Scientific Illustration Software for Biomedical Research
Scientific illustration software for biomedical research figures. LitFigure is built for research illustration: mechanism diagrams, pathways and experimental workflows you can edit on a canvas, then check before a paper, grant or talk.
Edit a research illustration on the canvas
Open the canvas and move a cell, receptor or label. No account is required for that edit. Sign-in starts after it, before another edit.
Canvas is visible. Open canvas to edit it.
What you can make
Use LitFigure when the figure has to explain a biological relationship, not when you only need a decorative icon. Typical research illustrations on this site are:
- Mechanism diagrams that name the cells, receptors and direction of an effect.
- Pathway diagrams, such as a checkpoint or signaling sequence.
- Experimental workflows, from sample collection through the assay readout.
- Graphical abstracts and review illustrations that give a reader the whole story in one panel.
Generated and hand-edited figures are drafts. You still review labels, arrows and the relationships they claim before submission.
Templates
Start from a biomedical template when you already know the figure type. Each template opens in the studio with a research description you can replace with your own entities.
- CAR-T mechanismCollection, engineering, expansion and tumor killing.
- PD-1 checkpoint pathwayReceptor binding and suppression of T cell activation.
- scRNA-seq workflowA methods sequence from sample to clustered cells.
- LNP-mRNA graphical abstractA one-panel summary for a paper or talk.
Export
Choose the file by what you need to do next. A file extension does not prove that every label is still editable text.
| Format | What you get | What to check |
|---|---|---|
| PNG / JPG | A rendered image of the current version. | Pixel size against the journal or slide size you will print. |
| SVG | An on-demand vector conversion. Complex figures can fail; the source image stays available. | Traced labels may be outlines rather than text boxes. |
| PPTX | A slide export from supported editable documents. Not every whole-image figure has a native PPTX. | Native text and shapes can be edited. Embedded images stay images. |
Manual canvas edits and exports do not use extra credits. Standard generation or a requested revision uses 1 credit; high quality uses 2. The free start is 3 credits after email verification, with no card required.
Scientific illustration software vs generic design tools
Illustrator, Figma and PowerPoint edit shapes, type and layout. They are the right tools when you are already drawing every object yourself or placing a finished image on a slide.
LitFigure starts from the research figure: biomedical templates, a canvas for labels and objects, and exports aimed at manuscripts and talks. It does not replace a journal’s size, resolution or file-type check. Use the image DPI checker and journal figure preflight on the file you will submit.
If you are choosing between LitFigure and a scientific illustration library, compare the editing model, templates, price, export and free start on the editable biomedical figures comparison.