Client: Dr. Reza RahbarGhazi’s group
Field: Cancer biology / angiogenesis / extracellular vesicles
Figure type: Mechanism illustration with inset
Published: Cancer Cell International (2024), Exosomes and breast cancer angiogenesis; highlights in intercellular communication (figure 2)
Delivered: High-resolution PNG and editable Adobe Illustrator file
The brief
The second figure in this breast cancer review needed to show how tumor-derived exosomes help tumors build their own blood supply.
My approach
A tumor feeding itself: a cluster of tumor cells sits at the top, with new vessels already branching up to it from a main vessel below. The exosomes travel through the gap between the two.
Two zoom-ins: one circle opens an exosome to show its pro-angiogenic cargo, including growth factors such as VEGF, PDGF, bFGF, and TGF-β. A second inset zooms into the vessel wall to show the routes by which endothelial cells take exosomes in.
Bold, simple shapes: saturated green tumor cells against red vessels keep the two players clearly separate, even at small sizes.
The result
A clear, single-message figure linking exosomes to tumor blood supply, suited to a review, a talk, or a grant background section.
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