Human cloning - should it be permitted?

Human Cloning - Should it be permitted

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter One - Introduction 1

What is Cloning . 1

Chapter Two - Embryo Splitting . 3

Nuclear Replacement . 4

Chapter Three - Potential Applications . 6

Cell therapy . 6

Chapter Four - Literature Review . 9

Conclusion . 9

Bibliography . 10

Chapter One

Introduction

The birth of Dolly , the world-famous cloned sheep , triggered the most extraordinary re-awakening of interest in , and concern about , cloning and indeed about scientific and technological innovation and its regulation and

control . She has fuelled debate in a number of fora genetic and scientific , political and moral , journalistic and literary She has also given birth to a number of myths , not least among which is the myth that she represents a danger to humanity , the human gene pool genetic diversity , the ecosystem , the world as we know it , and to the survival of the human species . Cloning is a technology and indeed a subject that has gripped the public imagination . The mere mention of the word 'cloning ' sells books , films and even newss . Cloning also raises blood pressure and causes panic in equal measure and to an extent unprecedented in recent science

More importantly perhaps , Dolly , or the technology by which she was created , raises many different sorts of important questions for us all Some of these questions concern human rights and how we are to understand the idea of respect for these rights and for human dignity Others direct our attention to the ways in which we attempt to pursue scientific research and bring that research to the point at which it is safe to offer therapies or products to the public . Other questions make us reflect upon the ways in which we attempt to regulate or control both science and indeed personal and public access to the fruits of science Finally there are fundamental issues about the standards of evidence and argument that we do or should demand before we attempt to control or limit human freedom . All of these questions and issues are of the first importance and all of them come together and are engaged when we consider the ethical , legal and regulatory issues presented by human cloning

Before investigating these issues , however , we should be clear about just what cloning means and how it came about

What is Cloning

Cloning refers to asexual reproduction , reproduction without 'fertilisation . A cloned individual (clone from the Greek Klon 'twig 'slip ) may result from two different processes (1 ) Embryo splitting this sometimes gives rise to monozygotic twins but can also result in identical triplets or even quadruplets (2 ) Cell Nuclear Replacement (CNR ) or Cell Nuclear Transfer (CNT . This was the procedure that produced Dolly . CNR involves two cells : a recipient , which is generally an egg (oocyte , and a donor cell . Early experiments mainly made use of embryonic cells , which were expected to behave similarly to the cells of a fertilised egg , in to promote normal development after the nuclear replacement . In more recent experiments , the donor cells were taken from either fetal or...