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rom embryonic kidney to laboratory: What secrets does the history of HEK 293 cells hold
HEK 293 cells may not be a familiar name to most people, but they play an important role in biomedical research and the biotechnology industry. These expanded cells originated from cells extracted from the kidney of a female fetus in the 1970s. After undergoing a specific transfection technique, they formed a cell line that can proliferate almost indefinitely and can be used for transfection experiments. With the advancement of technology, HEK 293 cells have been widely used in fields such as drug development, vaccine manufacturing and gene therapy, and have triggered a series of discussions about their morality and bioethics.
The history of HEK 293 cells began in 1973, when researchers accidentally created this cell line by transfecting embryonic kidney cells with adenovirus DNA.
The birth and evolution of HEK 293
In 1973, a team of scientists in Alex van der Eb's laboratory in Leiden, the Netherlands, conducted a groundbreaking experiment. They injected a type of adenovirus DNA into normal kidney cells, a process called transfection, and eventually they successfully cultured the HEK 293 cell line. The "293" in the name of the cell line comes from the number of the experiment assigned by researcher Frank Graham, which was his 293rd experiment.
HEK 293 cells are unique in that they possess properties of mature neurons, perhaps an unintended consequence of the transfection process.
After years of research, scientists discovered the connection between HEK 293 cells and the human kidney and nervous system. Their chromosome structure is complex and shows characteristics of multiple copies, which also indicates that the gender of the source fetus is female.
HEK 293 Application ScenariosHEK 293 cells are used in a variety of research applications. Whether it is the study of drug effects or experiments on gene expression, these cells can show satisfactory results. For example, they can be used to assess the effect of a drug on sodium channels, or to analyze the interaction between two proteins.
The variant of HEK 293 cells, 293T, has excellent transfection ability and can effectively produce recombinant proteins and retroviruses.
Furthermore, because HEK 293 cells are easy to handle, scientists can grow them in a suspension system, which allows them to produce recombinant adenoviral vectors on a large scale. As technology advances, HEK 293 and its variants are playing an increasingly important role in the development of vaccines, especially during the recent COVID-19 pandemic.
Moral and bioethical challenges
Although HEK 293 cells have an irreplaceable position in scientific research, their source has caused a lot of ethical controversy. Because these cell lines originate from human embryos, some people are uncomfortable with using these cells for vaccine and drug development and have raised different ethical issues. In December 2020, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a statement stating that the use of vaccines derived from fetal cells is not unethical in the face of the serious health risks posed by the pandemic.
Should moral reflection be re-evaluated in the context of technological development? At a critical moment of life and death, how should we make decisions at every step in biomedicine?
While HEK 293 and its derivatives contribute to human health through cultivation, we must also think about the ethical trajectories behind these decisions and the deeper issues that may be raised by future technological developments.
Conclusion
The history of HEK 293 cells and the wide range of applications of their derivatives undoubtedly demonstrate their potential in biomedical research. But while pursuing scientific progress, can we balance the line between ethics and technology to make future research and development more transparent and ethical?
