Cloning Essay, Research Paper
In recent years, the issue of cloning has been up for debate worldwide. Cloning is the production of one or more individual plants or animals that are genetically identical to another plant or animal. There are two different types of cloning procedures, embryo cloning and adult DNA cloning. Embryo cloning occurs when sperm and egg cells are mixed in a glass dish. After conception, the zygote (fertilized egg) is allowed to divide and nutrients are added to promote cell division. The cells then fuse with an ovum which has the nucleus removed. Adult DNA cloning is taking cells from mammary tissue from an adult. Cloning can have many good results to help humans, but others argue that it is wrong because it is immoral.
Successful cloning has occurred with livestock. Livestock like cows and sheep are not model organisms, but the farming industry has made and continues to make a big effort toward finding a way to implement the technique of nuclear transfer for livestock. Research in cloning is also occurring in primates. The reason for studying primates is the similarities with humans. This all leads us to the use of the techniques with human cells and eggs.
Cloning of humans almost is occurring. Scientists are researching by splitting embryos to execute experiments to find data relating to cell differentiation, the use of stem cells, and genetic screening. Fertility clinics use this service to help couples when a mother or father has a genetic disorder. A fertility clinic will clone an embryo, then test it for genetic disorders. If the embryo is tested negative for genetic disorders, then the fertility clinic implants a clone of that embryo. This should guarantee that the child would not have any genetic disorders.
I view cloning with mixed feelings, but I agree strongly with cloning being right. I do not believe that cloning humans to make more humans is right, but I do think cloning human organs to replace a defective gene is right. In England, scientists are heavily researching the embryo for stem cells. Right now the British scientists can use early embryos to study specific problems such as infertility, congenital diseases, contraception and prenatal diagnostics. Cloning good stem cells and using them for babies with these problems would prevent the diseases from ever happening. The reason for using the stem cell is because the cell is so versatile. Stem cells are taken from human embryos and fetal tissue. The cell, when never used, like in embryos, can be turned into nearly any cell type of the whole body. Scientists also expect that when using cloned embryos a person would easily overcome the problem of transplant.
Some scientists believe that there is a down side to cloning. Scientists argue that there would be a decline in genetic diversity in the gene pool. Others argue that we would be taking nature into our own hands by cloning people, and that we would not each be unique. Many religions also think that cloning is playing God and forbid agreeing with it. Cloning humans is very complicated, therefore more deaths and lethal birth defects can be expected during experimentation. It took the scientists who created Dolly 277 tries before they got a healthy, viable lamb. The scientific community sympathizes with the religious communities concerns, but does not want to lose the enormous amount of information that might be gained by human embryo cloning.
In conclusion, there are both pros and cons of cloning. Morality plays a big part in this issue. It is up to the individual whether they feel that it is right or wrong. Both sides have strong beliefs and thoughts, but cannot persuade others to believe if they do not totally believe. Cloning can help the human race by preventing many illnesses. Scientists cannot play God to make more humans or bring the deceased back to life. They could use their research for treating illnesses and cooperation from the government to lift cloning bans so that they can investigate into the stem cell experiment.