HeLa Cells

By brooke31332

  • Removal of Henrietta's Tissue Sample

    When Henrietta Lacks, a mother, and african-American woman, seeks treatment at John Hopkins Hospital for cervical cancer a sample of cells from her removed tumor is taken. The cells were named HeLa from the first two letters of her first and last name. The reason HeLa cells were so significant was that they were the first human cells to stay alive and continue to grow and divide in a laboratory.

  • Henrietta Dies

    Henrietta dies a painful death in Hopkins from cervical cancer.

  • Development of the Polio Vaccine

    Before HeLa cells, scientists conducted tests and experiments on monkeys. But HeLa cells helped in the development of the vaccine because not only was it cheaper but also they were more suceptible to infection from Polio yet they wouldn't die like the monkey cells.

  • The Opening of the HeLa Factory

    The HeLa factory was first opened by the Tuskegee Insitute. It was a nonporfit organization. It was created to help with the polio vaccine by allowing for more samples avalible to be tested on.

  • HeLa Cells are Cloned

    The first cells to have multiplied creating identical cells.

  • Experiments Conducted by Chester Southam

    Chester Southam conducted experiments on patients without their consent using HeLa cells. He would inject cancer patients with HeLa cells in order to see if they cause tumors to grow.

  • First Animal Human Hybrid Cells Are Created

    At the start of gene mapping, the first documented human-animal hybrid cells were created when HeLa cells were fused with mouse cells.

  • HeLa Bomb is Dropped

    The phrase "HeLa Bomb" was created in relation to the discovery that HeLa cells had contaminated unrelated cell lines. Before this discovery researchers and scientists were unaware of HeLa cells physical properties that allowed for the unfortunately easy transfer of the cells into other cultures.

  • Tuberculosis Research Advancements

    HeLa cells allowed scientists to see how tuberculosis makes people sick at the molecular level.

  • Samples Are Taken From Henrietta's Children

    Henrietta's children get blood drawn at Hopkins. They are told it is to check to make sure they don't have same cancer as their mother. In reality it was so the scientists could gather more genetic information from the family.

  • Aids Treatment Advances

    HeLa cells allowed for HIV drugs to be tested.

  • HPV Research Advanced

    HeLa cells were used to help prove that HPV causes cancer.