Figure 1– This is an image of Henrietta Lacks, an African American woman responsible for the HeLa cell line, the first immortal cell line. Henrietta was treated for cervical cancer at the Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland. Henrietta lived until 1951, when she died at 31 years old. [1]
Who was Henrietta Lacks?
For this blog post, I thought it would be interesting to switch up the topic and touch on a piece of history that has led to breakthroughs in medicine, HeLa cells. Before we begin, however, let’s get some background. Henrietta Lacks, an African-American tobacco farmer, was a young mother of five living with cervical cancer in the form of a malignant tumor (Figure 1). Henrietta went to The Johns Hopkins Hospital, one of the only hospitals that treated African-American patients during this time (the 1950s) with the hope of finding an explanation for her discomfort. While in the hospital for cancer treatment, without Henrietta knowing, a doctor took a sample of Henrietta’s cancer cells and sent them to Doctor George Gey’s tissue lab. Dr. Gey, a virus and cancer researcher, had been collecting cancer cells hoping to find a cell line that would stay alive for more than 24 hours. A sample like this would be invaluable to doctors and researchers as it would allow them to have an abundant and reliable amount of cells for experimenting and testing. Until Henrietta Lacks, Dr. Gey was unable to experiment on a cell line for more than 24 hours without it dying. However, upon receiving Henrietta’s cancer cells, something was different.
Figure 2– This is an image of Henrietta’s HeLa cells, the cells responsible for breakthroughs such as vaccines and treatment for disease. These cells are unlike healthy, normal cells because they divide uncontrollably without regulation or apoptosis (programmed cell death). Cells are microscopic, so this image is under a microscope. [2]
What are HeLa cells? What have they been used for?
Unlike all other cells that Dr. Gey had seen, Henrietta’s cells did not die after 24 hours. In fact, they did quite the opposite. Henrietta’s cells grew rapidly, doubling every 20 to 24 hours. These astonishing cells became known as HeLa cells, named after the first two letters of Henrietta’s first and last name. Dr. Gey sent the HeLa cells to labs all over the world, with cell production facilities producing six trillion HeLa cells in only one week. HeLa cells’ immortal nature has come to be valuable for cancer research, the development of vaccines (such as the polio vaccine and COVID-19 vaccine), gene mapping, in vitro fertilization, studying the effects of toxins and drugs, studying disease (measles, mumps, HIV, ebola), and so much more (Figure 2). HeLa cells have even been sent to space to determine the long-term effects of zero gravity on cells and tissues. While HeLa cells are clearly a groundbreaking discovery in the face of medicine, what is it about Henrietta’s cells that are so different from anyone else’s cells? While scientists have some information about Henrietta’s cells, most information is unknown. What we do know, however, is that Henrietta’s cells lack regulation, causing them to divide uncontrollably. All cells undergo a process of mitosis, which is a form of cellular division. Cellular division is required for all living organisms for reproduction, growth, healing of wounds, and maintenance within the organism. All cells that undergo mitosis have checkpoints within their cell cycle (the cycle that allows them to divide) which ensures that all the correct processes are occurring so that there are no mutations or errors. If the cell does not pass its checkpoint, the rest of the cell cycle cannot occur. In cancer cells, however, there are no checkpoints. This means that cells can divide uncontrollably and develop mutations without having checkpoints to stop them from dividing. The element that differentiates Henrietta’s cancer cells from other cancer cells is that other cancer cells will eventually self-destruct in a process called apoptosis when they have undergone a certain number of cell divisions. However, Henrietta’s uncontrollable cells continue to exist and never undergo apoptosis, even when they have been divided a large number of times. This is the part that scientists do now know about. There is no explanation for why Henrietta’s cells do not self-destruct.
Figure 3– This is an image of the cell cycle that organism undergo for cellular division known as mitosis (Figure 3). The first three parts of the cell cycle is known as interphase, and the final stage of the cell cycle is known as mitosis. The red arrows indicate where the checkpoints are in the cell cycle. In the G1 phase, the cell grows physically in preparation for division. To surpass the G1 checkpoint, the cell must be growing properly. If the cell does not pass the G1 checkpoint, it goes into the G0 checkpoint where it is essentially stuck at a resting point, not preparing to divide or grow. Next, the S phase is the synthesis phase where the cell replicates its DNA, doubling the DNA. Doubling it’s DNA allows all of the cell’s DNA to be transferred between two cells, instead of the DNA being split in half and not completely transferred. The S phase checkpoint ensures that all the DNA has been replicated properly, and that the DNA is not damaged. After the S phase, there is the G2 phase, which is where more physical growth occurs. The G2 checkpoint ensures that growth is occurring properly. Finally, the cell goes into the M phase, entering Mitosis and exiting interphase. In Mitosis, the cell goes through prophase, metaphase, anaphase, telophase, and lastly, cytokinesis. The M phase checkpoint ensures that the spindle fibers are attached to all the chromosomes within the cell. Essentially, spindle fibers (filaments in the cell cycle) attach to chromosomes (which contain condensed DNA). The spindle fibers are used to pull the DNA evenly to the opposite poles (opposite sides) of the cell, so that division can occur with all DNA being transferred. The M phase checkpoint ensures that spindle fibers are attached to chromosomes so that all the DNA in a cell can be properly transferred. [3]
Figure 4– This is an image of Henrietta Lacks’ family visiting her grave after her passing. [4]
Family background:
As you can imagine, the ethics behind Henrietta’s cells is a widely debated topic. While taking a sample of someone’s cells without consent may have been adequate in the 1950s, this would be against all sorts of regulations now. The craziest part about the history of the HeLa cells is that Henrietta Lacks passed away from cancer without even knowing that her cells had been given to a scientist, or that they led to breakthroughs in medicine. Even Henrietta’s family did not know about the significance of Henrietta’s cells until the 1970s, decades after Henrietta’s death. 25 years after Henrietta’s death, scientists tracked down Henrietta’s relatives, hoping to use their DNA to see if they could figure out why Henrietta’s cells were so special. Doctors from Johns Hopkins Hospital called Henrietta’s husband to tell him about his wife’s incredible cells. However, Henrietta’s husband had little access to education and didn’t even know what a cell was when doctors called him. Doctors had little luck getting help from Henrietta’s family as many of them didn’t understand the matter, or didn’t believe the doctors. Finally, after a year of convincing, Henrietta’s daughter agreed to give her DNA for gene mapping. Eventually, the Lacks family came to realize the profound impact that Henrietta’s cells have had in the world of medicine (Figure 4). As one would expect, the family became enraged when they found out about the value of Henrietta’s cells and the fact that they had been bought and sold throughout the world, without their knowledge. HeLa cells had become a multibillion-dollar industry while the Lacks family was living in homelessness and poverty. The Lacks family eventually launched a campaign to get the money that they felt they deserved. The Lacks family’s relation to Henrietta consumed their lives as they fought for the injustice that they received from doctors and scientists.
Henrietta Lacks’ cells have shown to have a profound impact on the world of medicine. Without HeLa cells, scientists and doctors may never have found treatments, medicines, and even vaccines that protect us from life threatening diseases. In addition, Henrietta Lacks and her family’s story of injustice serves as a reminder and lesson for hospitals today about the importance of consent and recognition when using samples for testing. Recently, in my AP Biology class, I learned about Henrietta Lacks and found her story to be especially interesting to me. I encourage you to learn more about Henrietta Lacks and her cells through the book The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot (she even has a movie!).
Sources:
Johns Hopkins-
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
New York Times [1]-
NIH Director’s Blog [2]-
Cell Cycle Image [3]-
SoVaNow [4]-
A Matter of the Brain 
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