreilly@uic.edu
Mailing Address:
1007 W. Harrison St. (MC 285)
Chicago, IL 60607-7137

Statement of Research Interests:
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Our research concerns the neural mechanisms of learning, memory and motivation. More specifically, we are interested in determining the roles of central gustatory nuclei in taste-guided and taste-motivated phenomena with an emphasis on toxin- and drug-induced conditioned taste aversions (CTAs) as well as Pavlovian and instrumental incentive learning. Our CTA work suggests that forebrain nuclei are responsible for the detection of taste novelty and provide feedback to a brainstem structure, the parabrachial nucleus, which governs the integration of gustatory and aversive viscerosensory information. With clinical relevance aforethought, we are particularly interested in determining whether CTA acquisition and consolidation are dependent upon protein synthesis and/or glutamate receptors in the parabrachial nucleus. We believe that understanding of the neural substrates of CTA learning will not only yield important insights into the neural integration of gustatory and visceral functions but may provide a foundation for the development of treatments and interventions that might ameliorate the unwanted, and oftentimes debilitating, nutritional side effects of invasive medical treatments such as chemo- and radiation therapy.

While most drug addiction research focuses on the central reward pathway, the central gustatory system has attracted little attention. However, it is becoming increasingly clear that drug addiction likely involves much of the neural circuitry that originally evolved to mediate ingestion of natural rewards. We believe that studies of the behavioral functions of central gustatory nuclei will benefit our understanding of how the brain processes reward-related information and integrates memory and motivation. Thus, our research examining the neural mechanisms of Pavlovian and instrumental incentive learning, using drug-induced avoidance of taste stimuli and post-conditioning manipulations of perceived reward value as basic models, may have wide reaching implications concerning the neural integration of different forms of reward and their resultant impact on motivated behavior. This work is expected to benefit understanding relevant to a number of disorders including drug addiction and obesity.

Selected Publications:
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Lin, J.-Y., and Reilly, S. (2012). Amygdala-gustatory insular cortex connections and taste neophobia. Behavioural Brain Research, 235, 182-188.

Lin, J.-Y., Arthurs, J., Amodeo, L.R, and Reilly, S. (2012). Reduced palatability in drug-induced taste aversion: I. Variations in the initial value the conditioned stimulus. Behavioral Neuroscience, 126, 423-432.

Arthurs, J., Lin, J.-Y., Amodeo, L.R, and Reilly, S. (2012). Reduced palatability in drug-induced taste aversion: II. Aversive and rewarding unconditioned stimuli. Behavioral Neuroscience, 126, 433-444.

Lin, J.-Y., Amodeo, L.R, Arthurs, J., and Reilly, S. (2012). Taste neophobia and palatability: The pleasure of drinking. Physiology and Behavior, 106, 515-519.

Lin, J.-Y., Roman, C., Arthurs, J., and Reilly, S. (2012). Taste neophobia and c-Fos expression in the rat brain. Brain Research, 1448, 82-88.

Lin, J.-Y., Arthurs, J., and Reilly, S. (2011). Role of the insular cortex in morphine-induced conditioned taste avoidance. Brain Research, 1384, 80-88.

Schachtman, T.R. and Reilly, S. (Editors). (2011). Associative Learning and Conditioning Theory: Human and Non-Human Applications. Oxford University Press: New York.

Schachtman, T.R. and Reilly, S. (2011). Things You Always Wanted to Know about Conditioning, but Were Afraid to Ask. In: T.R. Schachtman and S. Reilly (Editors). Associative Learning and Conditioning Theory: Human and Non-Human Applications (pp. 3-23). Oxford University Press: New York.

Neath, K., Limebeer, C.L., Reilly, S., and Parker, L.A. (2010). Increased liking for a solution is not necessary for the attenuation of neophobia in rats. Behavioral Neuroscience, 124, 398-404.

Lovaglio, J., Lin, J.-Y., Roman, C., and Reilly, S. (2010). Basolateral amygdala and morphine-induced taste avoidance in the rat. Physiology and Behavior, 99, 419-423.

Reilly, S., and Schachtman, T.R. (Editors). (2009). Conditioned Taste Aversion: Behavioral and Neural Processes. Oxford University Press: New York.

Reilly, S. (2009). Central gustatory system lesions and conditioned taste aversion. In: S. Reilly and T.R. Schachtman (Editors). Conditioned Taste Aversion: Behavioral and Neural Processes (pp. 309-327). Oxford University Press: New York.

Lin, J.-Y., Roman, C., and Reilly, S. (2009). Taste-potentiated odor aversion learning in rats with lesions of the insular cortex. Brain Research, 1297, 135-142.

Lin, J.-Y., Roman, C., and Reilly, S. (2009). Morphine-induced suppression of conditioned stimulus intake: Effects of stimulus type and insular cortex lesions. Brain Research, 1292, 52-60.

Lin, J.-Y., Roman, C., St. Andre, J., and Reilly, S. (2009). Taste, olfactory and trigeminal neophobia in rats with forebrain lesions. Brain Research, 1251, 195-203.

Lin, J.-Y., Roman, C., and Reilly, S. (2009). Insular cortex and consummatory successive negative contrast in the rat. Behavioral Neuroscience, 123, 810-814.

Roman, C., Lin, J.-Y., and Reilly, S. (2009). Conditioned taste aversion and latent inhibition following extensive taste preexposure in rats with insular cortex lesions. Brain Research, 1259, 68-73.

Roman, C., and Reilly, S. (2009). Insular cortex lesions and morphine-induced suppression of CS intake in the rat. Behavioral Neuroscience, 123, 206-211.

Figueroa-Guzmán, Y., and Reilly, S. (2008). NMDA receptors in the basolateral amygdala and gustatory neophobia. Brain Research, 1210, 200-203.

Rubin, L.H., Witkiewitz, K., St. Andre, J., and Reilly, S. (2007). Methods for handling missing data in the behavioral neurosciences: Don’t throw the baby rat out with the bath water. Journal of Undergraduate Neuroscience Education, 5, A71-A77.

St. Andre, J., Albanos, K., and Reilly, S. (2007). C-fos expression in the rat brain following lithium chloride induced-illness. Brain Research, 1135, 122-128.

St. Andre, J., and Reilly, S. (2007). Effects of central and basolateral amygdala lesions on conditioned taste aversion and latent inhibition. Behavioral Neuroscience, 121, 90-99. Erratum in: Behavioral Neuroscience, 121, 1363.

Roman, C., Nebieridze, N., Sastre, A., and Reilly, S. (2006). Effects of lesions of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, lateral hypothalamus, or insular cortex on conditioned taste aversion and conditioned odor aversion. Behavioral Neuroscience, 120, 1257-1267.

Figueroa-Guzmán, Y., Kuo, J., and Reilly, S. (2006). NMDA-receptor antagonist MK-801 infused into the insular cortex prevents the attenuation of neophobia in rats. Brain Research, 1114, 183-186.

Trifunovic, R., and Reilly, S. (2006). Medial parabrachial nucleus neurons modulate d-fenfluramine-induced anorexia through 5HT2c receptors. Brain Research, 1067, 170-176.

Sastre, A., and Reilly, S. (2006). Excitotoxic lesions of the gustatory thalamus eliminate consummatory but not instrumental successive negative contrast in rats. Behavioural Brain Research, 170, 34-40.

Sastre, A., Lin, J.-Y., and Reilly, S. (2005). Failure to obtain instrumental successive negative contrast in tasks that support consummatory successive negative contrast. International Journal of comparative Psychology, 18, 307-319.

Reilly, S., and Bornovalova, M. (2005). Conditioned taste aversion and amygdala lesions in the rat: A critical review. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, 29, 1067-1088.

Reilly, S. (Editor). (2005). Special Issue on Contrast, Incentive Learning and Surprising Reward. International Journal of Comparative Psychology, 18(4).