3.2. Cloning Myths

Misconception #1: Instant Clones!

A common misconception is that a clone, if created, would magically appear at the same age as the original. This simply isn't true. You remember that cloning is an alternative way to create an embryo, not a full-grown individual. Therefore, that embryo, once created, must develop exactly the same way as would an embryo created by fertilizing an egg cell with a sperm cell. This will require a surrogate mother and ample time for the cloned embryo to grow and fully develop into an individual.

Misconception #2: Carbon Copies!

Your beloved cat Frank has been a loyal companion for years. Recently, though, Frank is showing signs of old age, and you realize that your friend's days are numbered. You can't bear the thought of living without her, so you contact a biotechnology company that advertises pet cloning services. For a fee, this company will clone Frank using DNA from a sample of her somatic cells. You're thrilled: you'll soon have a carbon copy of Frank - we'll call her Frank #2 - and you'll never have to live without your pal! Right?

Not exactly. Are you familiar with the phrase "nature versus nurture?" Basically, this means that while genetics can help determine traits, environmental influences have a considerable impact on shaping an individual's physical appearance and personality. For example, do you know any identical twins? They are genetically the same, but do they really look and act exactly alike?

So, even though Frank #2 is genetically identical to the original Frank, she will grow and develop in a completely different environment than the original Frank or will have a different mother, and she will be exposed to different experiences throughout her development and life. Therefore, there is only a slim chance that Frank #2 will closely resemble the Frank you know and love.

Conclusion

Today, after more than a decade since Dolly, human cloning remains in its infancy. Although cloning technology has improved, the process still has a slim success rate of 1 to 4 percent [26]. That being said, science is headed in that direction -- pending governmental restraints.

Nevertheless, cloning researchers are looking for the new ways of cloning and are working on improving the existing ones. There are many ways in which human cloning is expected to benefit mankind. Dr. Richard Seed, one of the leading proponents of human cloning technology, suggests that it may someday be possible to reverse the aging process because of what we learn from cloning. Human cloning technology could be used to reverse many diseases, infertility and defective genes. Bringing extinct species back to life is no longer considered science fiction. Researchers have refined at least some of the tools needed to turn that hope into reality. On November 2008, when a team led by Teruhiko Wakayama, a reproductive biologist based in Kobe, Japan, reported it had cloned mice that had been frozen for 16 years, the scientists conjectured that the same techniques might open the door to cloning mammoths and other extinct species preserved in permafrost. This new technology heralds a new era of unparalleled advancement in medicine if people will release their fears and let the benefits begin.

Although, Tom Gilbert, an expert in ancient DNA at Copenhagen University who with Schuster and Webb pioneered the harvesting of mammoth DNA from hair, said: “If you can do a mammoth, you can do anything else that’s dead, including your grandmother. But in a world in global warming and with limited resources for research, do you really want to bring back your dead grandmother?”[17]

This article is dedicated to the activities of the different scientists working on cloning researches. The results achieved in this area can influence our points of view and change our lives in unexpected way. Also there is a brief review of history of cloning and the detailed analysis of issues relating to cloning.

The paper will be useful for the wide audience and especially for the students of genetic science and those who are thinking about making child using cloning.