Author: Audra Geras

 

Hope you enjoy this recently completed illustration explaining the basic MHC Class I immune process following the phagocytosis of a tumor cell.

The story starts following the phagocytosis and degradation of a tumor cell by a dendritic cell. Further degradation of tumor protein by proteasomes creates 8 to 10 amino acid long antigenic peptides. T cells become activated as a result of the presentation of these antigenic peptides by MHC Class I to the T cell receptor (TCR).

 

by Audra:

I have written in the past about the importance of discovering sources of inspiration everywhere in the world around us, and I wanted to share an amusing anecdote about a very recent example.

So… while preparing dinner one day, I became captivated by the beauty of the forming water bubbles at the bottom of my cast iron wok – sooo lovely and ethereal. I watched while they evolved and quickly snapped some photos to capture them before they disappeared. I showed them to my husband and told him laughingly, “You’re going to see these turned into a conceptual painting of an ovum in the near future!”. (Cue rolling eyeballs.)

Well… here is the inspiration, and the artist’s representation that it gave rise to: an image of an ovum surrounded by its corona radiata.

I’ve always had a heightened awareness and appreciation for the intricacy and beauty of nature, both on the level of the ‘microverse’ and of the ‘macroverse’. Subtle and overlooked or neglected beauty especially fascinates me… like the unexpected delicacy and grace of a weed blooming from a crack in the city pavement. Sometimes, when the light is just right, and the shadows are just so, such vignettes are gifts of stunning beauty that, sadly, most often remain unnoticed – I’ve always noticed.

It’s astonishing how most people go through life oblivious to what’s around them. One morning, driving along the coast of Lake Ontario, I was stunned to see that the entire surface of the lake was covered by thousands of will-o-the-wisp-like spirals of mist rising every five feet or so. I’d never seen anything like it! It was a truly magical vista. But when I glanced at the other drivers around me, there wasn’t a single person who was taking even the slightest notice!

How sad… Of course my husband, Niclas, said that they were all busy watching the road, as I should have been – Hahaha!

The important point I want to make is that there are sources of awe and inspiration everywhere, one only needs to have a sensibility to their existence. Take the time to look… you may never have the chance again!

We’ve decided to feature recently completed projects in our blog section to let you know what we’ve been up to. Hope you enjoy this first image entitled, Glomeruli of the Kidney. The illustration was created by Audra for a biotechnology company.

This 3D illustration features the structure of a glomerulus, the basic filtration unit of the kidney, within the environment of a kidney cortex. Glomeruli are capillary clusters or knots that are enveloped by interdigitating podocyte cells and ensheathed by a capsule known as the Bowman’s capsule. The Bowman’s capsule is an expansion of the proximal convoluted tubule and consists of a membrane formed by parietal epithelial cells. The green cells shown are known as extraglomerular mesangial cells. These cells synthesize renin, a hormone involved in the renin-angiotensin autoregulation system of the kidney.

Glomerular disease impairs the ability of the kidneys to filter out and eliminate toxins.