The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks Chapter 18 Study Guide

Why did a committee of scientists form the American Type Culture Collection (ATCC)?

They wanted to preserve the purity of the cells keeping them without contamination.

Why did scientists want to fuse human and animal cells?

They wanted to study what genes do and how they work.

What scientific discoveries were made possible as a result of fused hybrid cells?

-Discovered: *Genetics *Something in cells regulated genes *How to map genes *First monoclonal antibodies *Special proteins *Breed certain offspring *Mix traits *Possible for DNA from two unrelated individuals and species to survive together inside cells without one rejecting the other.

Summarize the various ways that HeLa was used in the space program.

-So researchers could study: *the effects of space travel. *the nutritional needs of cells in space *how cancerous and noncancerous cells responded differently to zero gravity

How did the public respond to the idea of cell hybrids? In what specific ways did the media influence the public's perception of cell hybrids?

-They didn't accept the hybrid cells and began to public panic because of the articles published. -The media made it seem as if there would be man-animals walking around in public. -The articles not only described what the man-animals would look like but they were also the subject of many comic strips. -The media was over exaggerating the hybrid cells because in reality the cells were just cells.

Explain what happens during somatic cell fusion.

-When cells were infected with certain viruses in culture, they clumped together and sometimes fused. -When they fused, the genetic material from the two cells combined, as with sperm meeting egg.

What disturbing discovery did scientists make about the way HeLa responded in orbit?

Noncancerous cells grew normally, but HeLa became more powerful, dividing faster with each trip.