URNCST Journal Mentored Paper
The URNCST Journal team prides itself on its commitment to advocate for undergraduate STEM research. In our endeavours to promote undergraduate research, we have published a number of papers from undergraduate research competitions and case competitions. From these ventures, we have identified a couple of themes that were found to recur independently as follows: 1) undergraduate students are extremely keen to use their critical thinking skills to participate in research endeavours that recognize their valuable work and 2) there exists a subset of students who desire to contribute to undergraduate STEM research but due to one reason or another are unable to take part in such research or feel as if they may need closer guidance during the writing process. Despite this, many thousands of undergraduate students across the globe play crucial roles in making new discoveries every single year.
In an effort to provide undergraduate students with the opportunity to contribute to STEM research literature, we have established our novel Mentored Paper Initiative. Students that are selected to participate will have the opportunity to be partnered with a graduate student as they write a manuscript that is of peer-reviewable quality in the URNCST Journal. The topic of the manuscript will be in the graduate student’s area of expertise to allow them to more effectively guide the students throughout the writing process. Students will be mentored from the design stage to write up, and the final manuscript will be peer-reviewed by another graduate student, to allow the students to experience external-feedback. This opportunity provides undergraduate students with the chance to improve their scientific writing skills and experience the entire process of writing an academic manuscript, while working under the supervision of a graduate student. Those wishing to learn more about how the URNCST Journal Mentored Paper initiative was developed can read our published editorial.
Eligibility to Participate: The mentored paper is open to students who are enrolled in an undergraduate (i.e. BSc, BEng, BA, etc.) or professional-undergraduate (i.e. MD, DDS, PharmD, OD, RN, etc.) degree program.
About the Initiative: Undergraduate students participating in the URNCST Journal Mentored Paper are required to draft and submit an abstract on a topic that is of interest to them based on the questions provided below. This abstract must be in the format of either 1) a research protocol (i.e. a plan to conduct a study) OR 2) a review (i.e. a review of the currently existing literature); it is not acceptable to simply summarize a single study already published in the literature by an academic journal. Students may submit an abstract alone or in teams of up to 3. These abstracts will be reviewed for suitability (i.e. understanding of topic, writing ability), and accepted students will be paired with the graduate student who proposed the topic and will mentor the undergraduate (team) in drafting a manuscript that is of suitable quality to undergo peer-review by the URNCST Journal. As participants will be under the guidance of a graduate student, they are not required to have a complete understanding of the topic, but should have done their due diligence in reading about the topic online and have the motivation and dedication to learn from the mentoring graduate student.
Topics Available: Please see below for a complete list of the available research topics for the manuscripts. Please note that these are the only questions accepted students should write on and they are not subject to change.
Deadline to Submit Abstract for Consideration: Sunday, June 28, 2026 @ 11:59PM EST
Mentorship Period: Fall 2026 (September-December)
Update: The URNCST Journal has opened its call for abstracts for the 18th Mentored Paper Initiative! We welcome submissions up until Sunday, June 28, 2026 @ 11:59pm EST! Successful applicants will partake in the mentored paper initiative during Fall 2026. Should you have any questions about participating, please contact us at [email protected].
For Graduate Students: We are always interested in identifying new mentors who are able/willing to help keen undergraduate researchers design, develop, and write a full-length study protocol or review. Eligible mentors must be enrolled in or a graduate of a graduate program (a Master's level degree at minimum) in any natural or clinical science or technology discipline. Please apply to be a mentor here.
After selecting a topic, please click "Learn More & SUBMIT ABSTRACT" below and follow the instructions provided.
Topics
MPI 19.1: What is the role of histone modifications in mediating skeletal muscle adaptation to exercise (Literature Review)?
MPI 19.2: Skeletal muscle angiogenesis in response to hypoxia, considering environmental and exercise conditions (Literature Review)
MPI 19.3: What role do environmental triggers (such as viral infections, diet, or early-life microbiome changes) play in initiating autoimmune responses that lead to Type 1 diabetes?
MPI 19.4: How do failures in central or peripheral immune tolerance lead to the destruction of self-tissues in autoimmune diseases?
MPI 19.5: Can early biomarkers (genetic, immunological, or metabolic) reliably predict the development of Type 1 diabetes before clinical symptoms appear?
MPI 19.6: How can we define a cancer cell of origin?
MPI 19.7: How do systemic changes affect how tumours form?
MPI 19.8: How does the parent of origin affect cancer predisposition syndromes?
MPI 19.9: How does inflammation impact recovery post trauma?
MPI 19.10: What is the role of immune cells in the pathophysiology post injury?
MPI 19.11: How do experiences of maternal health care differ between Indigenous and non-Indigenous women in Canada, and what are the implications for health outcomes and healthcare delivery?
MPI 19.12: How can methods of manufacturing or changes in materials being used for medicines or medical equipment during a pandemic help hospitals reduce the shortage of medicines and keep administering essential treatments?
MPI 19.13: How do we use nanomaterials for biomedical applications or for the treatment of complex diseases, such as cancers being treated with gold nanoparticles, and nanomaterials used in pharmaceutical applications in drug delivery systems?
MPI 19.14: How can we use lean six sigma philosophy in palliative care, and reduce wastage, and increase precision in the care for patients?
MPI 19.15: What are the mental health implications of chronic illnesses and disabilities, and how can integrated care models better address these issues?
MPI 19.16: How do nurse-family care programs address the needs and challenges faced by vulnerable mothers in Canada, and how effective are these programs in improving maternal and child health outcomes?
MPI 19.17: How do school-based nutrition programs affect childhood obesity rates in low-income neighborhoods?
MPI 19.18: What role does NF-κB play in regulating viral replication and host immune responses?
MPI 19.19: Mechanobiology is the study of how the mechanical environment affects biological systems, with implications in both physiological and diseased conditions (examples: fibrosis, osteoporosis, atherosclerosis, metastasis). In particular, mechanobiology is studied in endothelial cells (vasculature), bone cells, cancer, and embryogenesis. Select a biological system (vasculature, bone, cancer, etc.) of interest and propose a literature review on how mechanical forces shape normal versus pathological conditions during disease.
MPI 19.20: Cancer nanomedicine has the potential to provide crucial roles in cancer detection and treatment, however, many challenges remain. What are some advantages of cancer nanotherapies based on preclinical studies, and their current bottlenecks towards clinical translation? (or) How might the delivery of nanoparticles be improved based on current knowledge of where nanoparticles travel in the body before reaching their targeted destination?
MPI 19.21: Can microbial metabolites serve as early biomarkers for neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease or Alzheimer’s disease?
MPI 19.22: How do prenatal factors such as maternal diet, stress, inflammation, or microbiome composition influence early gut-brain axis development?
MPI 19.23: How does the expression of host-defense peptides (HDPs) differ between tissue types in animals?
MPI 19.24: How do secreted factors support innate immune defense in different mucous membranes (lung, gut, endometrium, etc.)?
MPI 19.25: Describe a study that can test the effects of TMS on ischemic stroke rehabilitation, including how changes within the brain may relate to behavioral outcomes.
MPI 19.26: What are the cellular pathogenic mechanisms following ischemic stroke? What mechanisms should be prioritized for future treatment developments? (Literature Review)?
MPI 19.27: What are some key metabolic transcriptional changes seen in kidney tissue during injury?
MPI 19.28: How do emerging gene-editing therapies modify disease expression and long-term clinical outcomes in patients with Sickle Cell Disease? (Literature Review)?
MPI 19.29: What is the impact of climate change–related factors (e.g., air quality deterioration, heat stress) on global cardiovascular disease burden? (Literature Review)?
MPI 19.30: How closely do the proteomic profiles of plant-based meat alternatives mimic traditional meats, and how can mass spectrometry evaluate their true nutritional equivalence?
MPI 19.31: How do multi-drug-resistant bacteria alter their outer molecular armor (lipopolysaccharides) to become invisible to the human immune system?
MPI 19.32: How is mass spectrometry utilized to detect ""protein spiking"" and evaluate the true amino acid profiles of commercial whey and plant-based protein powders?
MPI 19.33: To what extent are there gender differences in empathy across contexts, and if so, what factors may account for these differences?
MPI 19.34: Why are musical memories uniquely preserved in late-stage Alzheimer's disease, and what neuroanatomical mechanisms support this phenomenon?
MPI 19.35: When and how do spontaneous future thoughts occur?
MPI 19.36: What is the role of the default mode network (DMN) in mediating the therapeutic effects of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy for treatment-resistant depression?
MPI 19.37: How does the gut microbiome shape sensory processing across taste, smell, pain, and body-based sensation?
MPI 19.38: Can changes in sensory function serve as early biomarkers of neurodegenerative disease?
MPI 19.39: Can artificial intelligence models using behavioural and sensory testing data improve early detection or monitoring of neurodegenerative disease?
