2020 Online Salon
How Antibodies Halt Cancer
Project Details
- Entrant Name: Colleen Paris
- Membership Type: Student Submission
- Address: Oakville, Ontario Canada
- Client: Faculty Advisor: Derek Ng
- Copyright: 2020 Colleen Paris
- Medium/software used: Autodesk Maya, UCSF Chimera, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe Photoshop
- Final presentation format: Print, two-page spread in a popular science magazine (e.g., Scientific American)
- Primary Audience: Educated Lay Audience
Project Description
Upon interaction, the checkpoint protein Programmed Cell Death Protein-1 (PD-1) and its ligand, Programmed Cell Death Ligand-1 (PD-L1), deactivate overactive T cells. Cancer cells exploit this interaction through over-expression of PD-L1, resulting in greater tumor growth. Monoclonal antibodies such as atezolizumab and pembrolizumab are used to block the PD-1/PD-L1 interaction, reducing tumor growth. I created this illustration as a two-page spread for a popular science magazine with the primary purpose of educating a lay audience on the structure-function relationship between the PD-1/PD-L1 interaction, as well as the mechanism of action of antibodies and their potential for treating cancer. The central illustration depicts three interactions: (1) PD-1/PD-L1, (2) PD-L1/atezolizumab, and (3) PD-1/pembrolizumab. Also depicted are callouts that focus on the molecular details of each interaction, and the effects that occur at the cellular level due to these molecular interactions.
