The ability to clone anything is a huge step in the
science world. Twenty Five years ago, cloning seemed like just a fictional
idea. Geneticists and molecular biologists have done numerous experiments in
regard to cloning.
The biggest story that we all know is little Dolly,
the sheep that was cloned by Scottish scientists. Dolly was born on July 5,
1996. She was the first animal to be cloned from an adult somatic cell, using
the process of nuclear transfer. The donor for Dolly was a cell taken from a
mammary gland. Dolly only lived to be 6 years old at the Roslin Institute.
However, during her six shorts years of life, she was able to give birth to 6
lambs. Sadly, on February 14, 2003 Dolly had to be put to rest due to a lung
disease.
Many theories of her death have been approached. Some
say she died at the age of 6 because the donor that she was cloned form was
only six years old. However, the autopsy performed on Dolly shows that her
lungs were filled with a cancer called Jaagsiekte. This cancer is very common
within sleep, especially those how live their lives indoors, which was the case
with Dolly. There is nothing proving that her death had anything to do with the
fact that she was a clone.
Since Dolly made her huge debut, all sorts of
eukaryotes have been cloned. Numerous mammals such as horses, bulls, cats,
deer, dogs, mules, ox, rabbits and rats have been cloned as well.
We know animals have successfully been cloned, but
how? Can Humans be cloned too?
To successfully clone an animal, researches remove a
mature somatic cell from the animal they want to clone. The DNA from that
somatic cell is placed into an egg cell. Next, the DNA-containing nucleus of
the somatic cell is removed and injected into an empty egg. The egg then
develops in a test tube and then is placed into a womb of a female animal. Eventually
a baby is born and is then referred to as a clone as it contains the same
genetic makeup as the donor of the somatic cell.
Humans are mammals too, so can we be cloned too? Humans
are more complex than sheep and cows. The main issue when it comes to cloning a
human are proteins knows as spindle proteins. These proteins are essential in
cell division. These protein spindles are susceptible to being removed when the
egg’s nucleus is removed. Therefore, it is hard to successfully clone a human
embryo. To this day, no humans have been successfully cloned.
With any experiment, especially cloning, there comes a
variety of risks. After all, Dolly was the first survivor after 277 attempts.
Through all of the cloned animals, there have been a number of complications,
such as defective vital organs. Other problems that clones encounter are
premature aging and problems with the immune system. And of course, there is
always going to be the big concerns with ethical issues.
Personally, the ability for scientists to clone
animals is amazing! The ability to clone animals can provide the ability to
save endangered animals. For that reason alone, I believe that scientists
should continue their research in cloning.
I have always thought cloning was incredibly interesting as well and I am excited to see where science is with the technology in 20 years or so and if we finally get human clones. Human cloning and modification is already under a hailstorm of ethical and moral debate so even if its possible who is to say that it would be something that will be experienced.
ReplyDeleteI cant wait to see where this will go within the next twenty years. Science evolves so much everyday. It was very interesting to learn about Dolly and the life she lived. I wonder if science will ever get to the point where we can clone humans. I personally don't think that cloning should be controversial when it comes to animals.... but I can see where they are coming from when it comes to humans.
ReplyDeleteI appreciated your commentary on cloning! No doubt there are some huge potential benefits with the rising ability to clone as well as edit genes. People born with genetic diseases that do not want to pass it along to their offspring would be able to have children and just edit the genes causing the disease. People in need of a certain organ could be cloned and have their clone be the donor. That scenario of course raises some deep ethical red flags. Should we be cloning ourselves in the first place? Does it make it okay if it is for our health? If so, what rights should our clone have or are they simply our property? Where do we draw the line with gene editing? And who should be the regulatory agency in charge of that? The government? Doctors?
ReplyDeleteOne thought I had is if we can produce the technology and techniques to clone an entire human being, could we not then simply "clone" the certain organ that we need if we were sick and avoid the whole ethical conundrum introduced when you clone an entire human being. It seems like a happy middle ground to me. Sick people can still get their cloned organ if they are sick and nobody has to mess with the worrisome world of cloned humans.
I have always loved talking about Dolly and the cloning that goes along with it. I know that there is some controversy about cloning, but if it doesn't harm the animal (or hopefully humans in the future), I don't see the harm in continuing the research into cloning. I can't wait to see what the future holds for the technology and techniques of cloning.
ReplyDeleteDolly is one of the first famous cases, it is a shame newer ones do not get as much attention. I did not know humans were that more complicated to deal with when it comes to cloning. Do those other animals not have that same process, and who do human share that trait with. I wonder if other primates may also have received this trait.
ReplyDeleteMy next question has to do with the death of dolly. I do not know if all the other clones lived full lives, but when I first heard of Dolly I was still in basic bio so I thought about telomeres. Eventually, these shorten more and more and some say they are a reason why aging is something that we deal with because of it. So since a somatic cell is used would the new life be already beginning with a six-year telomere use? Would this be a limit to how long the clones could live?
Lastly, going away from biology in the lab I think it would also be interesting to see how this affects the nurture versus nurture hypothesis. I can imagine someone raising their own clone and noticing how they behave differently or act differently due to their environment.
Cloning is a very controversial subject. There are many proponents who say that cloning can lead to many advancements in science and medicine. Some that are opposed believe that the practice is unethical. I honestly do not know where I stand on the issue. Your post did a very good job explaining the history and background of Dolly the Sheep. A lot of people forget that she even existed, and that her birth was one of the most invigorating advancements in the history of science.
ReplyDeleteWhy do you say that humans are more complex than sheep or cows? Should they be more difficult to clone from a technical perspective?
ReplyDelete