Hannah Keely , senior in biology, can often be found just outside Bostian Hall with drinking straws and tiny test tubes. Over the course of the semester, she has recruited participants from Biology 250 and Biochemistry 451 for a research study on the amounts of stress students may be experiencing throughout the semester.

Cortisol , a steroid hormone, is present in saliva and is a measurable indicator of stress levels in the body. Unlike other more short-lived signs of stress, such as blood pressure, heart rate and the adrenaline hormone epinephrine, cortisol remains somewhat constant in the presence of stress and is more easily measured.

Using a method called “passive drool collection,” Keely has collected saliva samples from approximately eight males and eight females from both classes. Participants simply drool through a short straw into a two mL test tube. Keely will measure the amount of cortisol present in each sample and compare the results between male and female as well as the two courses.

Keely has taken two samples from the students so far this semester, during midterms and “dead week.” She will collect a final sample on the morning of each class’s final exam, providing a basis of comparison for the cortisol levels at various times during the semester.

“We also give each student a 10 question survey regarding how they currently feel about their own stress level,” Keely said. The questions attempt to gauge where the student falls on the perceived stress scale. The results can be compared to their cortisol levels to assess the degree to which their emotional response to stress correlates with their hormonal response.

“I was inspired to do this project by a similar study done in the 1980s ,” Keely said. “It was described in a textbook for a class I took last semester called Hormones and Behavior.”

John Godwin taught the course and is Keely’s faculty adviser for this study. He assisted her with editing and submitting a research proposal and has aided her throughout the study itself by helping her plan the experiment, collect the saliva samples and interpret the data.

“This is my first time conducting research on human subjects,” Godwin said. He has experimented with indicators of stress in other organisms, including fish.

This project is Keely’s first experience working with human test subjects too. Prior to conducting the study, she and Godwin submitted a detailed proposal to N.C. State’s Institutional Review Board for the Use of Human Subjects in Research and attained permission to test human subjects.

“I have learned a lot about the difference between working with human subjects versus animals,” Keely said. “It is a complicated process.”

To her luck, Keely found her test subjects eager to participate and interested in the premise of the study.

“I am very stressed about finals, probably at least an eight on a scale of one to 10,” Megan Askew, senior in biochemistry, said. She finds her stress level this semester comparable to that of previous semesters.

“I am more stressed about exams this year than in years past because my classes are becoming more specific to my major,” Kevin Oliver, junior in chemical engineering, said.

This past summer, Keely received a grant and approval to conduct the study from the Division of Undergraduate Academic Programs. In return she must either publish her findings in the Undergraduate Research Journal or present at a symposium of undergraduate research studies.

Keely will have the results soon after exams. Participants in the study can receive their own results via email based on assigned identification codes to maintain anonymity.

Keely views her research study as a valuable learning experience.

“I have found it to be a very student-led process, as well as a great chance to better get to know my professor,” Keely said. “Undergrad research is a great opportunity and I encourage more students to take advantage of it.”