Jurkat cells

Jurkat cells (pronounced yūr′kat) are an immortalized line of human T lymphocyte cells that are used to study acute T cell leukemia, T cell signaling, and the expression of various chemokine receptors susceptible to viral entry, particularly HIV. Jurkat cells are also useful in science because of their ability to produce interleukin 2. Their primary use, however, is to determine the mechanism of differential susceptibility of cancers to drugs and radiation.