|
|
|
| This is only the first few lines of this paper. If you would like to view the entire paper you need to register for free here. If you are already a member then login here. |
| Word Count: |
1712 |
|
|
|
GeneCloning
|
|
|
To Clone or not To Clone – That is the Question Cloning is the ultimate breakthrough that scientists have achieved in the field of biotechnology. It is really stunning that the brilliance of man has succeeded in decoding the entire human genome. The technology of cloning has established the fact that man can himself create life from a single cell. This has raised one of the most controversial issues of all time. The giant leaps made by man in the field of genetics have raised profound moral questions that strike at the very core of our humanity. Human cloning opens up a new horizon of myriad possibilities, highly beneficial if used properly, yet monstrous if misused. What was formerly science fiction as presented in the famous novel ‘Brave New World’ has become a reality in our time. It is indeed a paradox that the same technology can alleviate human suffering, as well as produce inhuman results. Cloning A form of reproduction in which offspring result not from the chance union of egg and sperm (sexual reproduction) but from the deliberate replication of the genetic makeup of another single individual (asexual reproduction). The technique of cloning The following steps have been used to produce live offspring in the mammalian species that have been successfully cloned. Obtain an egg cell from a female of a mammalian species. Remove its nuclear DNA, to produce an enucleated egg. Insert the nucleus of a donor adult cell into the enucleated egg, to produce a reconstructed egg. Activate the reconstructed egg with chemicals or electric current, to stimulate it to commence cell division. Sustain development of the cloned embryo to a suitable stage in vitro, and then transfer it to the uterus of a female host that has been suitably prepared to receive it. Bring to live birth a cloned animal that is genetically virtually identical (except for the mitochondrial DNA) to the animal that donated the adult cell nucleus. In 1997, the cloning of Dolly the sheep sent shockwaves throughout the world among the scientific and intellectual community. Photo courtesy Roslin InstituteDolly (left) Cloning was revolutionized when Ian Wilmut and his colleagues at the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh, Scotland, successfully cloned Dolly. Dolly was the first cloned mammal. Wilmut and his colleagues transplanted a nucleus from a mammary gland cell of a Finn Dorsett sheep into the enucleated egg of a Scottish blackface ewe. The nucleus-egg combination was stimulated with electricity to fuse the two and to stimulate cell division. The new cell divided and was placed in the uterus of a blackface ewe to develop.
|
|
|
|
Still Can't Find What Your Looking For? Then Try a Essay Search!
|
