HeLa Cells: Great Bioethics Debate for High School Biology

HeLa cells were the cells of Henrietta who was the wife to David Lacks and had cells that changed the world of medicine . These cells were and still are the strongest and fastest growing cells scientists have ever seen. They were so amazed that they took her cells and did not tell the family the reasearch they were doing on them until a few decades later . Even then the family did not get the full story. Today, Hela cells are being used to test Y2O3-conjugated aralin, which could help in the detection of tumors http://www.iop.org/EJ/abstract/1742-6596/191/1/012001 . Also, Hela cells were used in an experiment to determine the transcriptional regulation of the OT gene(oxytocin) which is associated with the regulation of reproduction in oraganisms. It was determined that thyroid was a physiological regulator of the OT gene http://www.jbc.org/content/267/6/3771.full.pdf. . Despite all these accomplishments that were achieved with the Hela cell, could the scientists ‘ action in leaving the family in the dark about the reasearch being done on Henrietta’s cells be justified?

The story of Lack’s tumor cells is a medical mystery. In my opinion, Henrietta Lacks is THE MOST IMPORTANT WOMAN IN MEDICAL HISTORY because of 4 reasons:

1) Before HeLa cells arose, scientists spent more time trying to keep tumor cells alive than performing actual research on cells. Because of HeLa cells, scientists were able to free up more time to do actual research because they had an endless supply of tumor cells that survived after Lack’s death.
2) During the polio endemic, HeLa cells played a key role in saving millions. Scientists tested the polio vaccine on HeLa cells, and without them, scientists would not have come up with a vaccine as quickly as they did in 1955.
3) With HeLa cells, scientists were able to isolate one specific cell, multiply it, and then start a cell line. Isolating one cell and keeping it alive is the basic principle of cloning and in-vetro fertilization
4) One time, a scientist poured a chemical on HeLa cells which untangled its chromosomes. It is because of this why we now know that humans have 46 chromosomes, not 48.

This information above can be found on http://www.popsci.com/science/article/2010-01/five-reasons-henrietta-lacks-most-important-woman-medical-history

Who would have thought that one diagnosis of cancer could lead to so much inofrmation. I thing that HeLa cells should be considered as a seperate species because of the way that it behaves and differs from other tumor cells. The phenominan of Henrietta Lacks is just one of many examples that makes science great

Hela cells are cancer cells that became the first human cell line. After Henrietta Lack’s death in 1951, there was a lot of evidence suggesting that these cells contaminated and overgrew other cell lines. The debate over cell culture contamination began in the 1970s. The problem was not resolved and still continues today. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19722756

HeLa cells are found to be cancer cells that were the first ever in humans. They have some evidence saying that they were overgrown cells which might have caused this. This problem though is being researched daily by scientists but still has no cure and it still continues. They also say they have come from cervical cancer. http://helacells.com/

Although the use of HeLa cells is still to this day sparking a bio-ethics debate within the science community it is very important that one take in the circumstances of the situation. Henrietta Lacks’ cells were taken from her tissue sixty years ago; during that time it was not a common practice to obtain consent from a patient when sending their tissue to a research lab. Also it is important to keep in mind that although these cells were sold for profit John Hopkins never made money off the buying or selling of HeLa cells. Also I find it amazing that this one person’s cells made decades of scientific research possible; the polio vaccine, cancer research, and other diseases either were using or are using HeLa cells in their research to try and cure diseases. In hindsight one might say the the actions of this doctor were immoral but there is no doubt that his or her actions saved lives. http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/Henrietta-Lacks-Immortal-Cells.html
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/177900.php
http://hubpages.com/hub/Polio-Vaccine-Developed-From-Cells-of-a-Black-Woman

HeLa cells are the first found human cell line. They were taken from the biopsy of Henrietta Lacks. The first biopsy that Lack’s cancer was actually andenoeopidermoid tumor, which may have accounted for the strange apperance of Lack’s neoplasm. The heteroploid cell lines like the ones found in Lacks are prodominatly found in African Americans.

http://www.jstor.org/stable/1741942?&Search=yes&term=cells&term=hela&term=Lacks&term=Henrietta&list=hide&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoAdvancedSearch%3Fq0%3Dhela%2Bcells%26f0%3Dall%26c0%3DAND%26q1%3D%2BHenrietta%2BLacks%26f1%3Dall%26c1%3DAND%26q2%3D%26f2%3Dall%26c2%3DAND%26q3%3D%26f3%3Dall%26wc%3Don%26Search%3DSearch%26sd%3D%26ed%3D%26la%3D%26jo%3D&item=1&ttl=27&returnArticleService=showArticle

In fact they are called HeLa cells in honor of Henrietta Lacks. Henrietta Lacks had a malignant tumor of the cervix. At Johns Hopkins Hospital a sample of the tumor was removed and underwent examination. When Henrietta Lacks died Dr.Gey announced on television that he had found cells like no other. Henrietta’s family never knew about the cells until 24 years after she died, this showed how bad the commentary of medical research was back then.

http://www.virology.ws/2009/02/09/the-amazing-hela-cells-of-henrietta-lacks/

The HeLa cell is the first cell in line to be found that had cancer. There is a weird part to it though because it is used on experiments from scientists. They were first found in 1951 and the HeLa cell ruins your cellular biomass. It is derived from cervical carcinoma. This is a non treatable disease and it still continues today.

http://www.biology-online.org/dictionary/Hela

The HeLa cells are named after the first two letters of Lacks first and last name. Three years after Lacks died the cells were used to make a polio vaccine. Then they were put in mass production. After over a decade after she died her cells were still alive. They are frequently used in cancer, AIDS and gene mapping research. Lacks passed away quickly after a tumor was found on her cervix. HeLa cells were unlike other cervical cancer explants, they grew to aggressively. Walter Nelson Rees found HeLa contamination in over 40 different cultures.

http://hubpages.com/hub/Henrietta-Lacks-and-the-HeLa-Cells

http://www.jstor.org/action/showArticle?Search=yes&resultsServiceName=doAdvancedResultsFromArticle&item=2&list=hide&seq=1&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoAdvancedSearch%3Fq0%3Dhela%2Bcells%26f0%3Dall%26c0%3DAND%26q1%3D%2BHenrietta%2BLacks%26f1%3Dall%26c1%3DAND%26q2%3D%26f2%3Dall%26c2%3DAND%26q3%3D%26f3%3Dall%26wc%3Don%26Search%3DSearch%26sd%3D%26ed%3D%26la%3D%26jo%3D&term=cells&term=hela&term=Lacks&term=Henrietta&ttl=27&returnArticleService=showArticle&suffix=3056053

Wow! I can’t wait to do that lab in class Miss Baker. Also I never knew that you started teaching five years ago. Hela Cells have a very unique chromosome number. Hela cells were named after Henrietta Lacks after she died at the age of 31 from a malignant cervical cancer. Her cancer cells multiplied like no one has ever seen before. They were an immortal cell-line, with the acquired ability to proliferate continuously, without any mechanisms of prevention. The doctor that discovered them named them in honor of his source- Henrietta Lacks. To find out more information go to http://darwinstudents.blogspot.com/2009/02/hela-cells.html.