Trading Cards That Double as Guides to Viruses

Viruses can be surprisingly beautiful. Using a molecular modeling program called UCSF Chimera, designer and biology Ph.D. student Eleanor Lutz created animated trading cards that show off the amazing complexity of pathogens like dengue and human papillomavirus (HPV).
“Viruses are surprisingly symmetrical, and I love them because they remind me of a biological version of snowflakes,” she explains. “Each trading card shows you the structure of the viral capsid—the protein shell protecting the genetic material inside a virus.”
The cards shed a little light on the unseen enemies that give us colds and warts.
[h/t Vox]
All images by Eleanor Lutz