Who was Henrietta Lacks?
The ubiquitous cell line HeLa has helped power the explosive growth of cell biology for more than 50 years. But for all that is known about the cells themselves, most people know little if anything about the history and the woman behind the cells. You are tasked with researching
HeLa cells and your group will make a two-minute video discussing your findings.
|
Group 1 |
Gabi, Justin, Cooper, Marina |
| Group 2 |
Bridget, Avery, Ben |
| Group 3 |
Dylan, Alex , Michelle |
Questions:
| Red | Who was Henrietta Lacks? What have her cells been used for? |
| Yellow | What differentiates HeLa cells from other cells? What is a cell line? What is the legacy of her cells? |
| Green | What ethical issues surround HeLa cells and research involving humans? |
| Blue | Research other cases where patients’ tissue or fluids have been used by the medical industry - discuss one or two of them. |
Scientific discoveries are made over time and usually result from the published experiments of many scientists. Scientists use the research of others to create new experiments and build upon the knowledge base that already exists. The discovery of DNA’s structure and function resulted from the process of scientists performing multiple trials and publishing work for the next scientist to use in his quest for information.
Research Component:Working in pairs or groups of three, research the following scientists:
Write two pages (minimum) detailing the experiments and major conclusions of each scientist. You can use the classroom textbooks or the Internet. Be sure to record your sources. Include each person’s name on the paper and you will hand this in with your poster. |
Timeline Component:Using the materials provided (poster board, markers, rulers, etc.), create a poster, which gives a timeline of the events leading to the discovery of DNA. Be sure that the name of each scientist and his/her work is posted on the board. Each scientific contribution must be dated and placed in the correct order on the timeline. Be prepared to present your findings to the class. |
If you search a person or a scientific topic, your search results will look something like this:
See the "timeline" tab and the "biography" limiter? Check them out and save yourself a lot of time searching on Google or elsewhere :) "News" could also be very helpful for finding information on the medical industry's use of human tissues for research.
Obituary of Dr. Roland Pattillo, the first doctor to recognize Henrietta Lacks' contributions to scientific research. He died on Oct 19th, 2023 (New York Times)
Who Was Henretta Lacks? PBS Newshour
After you've tried the library's databases, the following reputable sites can help fill out your research:
Clue to Chemistry of Heredity Found: An article from June 13th, 1953 in the New York Times. Log in with your CGPS credentials.
Letters of Note: A Most Important Discovery. A letter from Francis Crick to his son from March 19th, 1953. He explains the discovery of DNA in simple and enthusiastic terms. Scroll down to see the transcript.
Speed Read: Deciphering Life's Enigma Code. The Nobel Foundation. A nice primer on the experiments and discoveries that lead to the 1962 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, awarded to James Watson, Francis Crick and Maurice Wilkins.
Molecular Structure of Nucleic Acids: Nature. The original April 25th article by Watson and Crick.
The National Institute of Health recently announced a new program called The Common Fund’s Somatic Mosaicism Across Human Tissues (SMaHT) Network. It "that aims to transform our knowledge of how much genetic variation there is in the cells and tissues throughout our bodies. Somatic mosaicism is a type of genetic variation that arises when our somatic (non-reproductive) cells are genetically different from each other." Learn more here!
The Double Helix by
By identifying the structure of DNA, the molecule of life, Francis Crick and James Watson revolutionized biochemistry and won themselves a Nobel Prize. At the time, Watson was only twenty-four, a young scientist hungry to make his mark. His uncompromisingly honest account of the heady days of their thrilling sprint against other world-class researchers to solve one of science’s greatest mysteries gives a dazzlingly clear picture of a world of brilliant scientists with great gifts, very human ambitions, and bitter rivalries.
Genetics by 
How Genetic Research Changed the World by 
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by 
Rosalind Franklin by
In 1962, Maurice Wilkins, Francis Crick, and James Watson received the Nobel Prize, but it was Rosalind Franklin's data and photographs of DNA that led to their discovery.
Brenda Maddox tells a powerful story of a remarkably single-minded, forthright, and tempestuous young woman who, at the age of fifteen, decided she was going to be a scientist, but who was airbrushed out of the greatest scientific discovery of the twentieth century.
What Mad Pursuit by
Candid, provocative, and disarming, this is the widely-praised memoir of the co-discoverer of the double helix of DNA.
Svante Pääbo of Sweden lead a team to sequence the DNA of the Neanderthal and the Denisovan, both extremely distant relatives of humans. Learn more on Today's Science!