Department of Psychological Sciences, Purdue University
Purdue Institute for Integrative Neuroscience
making memories since 2014
2018-2023 NIMH R01 Research Grant (R01MH110425)
Neural circuitry of safety, fear and reward cue discrimination
2016-2017 Purdue Institute for Integrative Neuroscience Seed Grant
A new method for manipulating specific neural pathways during learning
curriculum vitae
Susan Sangha, Ph.D.
Department of Psychological Sciences, Purdue University
703 Third Street, West Lafayette, IN, USA 47907-2081
Tel: 765-494-0648 E-mail: sangha@purdue.edu
Awards & Honors
2018 Nominated for a Prose Award for Excellence in Reference Works by the Association of
American Publishers for Sangha, S & Foti, D (2018). Neurobiology of Abnormal Emotion and
Motivated Behaviors: Integrating Animal and Human Research.1st edition. Cambridge,
Massachusetts: Academic Press. Award winners announced Spring 2019
2018 Purdue University Seed for Success Award for Research in Excellence
2018 University of Calgary's Hotchkiss Brain Institute Alumnus of the Year
2017-2021 Elected to the Executive Committee of the Pavlovian Society
2016 International Travel Grant, Purdue Research Foundation
2015 Invited participation in the 5th Bonn Humboldt Award Winners’ Forum,
‘Frontiers in Neuroscience: Multi-scale Analysis of the Nervous System – From Molecules to Circuits’
2007 Invited participation in the 57th Meeting of Nobel Laureates in Lindau, Germany
2006 Canadian Institutes of Health Research's Brain Star Award, for J Neurosci, 25(31), 7159-7168
2005 University of Calgary's Chancellor's Graduate Medal - Doctoral Level
2005 Finalist, Lindsley Prize for most outstanding dissertation in Behavioral Neuroscience
2004 Canadian Institutes of Health Research's Brain Star Award, for J Neurosci, 23(30), 9842-9851
2004 University of Calgary's Dean's Research Excellence Award
2003 SfN Chapters/Eli Lilly Graduate Student Travel Award
2003 University of Calgary's Graduate Travel Award
2003 University of Calgary's Dean's Research Excellence Award
2002 Company of Biologists’ Travel Fellowship
2002 University of Calgary's Dean's Research Excellence Award
2001 University of Calgary's Dr. Keith Cooper Award
Salary Fellowships
2005-2008 Human Frontier Science Program Long-term Postdoctoral Fellowship (International)
2005 Alexander von Humboldt Postdoctoral Fellowship (Germany)
2004 Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada-Postdoctoral Fellowship
2004 Canadian Institutes of Health Research's Canadian Graduate Scholarship-Doctoral Award
2002-2004 Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada-Postgraduate Scholarship B
2002 University of Calgary's Faculty of Graduate Studies Award (Canada)
2002 University of Calgary's Graduate Assistantship (Teaching) (Canada)
2001 Alberta Heritage Masters Scholarship (Canada)
2001 University of Calgary's Graduate Research Scholarship (Canada)
Sangha Lab
2000-2005 Doctorate (Neuroscience), Dept of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Calgary, Canada
Laboratory of Dr. Ken Lukowiak
Thesis title: Consolidation, Reconsolidation, Extinction and Forgetting in Lymnaea stagnalis
1994-1998 Bachelor of Science, Dept of Psychology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
Career Experience
2014 Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA
Assistant Professor of Psychological Sciences
2013 University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Canada
Research Scientist, Physiology; Laboratory of Dr. John Howland
Project 1: Safety learning in an animal model of schizophrenia
Project 2: Neural circuitry of safety learning
2009-2012 Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center, University of California at San Francisco
Postdoctoral Fellow, Neurology; Laboratory of Dr. Patricia Janak
Project title: Safety encoding in the basal amygdala
2005-2009 Westfaelische Wilhelms Universitaet Muenster, Germany (10/2005-04/2009)
Otto-von-Guericke Universitaet, Magdeburg, Germany (01/2005-09/2005)
Postdoctoral Fellow, Neurophysiology; Laboratory of Dr. Hans-Christian Pape
Project title: Molecular mechanisms in the extinction of fear memories
2004-2007 News and Views writer, Journal of Experimental Biology
Neurophysiology/Neuroethology; Editor: Dr. Kathryn Phillips
1998-2000 University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
Laboratory technician, Psychology, Laboratory of Dr. Catharine Rankin
Publications
Refereed research articles
*corresponding author
Greiner EM, Müller I, Norris MR, Ng KH, Sangha S* (2019). Sex differences in fear regulation and reward seeking behaviors in a fear-safety-reward discrimination task. Behavioral Brain Research 369: 111903
Müller I*, Brinkman AL, Sowinski EM, Sangha S* (2018). Adolescent conditioning affects rate of adult fear, safety and reward learning during discriminative conditioning. Scientific Reports 8: 17315.
Ng K, Pollock MW, Urbanczyk PU, Sangha S* (2018). Altering D1 receptor activity in the basolateral amygdala impairs fear suppression during a safety cue. Neurobiol Learn Mem, 147: 26-34.
Sangha S* (2015). Plasticity of fear and safety neurons of the amygdala in response to fear extinction. Front Behav Neurosci, 9: 354.
Sangha S*, Greba Q, Robinson PD, Ballendine SA, Howland JG* (2014). Heightened fear in response to a safety cue and extinguished fear cue in a rat model of maternal immune activation. Front Behav Neurosci, 8: 168.
Sangha S*, Robinson PD, Davies DA, Greba Q, Howland JG* (2014). Alterations in reward, fear and safety cue discrimination after inactivation of the prelimbic and infralimbic cortices. Neuropsychopharm, 39:2405-2413.
Sangha S*, Chadick JZ, Janak PH* (2013). Safety encoding in the basal amygdala. J Neurosci, 33: 3744-3751.
Sangha S*, Ilenseer J, Sosulina L, Lesting J, Pape H-C (2012). Differential regulation of glutamic acid decarboxylase gene expression after extinction of a recent memory versus intermediate memory. Learn Mem, 19:194-200.
Lesting J, Narayanan RT, Seidenbecher T, Kluge C, Sangha S, Pape H-C (2011). Patterns of coupled theta activity in amygdala-hippocampal-prefrontal cortical circuits during fear extinction. PLoS One, 6: e21714.
Sangha S, Narayanan RT, Bergado-Acosta JR, Stork O, Seidenbecher T, Pape H-C (2009). Deficiency of the 65-kDa isoform of glutamic acid decarboxylase impairs extinction of cued but not contextual fear memory. J Neurosci, 29: 15713-15720.
Jüngling K, Seidenbecher T, Sosulina L, Lesting J, Sangha S, Clark SD, Okamura N, Duangdao DM, Xu Y-L, Reinscheid RK, Pape H-C (2008). Neuropeptide S: reduced expression and facilitated extinction of fear through control of intercalated GABAergic neurons in the amygdala. Neuron, 59: 298-310.
Bergado-Acosta JR, Sangha S, Narayanan RT, Obata K, Pape H-C, Stork O (2008). Critical role of the 65kD isoform of glutamic acid decarboxylase in consolidation and generalization of Pavlovian fear memory. Learn Mem, 15:163-171.
Narayanan RT, Seidenbecher T, Sangha S, Stork O, Pape H-C (2007). Theta re-synchronization during reconsolidation of remote contextual fear memory. Neuroreport, 18(11):1107-11.
Rose JK#, Sangha S#, Rai S#, Norman KR, Rankin CH (2005). Decreased sensory stimulation reduces behavioral responding, retards development and alters neuronal connectivity in Caenorhabditis elegans. J Neurosci, 25(31): 7159-7168. # contributed equally
Sangha S, Scheibenstock A, Martens K, Varshney N, Cooke R, Lukowiak K (2005). Impairing forgetting by preventing new learning and memory. Behav Neurosci, 119(3): 787-796.
Parvez K, Stewart O, Sangha S, Lukowiak K (2005). Boosting intermediate-term into long-term memory. J Exp Biol, 208: 1525-1536.
Sangha S, Scheibenstock A, Morrow R, Lukowiak K (2003). Extinction requires new RNA and protein synthesis and the soma of the cell RPeD1 in Lymnaea stagnalis. J Neurosci, 23(30): 9842-9851.
Sangha S, Scheibenstock A, Lukowiak K (2003). Reconsolidation of a long-term memory in Lymnaea requires new protein and RNA synthesis and the soma of RPeD1. J Neurosci, 23(22): 8034-8040.
Sangha S, Morrow R, Smyth K, Cooke R, Lukowiak K (2003). Cooling blocks ITM and LTM formation and preserves memory. Neurobiol Learn Mem 80, 130-139.
Sangha S#, McComb C#, Lukowiak K (2003). Forgetting and the extension of memory in Lymnaea. J Exp Biol 206, 71-77. # contributed equally
Sangha S, Scheibenstock A, McComb C, Lukowiak K (2003). Intermediate and long-term memories of associative learning are differentially affected by transcription vs. translation blockers in Lymnaea. J Exp Biol 206(10), 1605-1613.
Lukowiak K, Haque Z, Spencer G, Varshay N, Sangha S, Syed N (2003). Long-term memory survives nerve injury and the subsequent regeneration process. Learn Mem 10(1), 44-54.
McComb C#, Sangha S#, Quadry S, Yue J, Scheibenstock A, Lukowiak K (2002). Context extinction and concurrent context associative learning in Lymnaea. Neurobiol Learn Mem 78, 23-34. # contributed equally
Sangha S#, McComb C#, Scheibenstock A, Johannes C, Lukowiak K (2002). The effects of continuous vs. partial reinforcement schedules on associative learning, memory and extinction in Lymnaea. J Exp Biol 205(8), 1171-1178. # contributed equally
Smyth K, Sangha S, Lukowiak K (2002). Gone but not forgotten: The lingering effects of intermediate term memory on the persistence of LTM. J Exp Biol 205(1), 131-140.
Edited Book
Sangha S and Foti D (2018). Neurobiology of Abnormal Emotion and Motivated Behaviors: Integrating Animal and Human Research. 1st edition. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Academic Press.
Reviews/Commentaries
Christianson JP, Fernando ABP, Kazama AM, Jovanovic T, Ostroff LE, Sangha S (2012). Inhibition of fear by learned safety signals: minisymposium review. J Neurosci, 32(41): 14118-14124.
Sangha S (2007). Erasing Memories. J Exp Biol 210(23): v-a.
Sangha S (2007). Neurons vie for Recruitment. J Exp Biol 210(17): v
Sangha S (2007). Keeping the Memory Alive. J Exp Biol 210(11): vii.
Sangha S (2007). Unlocking Learning. J Exp Biol 210(3): v.
Sangha S (2006). I Feel Your Pain. J Exp Biol 209(21): iv.
Sangha S (2006). Hopping for Wheaties. J Exp Biol 209(15): vi.
Sangha S (2006). First and only love. J Exp Biol 209(9): v-a.
Sangha S (2006). Less studying, better memory? J Exp Biol 209(3): vii.
Lukowiak K, Martens K, Orr M, Parvez K, Rosenegger D, Sangha S (2006). Modulation of aerial respiratory behaviour in a pond snail. Respir Physiol Neurobiol, 154(1-2): 61-72.
Sangha S (2005). Moving without dopamine. J Exp Biol 208 (21), v.
Sangha S (2005). Pass the remote please. J Exp Biol 208(15), v.
Sangha S (2005). The synapse that lost the battle. J Exp Biol 208(8), vi.
Sangha S (2005). Competing memories. J Exp Biol 208(3), vi.
Sangha S, Varshney N, Fras M, Smyth K, Rosenegger D, Parvez K, Sadamoto H, Lukowiak K (2004). Memory, reconsolidation and extinction in Lymnaea require the soma of RPeD1. Adv Exp Med Biol, 551:311-8.
Lukowiak K, Sangha S, Scheibenstock A, Parvez K, McComb C, Rosenegger D, Varshney N, Sadamoto H (2003). Molluskan model systems: In search for the engram. J Physiol Paris, 97:69-76.
Lukowiak K, Sangha S, McComb C, Varshney N, Rosenegger D, Sadamoto H, Scheibenstock A (2003). Associative learning, long-term memory and the assignment of marks in the pond snail Lymnaea. J Exp Biol 206, 2097-2103.
Conference Abstracts (*Invited Conference Talk)
*Sangha S (2017). Neural circuits of inhibiting conditioned fear by a safety cue in a fear-safety-reward cue discrimination task. Pavlovian Society.
Ng K, Sangha S (2017). Neuronal encoding of fear, safety, and reward cue discrimination in the infralimbic cortex. Pavlovian Society.
Norris M, Greiner E, Mueller I, Ng K, Sangha S (2017). Sex differences in suppression of conditioned fear during a safety cue in a fear-safety-reward cue discrimination task. Pavlovian Society.
Mueller I, Brinkman A, Sangha S (2017). Juvenile pre-exposure to fear, safety or reward cues affects discriminative conditioning in adulthood. Pavlovian Society.
*Sangha S (2017). Neural circuitry for suppressing conditioned fear in the presence of a safety cue. MCB Brain Plast: International Conference on Brain Plasticity linking Molecules, Cells and Behavior.
Mueller I, Brinkman A, Sangha S (2017). Juvenile pre-exposure to fear, safety or reward cues affects discriminative conditioning in adulthood. MCB Brain Plast: International Conference on Brain Plasticity linking Molecules, Cells and Behavior.
Ng KH, Pollock MW, Urbanczyk PJ, Sangha S (2017). Increasing D1 receptor activity in the BLA impairs fear suppression during a safety cue. Gordon Research Conference: Amygdala Function in Emotion, Cognition and Disease.
*Ng K, Pollock MW, Urbanczyk PU, Woon E, Sangha S (2017). D1 receptor mediated signaling in the basolateral amygdala modulates safety-fear-reward cue discrimination. Greater Indiana Society for Neuroscience.
Seibert T, Woon E, Sangha S (2017). Effect of trauma and social isolation on discriminatory behaviors in adolescent male rats. Greater Indiana Society for Neuroscience.
Woon E, Seibert T, Sangha S (2017). Effect of prior trauma on discriminatory fear and reward seeking behaviors. Greater Indiana Society for Neuroscience.
Voglewede M, Urbanczyk P, Brewster A, Sangha S (2017). Effect of an acute trauma on microglia activation. Greater Indiana Society for Neuroscience.
Greiner E, Norris M, Mueller I, Ng K, Sangha S (2017). Fear expression differs between male and female rats during safety learning. Greater Indiana Society for Neuroscience.
Ng K, Pollock M, Urbanczyk P, Woon E, Greiner E, Sangha S (2016). Differential effects of D1-mediated dopamine signaling in the amygdala on fear, safety, reward cue discrimination learning. Society for Neuroscience.
Ng K, Pollock M, Urbanczyk P, Woon E, Sangha S (2016). D1 receptor mediated signaling in the basolateral amygdala modulates safety-fear-reward cue discrimination. Pavlovian Society.
Woon E, Urbanczyk P, Pollock M, Ng K, Sangha S (2016). Prior trauma impairs safety-fear-reward cue discrimination. Pavlovian Society.
*Sangha S (2016). Role of the prefrontal cortex in discriminating among fear, safety and extinguished fear cues. FENS Forum 2016.
Sangha S, Ng K, Pollock M, Urbanczyk P (2016). Role of dopamine in learning to discriminate among safety, fear and reward cues. FENS Forum 2016.
Sangha S (2015). Amygdalocortical circuitry contributes to discriminative reward, fear and safety learning. Pavlovian Society.
*Sangha S (2015). Amygdalocortical circuitry contributes to discriminative reward, fear and safety learning. International Behavioral Neuroscience Society.
Sangha S, Robinson PD, Greba Q, Davies DA, Howland JG (2014). Alterations in reward, fear and safety cue discrimination after inactivation of the rat prelimbic and infralimbic cortices. European Molecular and Cellular Cognition Society.
Sangha S, Ballendine SA, Robinson PD, Howland JG (2013). Safety learning in an animal model of schizophrenia. Society for Neuroscience.
Sangha S, Robinson PD, Davies DA, Greba Q, Howland JG (2013). Poor discrimination among reward, fear and safety cues during inactivation of prelimbic cortex in rats. Pavlovian Society.
*Sangha S, Janak, PH (2012). Neurons in the amygdala are responsive to safety cues. Society for Neuroscience.
Sangha S, Janak, PH (2011). Suppressing fear through conditioned inhibition. Gordon Research Conference: Amygdala in health and disease.
Sangha S, Janak PH (2010). A new paradigm to investigate reward, fear and safety learning. Pavlovian Society.
*Sangha S, Pape H-C (2010). The role of GAD65 in extinguishing fear. Pavlovian Society.
Pape H-C, Narayanan RT, Lesting J, Stork O, Seidenbecher T, Kluge C, Sangha S (2009). Distinctive patterns of theta synchronization in amygdalo-hippocampal-prefrontal cortical circuits during fear memory consolidation and extinction. Society for Neuroscience.
*Sangha S, Narayanan RT, Bergado-Acosta J, Stork O, Seidenbecher T, Pape H-C (2009). GAD65-mediated GABAergic transmission is important for extinction of cued fear. Gordon Research Conference: Amygdala in health and disease.
Sangha S, Seidenbecher T, Pape H-C (2008). Impairment of fear extinction in GAD65 knock-out mice. Society for Neuroscience.
Sangha S, Pape H-C (2008). Impairment of fear extinction in the GAD65 knock-out mouse. Human Frontier Science Program 8th Annual Awardees Meeting.
Sangha S, Pape H-C (2008). Expression of GABA-related genes in the amygdala, hippocampus, and prefrontal cortex after extinction of fear. Second Annual Meeting of the Canadian Association for Neuroscience.
Sangha S, Bergado J, Stork O, Seidenbecher T, Pape H-C (2007). Impairment of fear extinction in the GAD65 knock-out mouse. The Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences 34(Suppl. 3): S17.
*Sangha S, Scheibenstock A, McComb C, Varshney N, Lukowiak K (2005). Memory formation in a snail is dependent upon one specific cell. 7th Annual Meeting of the International Behavioural and Neural Genetics Society.
*Sangha S, Varshney N, Lukowiak K (2004). Well-rehearsed memories are more resistant to disruption. 10th Anniversary Meeting of Workshop of Invertebrate Neuroscience.
*Sangha S, Lukowiak K (2004). Memory stabilization after repeated memory reactivation. West Coast Nerve Net.
*Sangha S, Lukowiak K (2004). Memory becomes resistant to disruption upon repeated reactivation. Alberta Neuroscience Meeting.
Sangha S, Scheibenstock A, McComb C, Lukowiak K (2003). Consolidation, reconsolidation, and extinction of a memory requires the soma of RPeD1 in Lymnaea. Society for Neuroscience.
Sangha S, Morrow R, Lukowiak K (2003). Extinction: Covering up old memories. 2003 Meeting on Learning and Memory.
Sangha S, Scheibenstock A, Lukowiak K (2002). The Role of RPeD1 in Learning, Memory, Extinction and Forgetting. Alberta Neuroscience Meeting.
Sangha S, Scheibenstock A, McComb C, Lukowiak K (2002). Deactivating Active Memories. Society for Neuroscience.
Sangha S, Scheibenstock A, Lukowiak K (2001). Forgetting is learning something new. Society for Neuroscience.
Sangha S, Scheibenstock A, Lukowiak K (2001). Extinction as a form of learning. 2001 Meeting on Learning and Memory.
Rankin C, Rose J, Sangha S (2001). Activity dependent plasticity during development in C. elegans. 2001 Meeting on Learning and Memory.
Rankin C, Sangha S, Rose J, Norman K (2001). Early isolation alters behavior, rate of development and neuroanatomy in C. elegans. International Congress of Neuroethology.
Rankin C, Sangha S, Eng K (2000). The effect of sensory deprivation on the development of C. elegans. Society for Neuroscience.
Rankin C, Sangha S (1999). Latent inhibition and extinction in context conditioning in habituation in C. elegans. Society for Neuroscience.