George Otto Gey
Encyclopedia
HeLa
A 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. The line was derived from cervical cancer cells taken on February 8, 1951 from Henrietta Lacks, a patient who eventually died of her cancer on October 4, 1951...
cell line.
Biography
Gey was born in Pennsylvania, and both his parents were born in GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. He received his undergraduate degree at the University of Pittsburgh
University of Pittsburgh
The University of Pittsburgh, commonly referred to as Pitt, is a state-related research university located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded as Pittsburgh Academy in 1787 on what was then the American frontier, Pitt is one of the oldest continuously chartered institutions of...
in 1921 and then taught zoology
Zoology
Zoology |zoölogy]]), is the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct...
there. Around 1926 he married Margaret K. (1900-1989), who was from Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
. By 1930 they were living on Saint Paul Street in Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
, and in the 1950s they started the Tissue Culture Laboratory at Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University, commonly referred to as Johns Hopkins, JHU, or simply Hopkins, is a private research university based in Baltimore, Maryland, United States...
. Using a sample from the cervix
Cervix
The cervix is the lower, narrow portion of the uterus where it joins with the top end of the vagina. It is cylindrical or conical in shape and protrudes through the upper anterior vaginal wall...
of Henrietta Lacks
Henrietta Lacks
Henrietta Lacks was an African-American woman who was the unwitting source of cells from her cancerous tumor, which were cultured by George Otto Gey to create an immortal cell line for medical research...
provided by Dr. Wharton, he propagated her cells into an immortalized human cell line.
George Gey is also credited for creating the roller drum. This machine was one of the first to help nurture cell cultures. The roller drum consisted of various holes where tissues and their appropriate growth substances were allocated. The drum spun in order to mix the substances and once an hour allow the cultures to be exposed to the environment until the drum rolled again and rebathed the cells in liquid. Gey is also noted to be one of the first to document cell division and growth on film. He devised a time lapse camera with temperature controlled incubator that stood twelve feet in length from spare parts at a nearby junkyard.
He died of pancreatic cancer. When undergoing an emergency procedure for his cancer, doctors found that the cancer spread to his lymph nodes, lungs, and heart, thus making him inoperable. He wanted doctors to try and cut out a piece of the cancer in his liver to grow a new cell line that he wanted to be used for research. The doctors, however, didn't listen to him during the surgery and he was "furious" when he woke up. He is credited to being one of the revolutionary geneticists that worked on Henrietta Lacks's (HeLa) cells.
Further reading
- Rebecca SklootRebecca SklootRebecca L. Skloot is a freelance science writer who specializes in science and medicine. Her first book, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks , was one of the best-selling new books of the year, staying on the New York Times Bestseller List for over 32 weeks and optioned to be made into a movie by...
, 2010 The Immortal Life of Henrietta LacksThe Immortal Life of Henrietta LacksThe Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks is a non-fiction book by American author Rebecca Skloot. It is about Henrietta Lacks and the immortal cell line, known as HeLa, that came from her cervical cancer cells in 1951. The book is notable for its accessible science writing and dealing with ethical...
, Random HouseRandom HouseRandom House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
, ISBN 9781400052172 - Fedoroff, S. (1971). George Otto Gey. 1899-1970. Anat Rec 171(1): 127-128.
- Hanks, J. H. and F. B. Bang (1971). Dr. George Otto Gey 1899-1970. In Vitro 6(4): 3-4.
- Harvey, A. M. (1975). Johns Hopkins, the birthplace of tissue culture: the story of Ross G. Harrison
- Warren Y. Lewis, and George O. Gey. Johns Hopkins Med J 136(3): 142-149.
- Jones, H. W., Jr., V. A. McKusick, et al. (1971). George Otto Gey (1899-1970). The HeLa cell and a reappraisal of its origin. Obstet Gynecol 38(6): 945-949.
- Skloot, R.; Obsessed With Culture: George Gey and his quest to cure cancer, with the help of Henrietta Lacks (2001).