About HeLa Cells

NanoEntek
May 30
2 min read

The Immortal Cell Line: How HeLa Cells Accelerated Study Speed

Why Cancer Cells? Why Not Just Any Cells?

In cell biology research, cancer cells are commonly used. But why not use normal, healthy cells instead? The key reason lies in the difference between normal cells and cancer cells. Regular human cells can only divide a certain number of times before they die. This is because, with every cell division, a part of their chromosomes called the telomere gets shorter. Telomeres act like protective caps at the ends of chromosomes, and once they become too short, the cell can no longer divide—it dies or becomes inactive.

Cancer cells, however, are different. They activate an enzyme called telomerase, which keeps the telomeres long. This means cancer cells can keep dividing endlessly.

HeLa Cells: The Start of Immortal Science

One of the most well-known examples of these immortal cells is the HeLa cell line. These cells came from a woman named Henrietta Lacks, who was diagnosed with cervical cancer at Johns Hopkins Hospital in 1951. Without her or her family’s consent, doctors collected a sample of her cancer cells for study, which is a serious ethical violation. But after her death, scientists discovered that her cells did not die. They kept dividing endlessly, becoming the first immortal human cell line ever cultured. Even with extensive use, it took more than 20 years for Lack's family to find out about the use of her cells.

Spreading Across the Globe

HeLa cells grew so rapidly that no single lab could keep up. So they were distributed to research institutions, not just in the U.S. but around the world. Very quickly, HeLa cells became a foundation for biological and medical research, used by numerous scientists. By 2010, it's estimated that over 50 million tons of HeLa cells had been grown and used in labs

From Polio to Breakthroughs

HeLa cells played a key role in studying how the polio virus infects human cells, eventually helping in the development of the polio vaccine. Today, more than 70 years since they were first obtained, HeLa cells remain one of the most widely used cell lines in science.

References