Robert Chesebrough Robert Chesebrough Robert Augustus Chesebrough, (January 9, 1837 – September 8, 1933) was an American chemist. He discovered petroleum jelly which he marketed as Vaseline and he founded the Chesebrough Manufacturing Company. Born in London to American parents, he was raised in New York City. Chesebrough began his career as a chemist clarifying kerosene from the oil of sperm whales. The discovery of petroleum in Titusville, Pennsylvania, rendered his job obsolete, so he traveled to Titusville to research what new materials might be created from the new fuel. This led to his discovery of petroleum jelly, which he trade-named as
Wharton's jelly Wharton's jelly Wharton's jelly ("substantia gelatinea funiculi umbilicalis") is a gelatinous substance within the umbilical cord also present in vitreous humor of the eyeball, largely made up of mucopolysaccharides (hyaluronic acid and chondroitin sulfate). It also contains some fibroblasts and macrophages. It is derived from extra-embryonic mesoderm. As a mucous tissue, it protects and insulates umbilical blood vessels. Wharton's jelly, when exposed to temperature changes, collapses structures within the umbilical cord and thus provides a physiological clamping of the cord (an average of) 5 minutes after birth. Cells in Wharton's jelly express several stem cell genes, including telomerase. They can