The science of cloning animals, and the cloned animals themselves,
has helped humankind in many ways.
• Create new drugs to help cure or prevent diseases in humans
• Save endangered or rare animal species from extinction
• Reproduce animals that cannot breed naturally
Human Health Issues
Cloning animals may help humans stay healthy. Cows and sheep have been
cloned to produce certain human proteins. These proteins can be extracted
from the animal’s milk and made into a drug to treat conditions
like hemophilia, a disorder in which blood clotting does not occur.
Doctors have used organs from pigs, like heart valves,
to help fix bad hearts in humans. Sometime this works,
sometimes the human body rejects the pig organ. Scientists
studying cloned pigs that have been genetically modified
hope to develop pig organs that will not be rejected
by the human body, and may serve as a source of organs
for human organ transplants.
Scientists at the University of Idaho believe the same
chemistry that led to the successful cloning of the Project
Idaho mules may help us to understand the causes of specific
types of cancers and other age-onset diseases like diabetes.
Saving the Animal Kingdom
The cloning process has helped the animal kingdom too. Cloning rare or
endangered species can increase populations of these animals. San Diego’s “Frozen
Zoo” preserves animal cells - some more than 20 years old - so cloning
can revive and help expand a species’ genetic base.
Two endangered bovine species
have been successfully cloned in recent years.
The gaur, an ox-like animal from the tropical woodlands of India and
the banteng, a wild cow from the forests of Southeast Asia have been
cloned.
University of Idaho scientists hope the process used to
clone mules can be used to save endangered equine species
like the wild Pzrewalski horse of Asia, and other rare equines.
Creating Champions
Cloning may be one way to produce offspring from animals that cannot
reproduce naturally.
Idaho Gem has the same parents as his brother Taz, a world-champion
racing mule. Idaho Gem and the other Project Idaho mules
could grow up to become champion racing mules too.
Geldings are male horses that have been neutered and cannot
reproduce. There are many champion show horses that are geldings.
Cloning could give the owners of these horses a way to produce
more champion offspring.
[Glossary]
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The Human Factor
If animals can be cloned, are humans next? Cloning humans raises many
moral and ethical issues. Scientists, political and religious leaders
from around the world are discussing what the positive and negative
outcomes would be from cloning humans. The Project Idaho scientists
do not support human cloning. So far, no human has been cloned.
Cloned Animals
Sheep – Dolly, the world’s first cloned mammal.
Cat – CC, the world’s first cloned cat.
Mules – Idaho Gem, the world’s first cloned equine.
Cattle
Gaur
Banteng
Pigs
Goats
Rabbits
Mice
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