What is cloning?

Cloning means making an identical copy physically as well as genetic. Clones are exact replica of plants or animals replicated asexually.

These clones derive genetic matter from single parent. In nature, organisms like microbes and plants that reproduce asexually produce clones. “Dolly” the most famous sheep in the world was a clone Dolly was produced from a single cell from her mother and she does not have a father because no sperm was needed. She has exactly the same genetic characteristics as her mother, the single parent

Ian wilmut and his colleagues at the Roslin Research Institute in Scotland. Took cells from mother sheep’s udder. They managed to store these udder cells in nutrient derived culture. This halted the starved cells from dividing and switched off their active genes. Under the processes of cloning one udder cell complete with its nucleus was selected, as its nucleus carries the mother’s genetic information. Meanwhile another unfertilized egg cell was taken from a different mother sheep and its nucleus was sucked out leaving an empty cell containing all the machinery to produce an embryo.

This cell is fused with udder cell nucleus by electrical stimulation. Now, this egg cell with one mother’s* nucleus is implanted in different female other than the egg donor such female is termed as surrogate mother. This altered egg is implanted in the uterus of the surrogate mother where it grew into a new offspring.

By this process dolly was, born which was genetically identical to her mother. Later on scientists from Japan also cloned cattle in different way and have been succeeded in growing as many as eight identical calves from one fertilized cell of their mother.

Thus, cloning is a process in which a nucleus containing cell is taken from one organism and one empty egg cell taken from another donor female and these two are fused together under some stimulation. Then this altered egg with nucleus is implanted in a different female which gave rise to many embryos and out of many embryos, one is implanted in the uterus of surrogate mother where it grew into an offering.

The various advantages of cloning are:

(i) It enables to clone animals that can produce pharmacologically useful proteins such as clotting factor.

(ii) Through cloning it has become possible to make superior animals of uniform quality in large numbers that has its use in diary industry.

(iii) Another importance of cloning is that the childless couple through cloning could have their baby.

(iv) Cloning can help in efficient organ transplant as there is no question of any rejection.

The disadvantages, of cloning are:

(i) Cloning could result in the propagation of few species consequently less genetic diversity may bring upon a situation in which a single disease could eliminate the entire spectrum.

(ii) The process of cloning could eventually change the man-women relationship as a female can have their own clone.