• Dr. Leong is a behavioral neuroscientist whose research focuses on understanding the interactions between addiction, emotions, and memory through the use of a rodent model. Dr. Leong's laboratory employs a number of behavioral, pharmacological, chemogenetic, and immunohistochemical techniques to investigate the underlying circuitry and neural mechanisms involved in addiction. His research hopes to translate rodent models to human pathology to provide insight into human addiction and potential therapeutic avenues.

    • Ph.D. - Texas A&M University
    • M.S. - University College London
    • B.A. - Pepperdine University

    • Bensing, P. C., Moye, C. A., & Leong, K. C. (2024). Oxytocin Attenuates Cocaine-Associated Place Preference via the Dorsal Hippocampus in Male and Female Rats. Physiology & Behavior, 114599.
    • Lorenz, E., Moye, C., & Leong, K. C. (2022). Paired Housing or a Socially-Paired Context Decreases Ethanol Conditioned Place Preference in Male Rats. Brain Sciences, 12(11), 1485.
    • Gonzalez, D., Lorenz, E., Patel, D., & Leong, K. C. (2022). Ethanol administration during retrieval, but not consolidation, influences the relative use of multiple memory systems. Addiction Neuroscience, 4, 100040.
    • Ballas, H. S., Wilfur, S. M., Freker, N. A., & Leong, K. C. (2021). Oxytocin Attenuates the Stress-Induced Reinstatement of Alcohol-Seeking in Male Rats: Role of the Central Amygdala. Biomedicines, 9(12), 1919.
    • Patel, D., Sundar, M., Lorenz, E., & Leong, K. C. (2020). Oxytocin Attenuates Expression, but Not Acquisition, of Sucrose Conditioned Place Preference in Rats. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience, 14.
    • Vasquez, J. H., Leong, K. C., Gagliardi, C. M., Harland, B., Apicella, A. J., & Muzzio, I. A. (2019). Pathway specific activation of ventral hippocampal cells projecting to the prelimbic cortex diminishes fear renewal. Neurobiology of Learning and Memory, 161, 63-71.
    • Leong, K. C., Cox, S., King, C., Becker, H., & Reichel, C. M. (2018). Oxytocin and rodent models of addiction. International Review of Neurobiology, 140, 201-247.
    • Leong, K. C., Freeman, L. R., Berini, C. R., Ghee, S. M., See, R. E., & Reichel, C. M. (2017). Oxytocin reduces cocaine cued fos activation in a regionally specific manner. International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology, 20(10), 844-854.
    • Leong, K. C., Berini, C. R., Ghee, S. M., & Reichel, C. M. (2016). Extended cocaine-seeking produces a shift from goal-directed to habitual responding in rats. Physiology & Behavior, 164, 330-335.
    • Leong, K. C., Goodman, J., & Packard, M. G. (2015). Post-training re-exposure to fear conditioned stimuli enhances memory consolidation and biases rats toward the use of dorsolateral striatum-dependent response learning. Behavioural Brain Research, 291, 195-200.

    • Drug Addiction
    • Reward
    • Fear and Anxiety
    • Learning and Memory

    • Introduction to Neuroscience
    • Neuropsychopharmacology
    • Sensation and Perception