Visual Analogies are all Fun and Games
While at St. Jude, I get to work with a variety of researchers who each have their unique approaches to science and thinking strategies. I have had the pleasure of working with Marcus Fischer, Ph.D., and his lab to create some out-of-the-ordinary science graphics. One of the younger faculty at St. Jude, Marcus brings a sense of wonder and fresh-faced ideas to the table when working with me on projects. In our brainstorming sessions, we throw multiple quirky ideas at the wall to see what sticks. He’s not afraid to use familiar analogies to express his work to others, and I’ve used them time and time again to strike veins of visual gold. Below I’ve listed a few of the journeys the Fischer lab has taken me on, most of which have been accepted as editorial covers.
Mazes
For a publication in Chemical Science, we wanted to find a way to highlight the Fischer Lab’s research on protein conformational changes in response to temperature and ligand binding. The message to get across to viewers is that relevant conformational states may be missed at cryogenic temperatures but can be found at room temperature during data collection. The first thing that came to my mind was an image of a maze, representing the unknown factors researchers face when performing experiments. Playing a game of actual hot and cold, where certain protein characteristics can be seen in warmer temperatures.
The arcade game, Pac-Man, offered a great starting point for this editorial piece. An enzyme-like character on a mission, Pac-Man runs through the maze attempting to consume as many fruits as possible. While the idea was fun, we couldn’t use it for a journal cover and ended up making it a fun piece of artwork in addition to our final cover. Alternately, the maze idea stuck but using the actual proteins was a better solution.
Comic Strips
For a publication in Angewandte Chemie, I helped the Fischer Lab create a cover to illustrate their findings regarding protein movement at both cryogenic and room temperature. Cryo-cooled water molecules block protein motions that impact protein–ligand interactions, while room-temperature structures show that water networks and protein conformations are more mobile. When reading the manuscript I immediately identified a duality about the topic: a hot/cold, fire/ice, good/bad theme that dominates the research. Such stark opposites remind me of superhero stories featuring villains and champions competing in a dynamic storyline. I liked the idea of using comic strips to represent cryo vs. room temp states and using my layout to contrast between the two.
Plinko
For a publication in the Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, the Fischer lab analyzed 300 crystal structures of Hsp90α and linked protein conformational states with ligand properties. The idea is that if we can identify certain chemical properties, we can evaluate what confirmation state the protein is in. Symbolically, separating the ligands into buckets makes the most sense, but they are also affected by specific elements before they get there. The game Plinko, featured on the game show The Price is Right, offered an excellent way to describe this process while also adding light-heartedness to the subject.
Apples to Apples
For a publication being released in PNAS, we had the challenge of representing four HSP90 isoforms and one ligand that fits into all of them. The lab gave me the idiom “apples to apples” they used in the paper to describe the similarity between these structures. We decided on a unique way to include the fruit in visualizing this protein discovery.