Posted by My Project Reflection of the Blood Cell Yearbook
For my STEAM project, I chose to look into the immune system by creating a hand drawn art board titled the “Class of Immunity” This creative piece was made to look like a high school yearbook page, but instead of students, it features the six major types of white blood cells . Each cell has its own portrait, nickname, quote, and superlative that represents its specific role in the immune response. I thought this would be a fun and memorable way to help others understand how these cells work, kind of like how we remember classmates based on their yearbook titles.
This project is completely based on the course objective “Describe the various white blood cells and their function,” but I also went outside of the textbook by using peer reviewed articles to study how each cell behaves, what they actually look like and how they would look if it was only based on their function, and how they contribute to immunity overall. I wanted to do this because in school we often just memorize “white blood cells = fighters,” but we don’t always get to know what each type actually does or how different they are from one another. This project was my way of showing that there’s way more going on behind the scenes in our bodies and giving these immune heroes that don’t wear capes the recognition they deserve.
Along the way of creating this project I learned quite a bit. I learned that neutrophils are the most common white blood cells and the first ones to show up during infection, which made “Most Likely to Show Up First” their obvious yearbook title. These guys are super phagocytic, which means they can literally eat up bacteria and debris at the infection site. They use a powerful mechanism called the respiratory burst to kill bad bacteria invaders with their own hind of hydrogen peroxide and bleach like chemicals. I also learned they play a leadership role in the immune response by releasing cytokines, which made me make the title for them: “Most Likely to Call the Shots.”.
Next were the eosinophils, which are the ones that handle parasite defense (mostly worms) and also have a role in our allergies. I made their nickname “Parasite Patrol Captain”, and I made their yearbook quote to reference their presence in allergy land. Eosinophils are also fun fact pretty colorful under the microscope due to their bright granules, so they really earned their spot in the class photo.
Basophils, even though they are rare, have a big impact on allergic responses. They are responsible for the release of large amounts of histamine, which causes our inflammation, sneezing, itching, you name it. So their title became “Most Dramatic,” and I wanted to add a bonus note that said “Smallest in Number, Loudest in Drama.”
Monocytes are next, and they transform into macrophages once they enter tissues. These are what I called the clean up crew who capture all of the dead cells, bacteria, and even bring antigens to other immune cells. So I called them “Best at Clean Up Crew” and added a comment saying “Best Career Change” since they completely level up once they leave the bloodstream.
Finally, we have the lymphocytes: B cells and T cells, both of which are part of the adaptive immune system. B cells produce antibodies, so they became the “Best Antibody Artist,” while T cells, who either help activate other immune cells or directly kill infected cells earned the title “Class Protector.” Their memory and specificness make them super powerful, and their
This project didn’t just help me better understand immunology, it also pushed me to think about how to communicate this type of science. By giving each WBC a personality and story, I found it easier to remember their functions, and I hope my classmates will too. I genuinely believe that if more science was taught with creativity and humor like this, more people would get it and love it and find an interest in it. So, this wasn’t just an art piece to me, it was a learning tool!
References
Informed Health. (2023, August 14). The Innate and Adaptive Immune Systems. National Library of Medicine; Institute for Quality and Efficiency in Health Care (IQWiG). https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK27939
Rezatofighi, S. H., & Soltanian-Zadeh, H. (2011). Automatic recognition of five types of white blood cells in peripheral blood. Computerized Medical Imaging and Graphics, 35(4), 333–343. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.compmedimag.2011.01.003
Tigner, A., Ibrahim, S. A., & Murray, I. (2022, November 14). Histology, white blood cell. PubMed; StatPearls Publishing. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK563148/
photos below 🙂
Liberty decided to theme her art project based on a high school yearbook that shows the six major types of white blood cells. Liberty also gave them titles that represent what they do or are known for. I find it to be very creative and a fun way to explain what they do. Something that I learned while reading through the project was that neutrophils use a mechanism called the respiratory burst that helps kill bad bacteria. Also that this mechanism is neutrophils’ kind of hydrogen peroxide and bleach-like chemical. I knew they used some kind of mechanism, but I never knew the name or that it used their chemicals that were similar to hydrogen peroxide and bleach. I also didn’t know that eosinophils are colorful under a microscope. Overall, I found the project to be really creative and enjoyable to read and learn about.