The outbreak of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has posed a serious threat to global public health, calling for the development of effective therapeutics against infection of its causative agent, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2),  and speeding efforts up for the production of a vaccine to stop the spreading of it. Understanding which features of SARS-CoV-2 is essential for infection of human cells should provide insights into viral transmissibility and pathogenesis and might reveal targets for intervention. Scientists have been working around the clock to generate the knowledge that will lead to successfully combatting and stopping this viral pandemic. 

 

Also importantly, in a time of massive global crisis with the COVID-19 pandemic dominating headlines and the daily realities of millions of people around the world, the fear has also fast propagated and everybody is eagerly looking for expert scientific advice relevant to the current situation. This means that laymen and laywomen are constantly receiving information, which might feel overwhelming by the complicated nature of the data and information. 

An effective science communication using visuals can help to face the scientific information overload that the general public is exposed to. Illustrations, animations and infographics play a significant role in the public’s ability to make sense of the facts and figures for the current epidemiological outbreak. 

 

This is the main intention of the visuals included in this personal project. Using the scientific skills acquired during my time working as a researcher, I have created these infographics with the hope that they can help other people to get a better understanding of different aspects of the most widely famous virus at the present time: SARS-CoV-2.