Developing a Measure of Fatigue for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students

Fatigue is a prevalent issue in school-aged children and has been shown negatively impact well-being and academic performance. This is especially the case for deaf and hard of hearing (D/HH) students, who must produce greater auditory and visual efforts than their hearing peers, leading to greater levels of cognitive and physical fatigue. At present, there exists no standardized measure of fatigue that can be used in schools to specifically evaluate fatigue in students, let alone those who are D/HH. Such a measure would be incredibly valuable as it would allow for accurate identification of fatigue, allowing for supports and interventions to be implemented. The present research aimed to identify strengths and weaknesses of existing measures of fatigue in order to inform the construction of a measure that would specifically address fatigue in D/HH students. It was found that fatigue has largely been determined to be best assessed using a unidimensional measure with responses based on a 5- or 7-point Likert scale. Additionally, it was found that the development of measures usually follows the same general process. Items included in measures are typically generated based on focus-group interviews, then preliminary items are administered to a test group. Statistical tests are conducted based on the data generated to reduce the number of items, as well as to ensure reliability and validity. The next steps of this research will be to conduct focus group interviews to aid in generating preliminary items. Presented in absentia on April 27, 2020 at "Student Research Day" at MacEwan University in Edmonton, Alberta. (Conference cancelled) Faculty Mentor: Natalia Rohatyn-Martin Department: Biological Science

Antimicrobial Properties of Medicinal Teas and Their Interactions with Antibiotics

The rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria has greatly increased the need for new drugs to be developed. These drugs may be new antibiotics, or synergists of existing antibiotics. Plants have been identified as a valuable source of new drugs, as plants produce secondary metabolites that have antimicrobial and synergistic activity. In addition, plants are the basis of many natural health products and dietary supplements, and public interest in these products continues to increase. The increasing popularity of natural health products also increases the possibility for antagonistic interactions to occur when these products are used in conjunction with antibiotics. The present study investigated the antimicrobial properties of aqueous extracts of three medicinal teas and their interactions with common antibiotics. The antimicrobial properties of the aqueous extracts of Bronchitis tea, Eyebright tea, and Hyssop tea were assessed via disk diffusion. It was found that both Eyebright tea and Hyssop tea extracts have antimicrobial properties, likely due to the phenolic acids and flavonoids found in extracts of these plants. Interactions between the tea extracts and antibiotics were assessed using a double disk diffusion method, where it was found that all three tea extracts interact antagonistically with sulfadiazine. Additionally, Eyebright tea extract was found to interact antagonistically with chloramphenicol. While further research is required to determine the mechanism of this interaction and the specific compounds involved, this research has identified that these teas should potentially be used with caution in combination with antibiotics. In addition, the antimicrobial properties of both Hyssop and Eyebright tea extracts warrant further research as these extracts may be the basis for new antimicrobial drugs in the future. Presented in absentia on April 27, 2020 at "Student Research Day" at MacEwan University in Edmonton, Alberta. (Conference cancelled). Also presented at the Undergraduate Research in Science Conference of Alberta (URSCA). Faculty mentor: Kimberley Harcombe Department: Biological Sciences NOTE: This work is available to MacEwan users only at https://roam.macewan.ca/islandora/object/gm:213