HeLa Cells Flashcards
Where did HeLa Cells come from?
From a cervical cancer patient named Henrietta Lacks
What is the first immortal cell line?
HeLa cells
Why is HeLa ethically problematic?
Scientists are profiting off of Lacks’ cells that were taken without her or her family knowing
Why do scientists grow human cells?
To study how they function, understand disease development, test new treatments, and repeat experiments
How many times can normal cells divide?
50 times
What is apoptosis?
Cell dying (normally) because it cannot replicate without risking genetic errors
What makes cancer cells so dangerous?
They replicate too much, which means there can be genetic errors
What is different about HeLa cells?
They do not die outside of humans
How did HeLa cells help the Polio epidemic?
Easily took up and replicated virus, so Jonas Stalked used it to test his vaccine
What diseases did HeLa cells help?
Polio, measles, mumps, HIV, ebola
How did HeLa cells help us know the number of chromosomes we have?
Scientists working with HeLa discovered a chemical that makes chromosomes visible
How many chromosomes do we have?
46
How many chromosomes do HeLa cells have?
80 highly-mutated chromosomes
What were the first cells to be cloned?
HeLa cells
Where can HeLa cells travel?
HeLa cells can travel on almost any surface
