Rebecca Stark

Rebecca joined Drug Discovery News as an Intern in 2023. She is a PhD candidate at University of Southern California where she studies molecular mechanisms of synaptic plasticity in fruit flies. As an intern, she writes about brain function and health from early development to advanced age. When not in the lab or writing, she can be found hiking in the Los Angeles mountains with her dog.

Articles by Rebecca Stark

A person receiving chemotherapy treatment through an IV.

May 06, 2024|5 min read

By Rebecca Stark

Leaky calcium channels may underlie ‘chemobrain’

Chemotherapy patients have reported cognitive impairments known as “chemobrain.” Now, researchers are closer to finding its cause and a potential treatment.

A white box labeled “Placebo” with pills lying next to it.

Mar 06, 2024|5 min read

By Rebecca Stark

Placebo may work as well as ketamine in treating depression

By masking ketamine from placebo for the first time, researchers reveal the importance of accounting for expectancy in trials testing psychoactive drugs.

A gloved hand holding a small bag of drugs.

Feb 23, 2024|4 min read

By Rebecca Stark

A novel antibody reverses synthetic opioid-related overdose

Researchers precisely engineered an antibody to better treat respiratory depression due to overdose from increasingly prevalent synthetic opioids.

A cartoon of human fetus with the placenta.

Oct 25, 2023|4 min read

By Rebecca Stark

The potential placental origins of schizophrenia

Researchers identified schizophrenia risk genes that mediate placental, rather than brain, function, revealing new insight into the disease’s developmental origins.