Project Summary/Abstract UROCUP: Undergraduate Research Opportunity to explore the Composition of Urinary casts using Proteomics proposes to introduce undergraduate students, interested in health science-related research at the College of Charleston, to medically translational research within new collaboration between senior investigators at the College of Charleston, Charleston, SC and Oschner Medical Center, New Orleans, LA. Undergraduates majoring in the sciences and participating within the South Carolina Alliance for Minority Participation program will be recruited to the laboratory in effort to address gaps in knowledge relevant to the diagnosis of acute tubular necrosis by investigating the urine sediment using proteomics. Undergraduates will participate in all aspects of laboratory research and receive meaningful immersion opportunities at Oschner Medical Center to help them connect their results to patient outcomes. Training opportunities in scientific communication and literacy will be stressed as well as inclusivity and diversity in science. Research aims and objectives have been designed to promote discovery, passion, and curiosity. Urinary casts are cylindrical structures that are visualized through microscopic examination of the urine and are often associated with kidney injury. Although certain types of urinary casts have both diagnostic and prognostic value, examination of the urine sediment is tedious and requires trained personnel. Due to time constraints or logistical issues, urine casts are not consistently reported by hospital laboratories and when they are, cast type and quantity is often inaccurate. Furthermore, biorepositories that enable large-scale retrospective studies rarely store urine sediment for cast quantification or identification because urinary casts are susceptible to damage from freezing and thawing. Studies within UROCUP seek to understand whether there are unique components to urine casts that can serve as proxies of cast type and quantity so that this information can be automated or assayed in manner that is not reliant on cast integrity or specialists. UROCUP will also significantly advance knowledge in cast protein composition, with focus on muddy brown granular casts, and allow undergraduates to answer the questions: Can casts be cryopreserved with different cryoprotective agents?; What proteins comprise urinary casts?; Can unique cast proteins predict cast quantity as well as a trained nephrologist?