How long will it be before cloning will become a safe procedure?
79394
To answer this properly, we would really have to define what is meant by cloning. To clone something is just to make a copy, and genes are cloned safely all the time. I think you mean making an individual who is a genetic copy of another individual.\n\nThis certainly hasn't been done often, and is in no way safe. Dolly the sheep died young and had problems, and I don't think it's completely understood yet why. There was a dog cloned in Korea, but now that researcher has been fired for publishing fraudulent data, even though they've checked out the dog and he does seem to be an actually clone. It still casts some doubt.\n\nThe idea of cloning humans is completely unethical at this point, because it is unsafe. At the current state of technology, you couldn't clone a human without producing probably hundreds of babies with birth defects in the process.\n\nHow long until it is safe? There's really no way to tell. If people were determined to do this (not sure why, there are much easier ways to have children), being able to do it safely will depend on discoveries that haven't been made yet, so there's really no way to predict. Could be 50 years, could be ten years if something really amazing happens in the meanwhile.
87621
I think all forms of cloning should be banned.  What good can possibly come of it?\n\nThe ones that they have cloned have died at early ages or turned out to be a veg, instead of a sheep
941509
Cloning has given us the technology to take a nucleus out of one cell and place it in another cell.  It is now possible, for example, to take the nucleus out of a defective sperm (one that will not swim) and place it in a sperm that does, or to take a nucleus out of a defective egg (one that does not allow the sperm to penetrate) and place it in a good egg.  Then you could allow fertilization to happen in vitro and the resulting zygote would not be a clone of either parent; it would have half the DNA from mom and half from dad just like any normal baby.  \nMany times when they talk about human cloning they are not just talking about cloning a human organism; they are talking about cloning human cells.
1133910
DNA has already been cloned, so your question is meaningless. This was done in bacteria over 40 years ago, and is how human insulin is now produced en masse.
356287
no....the clone is started with a single cell.....the dna is removed from one cell of the donor and place into the cell of a uterine egg cell.  The new cell is then zapped with low amounts of electricity to get the dna to start doing its job of replicating.....since the dna used is a blue print of what the makes up the  donor the new egg will develop into an identical image of the original.  But will be a younger version if it lives.....this process must be done hundreds of times if not more to get even one cell that survives the process and can live/replicate the way it should.
533869
If you are talking about cloning an entire human then I think you will find the majority will say "No". However, if when you ask this question you also mean partial cloning as in cloning of organs and such, I think the answer is most definitely "Yes". The reason being is that if we could clone particular organs, think of how many lives we could save. Now this is a touchy subject, but I think if anything we should be cloning or saving we should be all for stem cell research. Stem cell research is the one thing that truly gives cancer patients, and patients with serious diseases a chance to live. The cells are new fresh cells in the human body, often found in the placenta. Essentially these cells have no chemical "ID" tag. This tag is what viruses and cancer can usually spot and use advantageously to kill the human body. When a cell has no ID tag, the disease has a difficult time latching on and killing those cells. So I believe that we should be all for stem cell research and any kind of cloning relating to this. Personally I think we should go as far as cloning organs, however again, this is a touchy subject. So the answer ultimately being no to full human cloning, and yes to cloning for healing humans who are diseased and dying. Everyone deserves a second chance at life. People will disagree to that statement until they are the ones with the disease.
1031751
Clone Problem\n\nWith the advances in cloning I presume humans shall be next. \n\nThis brings us to the BIG question. If you push your naked clone off the top of a tall building, would it be? \n\nA) Murder? \n\nB) Suicide?  \n\nC) Merely making an obscene clone fall?
1146501
It is and will happen but to do it while maintaining a human form is unnecessary and to most highly objectionable.  each useful part could be "cloned" and maintained mechanically and never even be in human or embryonic form.
584734
I gave a lecture on this recently and have had first hand experience with this technology in a lab, so let me give you a brief and easy summary to take with you about this topic about Recombinant DNA Technology:\n\nIn order to clone you need 2 things: Bacterial DNA (the circular form called a "plasmid"), and the DNA you want to clone (be it human, mouse, plant, other species etc)\n\nThen you will need to cut the Bacterial DNA with enzymes called "endonucleases" that work like scissors. (So imagine a circle and I take a pair of scissors and cut the circle at some point in it, b/c I want to insert the foreign DNA (non native DNA) where I had cut.) I will have to do the same with the foreign DNA and have endonucleases cut OUT the particular piece i want cloned. \n\nThen we can put the two pieces together, the cut circular plasmid DNA from the bacteria, and the CUT out piece of foreign DNA. \n\nWhen we put the two pieces together it is called "ligation", and it is done as a reaction in a tube with enzymes inside that "glue" the "sticky ends" of the bacteria DNA to the foreign DNA. \n\nAfter the reaction normally done in a 16 deg. Celsius water bath, we now will have "circular" plasmids with our Foreign DNA inserted into the bacterial DNA (the circle DNA)\n\nThen we would re-insert this DNA back into the bacterial host (that the circle DNA first came out of) in a process called "transformation", this is where the broth from the water bath we just discussed is grown in a growth medium at 37 deg. celsius so that the bacteria can grow and produce MORE of those circle plasmids with our foreign DNA inserted into it. \n\nThen we would "plate" these onto agar plates, and let them grow in incubators at 37 deg. Celsius over night until we get small colonies of bacteria on the plate. \n\nEach "mound" of bacteria (small like white dots on the plate) contains millions of copies of our gene (inserted in the circular plasmid DNA of the bacteria). \n\nNow we can take these small colonies, and harvest them further, by putting them in large Erlenmeyer flasks to be grown in the same "growth broth" over night on a shaker for 37 deg. celsius. \n\nAfter of which we can harvest, and purify that culture so that only the circular plasmids remain (this is a long and convuluted process so we won't go into it in detail here), and from there you can store those in a 4 deg. Celsius fridge and keep it in stock for further research purposes. \n\nHope that helps!
1180676
The first steps have already been taken: human organs and stem cells have already been grown in the laboratory. New strides in genetics research such as identifying genes which cause disease are moving the scientific community ever closer to cloning a human. It would be interesting to see if a clone of a genetically mutated animal or human would exhibit the same symptoms as its duplicate. If not, what is the difference?
107841
there won't be any problems.\njust need to be a bit careful for some time after the operation.
131337
Nov. 4, 2004 -- Balding men and women take note. Hair cloning -- the next hair restoration remedy -- is on the way.\n\nOK, it's not exactly cloning, although that's what it's come to be called. Researchers working to perfect the new technique prefer the term "hair multiplication."\n\nAnd no, it's not ready for prime time. Not yet, says Ken Washenik, MD, PhD. Washenik is medical director for Bosley, the giant hair restoration company that's one of several firms racing to bring hair multiplication to market. He's also clinical assistant professor of dermatology at New York University Medical Center.\n\n"There is no doubt it will be a tremendous breakthrough," Washenik tells WebMD. "It is the thing people have been waiting for. There have been so many remedies for hair loss that didn't pan out. This is one that really looks like it is going to happen -- and happen in the next few years."\n\nIt's not just hype, says hair researcher George Cotsarelis, professor of dermatology and director of the hair and scalp clinic, at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia. Cotsarelis consults for Bosley, but is not involved in the company's research program.\n\n"It is hard to predict whether they will be successful, but there is good evidence that will happen," Cotsarelis tells WebMD. "It is not quackery -- they are not charlatans. It is based on real scientific knowledge. But there are a lot of hurdles still to overcome."\n\nThe promise of early research often evaporates in the harsh light of clinical testing. Yet Washenik predicts that hair multiplication will be available for hair restoration in three or four years.
462921
Sure it WOULD work if there were means to deliver it to each cell, ensure 100% restriction efficiency & specificity, and ligate the DNA nick afterwards. So far it is sci-fi; prenatal diagnostics is the way to go for now.
469349
The cloning of animals, while promising, has many problems that would need to be adressed before the cloning process would be more effective than simply breeding the animals. A surprisingly low success rate of creating clones, along with the possibility of genetic defects being passed on and the expensive equipment required to perform these processes are large deterrents to cloning in today's world.\n   \n   The famous sheep, Dolly, was one out of numerous attempts to clone a single sheep.  Creating multiple clones would require either an enormous amount of equipment or an improvement on current methods to prevent only a small population of clones successfully being created.  In addition, any flaws in methods used could result in genetic defects.\n\n   Any unseen genetic defects in an animal to be cloned could ruin a large number (if not all) attempts to clone the animal.  Any animal to be cloned could possibly need extensive testing before the cloning process begins; again, slowing down the idea of mass-producing foods or medicines without the use of more equipment to attempt to create more clones.\n\n   Cloning equipment, in order to do its duty, needs to be precise.  Such equipment will not come cheaply.  While in the future, prices of this equipment may drop due to the aging of the technology or the possibility of mass production in the future, it is still expensive, as no kinds of grants or rebates by any government organization exist(as far as I know).\n   \n   If cloning equipment and techniques were improved upon, the cloning of animals would be very helpful to society.  As these techniques are now, however, it is not much more beneficial to clone animals as it is to simply breed them; a much more cost-effective solution for the present.
498847
The world is already overpopulated and there are too many unwanted or orphaned children. Why would we need to clone a person except to use them as non-humans such as organ producers for organ donation or as slaves, etc. No matter which way you look at it, it is the arrogance of man who is messing with something he has not thought through. The consequences of this capability will be nothing but negative.
1136128
No its impossible. The DNA is completely different, and plus cloning was banned by the Geneva Convention a couple of years ago I believe. But if your like the other groups and you want to try it, have at it. But if you do clone it together, dont tell the press or you might just end up going to prison.
1063767
memory has nothing to do with cloning. clones are legal humans, just with identical DNA as some one else. no your children wouldnt be the clones children, the clone is one persons DNA put into the womb of a woman, and then it gets birthed like any other baby. nothing is the same except the dna, and especially not the age, relatives, or memory.  of corse its murder to kill a clone, the clone would be a person just like you or I. clones don't even necessarily grow up to look the same as their parent clone.