Client: Dr. Reza RahbarGhazi’s group
Field: Cell biology / extracellular vesicles / breast cancer
Figure type: Classification illustration
Published: Cancer Cell International (2024), Exosomes and breast cancer angiogenesis; highlights in intercellular communication (figure 1)
Delivered: High-resolution PNG and editable Adobe Illustrator file
The brief
This review on exosomes and breast cancer angiogenesis needed an opening figure that explained what exosomes are and how they differ from the other vesicles cells release. I contributed three illustrations to the paper, and this was the first.
The challenge
Exosomes, microvesicles, and apoptotic bodies overlap in size and are often confused. The figure needed to show that they form in different ways, not just that they are different sizes.
My approach
One cell, three exits: microvesicles bud directly from the top of the membrane, exosomes are released from multivesicular bodies on the right, and apoptotic bodies break away at the bottom right. Each route is visibly different.
Two sorting routes for exosomes: the ESCRT-dependent and ESCRT-independent pathways are labeled above and below the multivesicular body.
Size ranges in the labels: each vesicle type carries its size range, so the figure doubles as a quick reference.
The result
A compact reference figure that sets up the rest of the review and answers the most common beginner question about extracellular vesicles.
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