Before stepping into a research lab, Joselyn Allen was certain she’d become a veterinarian. However, her fascination with science deepened after she got her first taste of research. Then, following her second postbaccalaureate program, she shifted her focus to becoming an immunologist.
During Allen’s postdoctoral training at the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, she began drawing comics as a cathartic outlet to make her laugh and help her get through the tough moments. “When an experiment failed or something like that, I wanted to kind of put a personality and a face to the immune cells I was working with.” Now, she is a science communicator and creative director of SynSciComm, LLC, having bridged her longtime love for art and science.
SynSciCommics, founded by Joselyn Allen, brings immunology to life through visual storytelling.
Joselyn Allen
Initially, Allen shared her illustrations on LinkedIn for fun. Of these, one of her early characters was Macie the Macrophage, which was an homage to the macrophages she worked with during her doctoral studies at Pennsylvania State University. Over time, what began as a stress-relieving hobby gradually developed into a creative passion where Allen worked as a freelance scientific illustrator. Following her postdoctoral research, she fully transitioned from the lab bench to science communication.
“[When] COVID happened…I realized not a lot of people knew what their immune system does or the important role it plays in terms of its magnitude and how they can make educated decisions,” she explained.
This spurred Allen’s motivation to create SynSciCommics, which launched in the summer of 2025, to share her immunology-inspired comics and short animations. Her style incorporates a colorful depiction of the innate and adaptive immune system, from the bright-eyed Mmunies—like Macie, who’s always hungry—to the tough, battle-hardened Brazen Immunity figures, like Nikhil the Natural Killer cell. She highlights each cell’s distinct personality. For example, Nikhil’s vigilant nature aligns well with his cellular role of recognizing and eliminating threats.
Allen explained that her comics are inspired by the parallels she sees between the micro and macro worlds. For instance, she draws a comparison between autoimmunity, where the immune cells fail to recognize self and cause self-destruction, and human behavior. On the macro scale, Allen noted, “when you don’t understand who you are as a person or self, that leads to destruction in terms of how you treat other people and how you treat yourselves.” Through her work, she seeks to educate in a fun, accessible way that sparks curiosity and makes science feel both engaging and approachable. And ultimately, she hopes her comics give readers a deeper appreciation of the immune system, with how tiny cells can have a big impact on health.
