2020 Online Salon
Malaria Beneath the Surface
Project Details
- Entrant Name: Jennifer Zernick
- Membership Type: Student Submission
- Address: Chicago, Illinois USA
- Client: University of Illinois at Chicago
- Copyright: 2020 Jennifer Zernick
- Medium/software used: 3DS Max, Zbrush, Adobe Photoshop, and Adobe Illustrator
- Final presentation format: 24″x12″ Poster
- Primary Audience: High School or College Level Biology Students
Project Description
This poster aims to communicate the portion of the malaria lifecycle which occurs inside mammalian organisms. In order to convey this complicated process in an audience appropriate manor, the process was simplified into a series of key events depicted in a schematic way and contextualized with 3D elements. Color was used to signify a transformation of the parasite.
The poster describes how a malaria infected mosquito injects sporozoites into the bloodstream of a mammalian host and how this leads to maturation of the parasite. The schematic diagram follows the sporozoites as they enable the formation of schizonts and eventually merozoites. Merozoites infect red blood cells and these blood cells either become new schizonts or differentiate into gametocytes. Gametocytes circulate through the bloodstream until they infect a new mosquito as it feeds on the infected host.
