Collecting Saliva Samples to Test for Progesterone Levels

Author: Katelyn Helberg | Major: Biology & Art History | Semester: Fall 2023

My research topic investigates the effect of Progesterone, a sex hormone, on cognitive thinking in college aged women. To study this topic, I collected saliva samples from participants to measure the amount of progesterone in their body at the highest and lowest concentrations during their menstrual cycle. I also used a set of RBANS tests to evaluate participant’s immediate and delayed memory, attention span, reaction times, and more. The importance of this project is to determine whether women’s cognitive functioning is impacted by high or low levels of progesterone that naturally circulate during the menstrual cycle. If women’s brains do function differently throughout their cycle, then there might be further research on how to maximize cognitive performance during the menstrual cycle.

Picking my research topic was not as easy as waking up one morning with an idea. Instead, I started making lists of topics that interested me and could be investigated in a limited time frame for a month before I narrowed down my topic. Once I decided that I wanted to focus my research on women’s hormones, I spent another couple weeks reading through a wide variety of research studies to determine any gaps in our current knowledge of hormones. By heavily reading through the literature, not only did I have a better understanding on menstrual cycles and fluctuating hormones, but I also discovered a pattern that many researchers were interested in the specific effects of progesterone on women’s cognition. From there, I developed a question of my own and I brought the idea to my research mentor.

I met my research mentor, Dr. Michelle Gray, my freshman year of college after listening to her talk about the projects happening in her lab during a honors college research event. After this event, I reached out to her about my own similar interests and simply asked if there were spots in her lab for an enthusiastic undergraduate student. Fortunately for me, I was able to start working in her lab that semester and by my junior year there was no one I was more excited to work alongside for my own research project. My research mentor played a major role in showing me how to get IRB approval, determining which protocols I would need for my project, and helping me apply for research funding. Once I began my data collection, she gave me the space to ask questions when I needed to but also learn how to run everything by myself. Now I’m at the next step of my project which is the most daunting and exciting: data analysis. I started my data analysis with a vague understanding of statistics and terrible excel skills. However, the best part of working within a research group is that someone always has strengths where you might have weaknesses. I have relied a ton on the other members of my team to help me organize my data, use statistical programs to determine data correlations, and learn what all my results mean. My biggest advice to all students working on their research project is to always ask for help when you get stuck. Anytime I was struggling with finding participants or with moving to the next step of my project, other professors or members of my lab group were happy to help me in any way possible. Their support throughout this process is truly the only way that I was able to conquer the challenge of developing my own research project.

Once I finish my data analysis and begin writing up my conclusions, my hope is to present my findings at a conference or publish my research if the data is significant enough. I would love the opportunity to share the results of my research project with other people in a similar field to advance knowledge on the effects of changing hormones in women. I also found that I had even more questions about women’s hormones than when I began my project, so I currently plan on continuing research in the same field after I graduate. Throughout the process of designing and completing my research project, I loved having the opportunity to utilize information I had learned in the classroom into a hands-on project that builds on our current understanding of women’s health. For any student who is nervous about tackling their honors research project, it is important to start with a simple idea that you are passionate about and then talk with professors and students who have experience in that field. There will always be parts of your research project that are novel to you but having a great research mentor and team means that you will have a group of people that are excited to help you succeed.