HeLa is an immortalized cell line used in scientific research. It is the oldest human cell line and one of the most commonly used. HeLa cells are durable and prolific, allowing for extensive applications in scientific study. The line … 展开

HeLa cells were the first human cells to be successfully cloned in 1953, by Theodore Puck and Philip I. Marcus at the University of Colorado, Denver. … 展开

HeLa cells are sometimes difficult to control, because they adapt to growth in tissue culture plates and invade and outcompete other cell lines. Through improper maintenance, … 展开

• The 1997 documentary The Way of All Flesh by Adam Curtis explained the history of HeLa cells and their implications for medicine and society.
• A 2010 episode of Law & Order, "Immortal", was heavily based on the story of Henrietta Lacks and … 展开

Origin
In 1951, Henrietta Lacks was admitted to the Johns Hopkins Hospital with symptoms of irregular vaginal bleeding; she was subsequently … 展开

Telomerase
The HeLa cell line was derived for use in cancer research. These cells proliferate abnormally rapidly, even compared with other cancer cells. Like many other cancer cells, HeLa cells have an active version of telomerase 展开

HeLa cells were described by evolutionary biologist Leigh Van Valen as an example of the contemporary creation of a new species, dubbed Helacyton gartleri, owing to their ability to replicate indefinitely and their non-human number of chromosomes. The species was named … 展开