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Touching the Invisible: Communicating Intracellular Bacterial Pathogens through Multisensory Art
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  • Rachel Jackson ,
  • Georgia Miller,
  • Rachel Weild,
  • Svetlana Atlavina,
  • Frances Aylward,
  • Elizabeth Harris ,
  • Richard Hayward ,
  • Camilla Godlee
Rachel Jackson
Cambridge University
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Georgia Miller
Cambridge University
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Rachel Weild
Cambridge University

Corresponding Author:rw674@cam.ac.uk

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Svetlana Atlavina
Anglia Ruskin University Cambridge School of Art
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Frances Aylward
Cambridge University
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Elizabeth Harris
Cambridge University
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Richard Hayward
Cambridge University
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Camilla Godlee
Cambridge University
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Abstract

Microbial life flourishes all around us and is invisible to the naked eye. Within this microscopic world are intracellular bacteria, including Salmonella enterica, Chlamydia trachomatis, and Orientia tsutsugamushi. By hijacking eukaryotic host cellular machinery and avoiding detection, these bacteria orchestrate their own survival and replication within host cells. The intricate nature of these interactions are usually communicated through images and graphical presentations, thereby excluding the low vision and blind communities. By taking part in the Sensory Science Exhibition, held at St Catharine’s College, University of Cambridge as part of the Cambridge Festival on the 18th March 2024, we sought to address this problem through creating a 3D mammalian cell and model bacteria. The aim of this tactile display was to guide participants through key aspects of intracellular bacterial life cycles such as host cell entry, S. enterica type three secretion system (T3SS) protein secretion, O. tsutsugamushi trafficking along microtubules, and C. trachomatis replication within an inclusion. We hope our multisensory conceptualisation of the intriguing lives of intracellular bacteria provided inclusive science communication to the low vision and blind communities.
13 Jun 2024Submitted to Immunology & Cell Biology
14 Jun 2024Submission Checks Completed
14 Jun 2024Assigned to Editor
25 Jul 2024Review(s) Completed, Editorial Evaluation Pending
29 Jul 2024Editorial Decision: Revise Major
09 Jan 20251st Revision Received
11 Jan 2025Submission Checks Completed
11 Jan 2025Assigned to Editor
26 Jan 2025Reviewer(s) Assigned