Neck Tie - HeLa Cells (Henrietta Lacks)

The Story of Henrietta Lacks and her "immortality" has certainly been a research blessing Recently her story has sparked controversy regarding the legality and ones rights to ones body and cells, in this case. This great looking black based tie has great color stained microscopic images of the HeLa cells and can be you conversation starter, if you choose to disclose your tie's subject matter. Most may not even notice. To help your side of the conversation, read the Wikipedia history below to get your education started. From Wikipedia - A HeLa cell /ˈhiːlɑː/, also Hela or hela cell, is a cell type in an immortal cell line used in scientific research. It is the oldest and most commonly used human cell line.[1] The line was derived from cervical cancer cells taken on February 8, 1951[2] from Henrietta Lacks, a patient who died of her cancer on October 4, 1951. The cell line was found to be remarkably durable and prolific — which has led to it contaminating many other cell lines used in research.[3][4] The cells from Lacks' tumor were taken without her knowledge or consent by researcher George Gey, who found that they could be kept alive.[5] Before this, cells cultured from other cells would only survive for a few days. Scientists spent more time trying to keep the cells alive than performing actual research on them, but some cells from Lacks' tumor sample behaved differently from others. George Gey was able to isolate one specific cell, multiply it, and start a cell line. Gey named the sample HeLa, after the initial letters of Henrietta Lacks' name. They were the first human cells grown in a lab that were "immortal," meaning that they do not die after a few cell divisions, and they could be used for conducting many experiments. This represented an enormous boon to medical and biological research.[4]