Animating the Mechanism of Action of the Novel Glioblastoma Vaccine Survaxm

Glioblastoma (GBM) is a deadly type of malignant brain tumor affecting over 11,000 people in the United States each year. Treatment options for GBM are limited, with the majority of patients receiving surgery and chemoradiation, and surviving around 15 months. New therapies are desperately needed. A novel peptide vaccine, SurVaxM, has shown promise in phase I and II clinical trials, and is currently under investigation in a Phase IIb trial (the “SURVIVE” trial) for newly diagnosed GBM. As SurVaxM moves closer to FDA approval, there is a need for education about the agent and how it works. In order to provide this information to various audiences (patients, caregivers, doctors, scientists, investors and pharmaceutical reps), an animated video was created. Assets were constructed in ZBrush and Cinema 4D, and molecular models were obtained from RCSB Protein Data Bank and modified in Chimera X. A human brain was modeled using MRI images reconstructed in Slicer software. Animation was done in Cinema 4D and rendered using Redshift, and compositing was done in Adobe After Effects. The finished product is a two minute-long video which provides a narrated overview of SurVaxM’s construction and mechanism of action in the body, with animations illustrating the narrated concepts. The completed video was posted on the home page of the main SURVIVE trial sponsor, Mimivax, www.mimivax.com, and also shared on Twitter and Linkedin by Mimivax’s CEO, Dr. Michael Ciesielski.