Having cloned sheep and who knows what else, wouldnt it be a good idea for scientists to begin cloning the worlds endangered species? Is there any reason not to?
Cloning technology has improved dramatically since 1996 when Dolly the sheep became the first mammal to originate from a somatic cell (any cell of a living organism other than the reproductive cells). We now have a better understanding of nuclear reprogramming, a process that gives a cell the capacity to generate all the different types of cells that make up the organism called totipotency. As a result, many species have been successfully cloned, including those of amphibians, fish, insects and mammals. But cloning is still inefficient, with a maximum of 5 per cent of cloned embryos developing into healthy offspring.
There have been several attempts at cloning endangered or even extinct species, such as the gaur and the Pyrenean ibex. These have been largely unsuccessful. Generally, hundreds of embryos have to be created, of which only a handful can be implanted. And of those, only a couple are born, but these often die soon after birth.
The problem in most cases is sexual isolation, which is part of the speciation process, in which one species eventually evolves into two separate ones. These become incapable of reproducing with each other because their reproductive cells are no longer compatible or the embryo of one species cannot be carried by a mother of the other. Both issues affect cloning.
One species where cloning has been successful is the African wildcat. Although wild, this species is still genetically close enough to the domestic tabby for interspecies embryo transfer to be slightly more efficient. More importantly, cloned animals were then able to mate and reproduce among themselves.
But the main problem with cloning remains: it eliminates genetic diversity. The whole point is to reproduce an exact copy of an individual, such as a champion racehorse. Most higher organisms, however, reproduce sexually, which leads to the offspring bearing a combination of characteristics from both parents. This genetic mix and match allows species to adapt to their environment and reduces negative traits or diseases within the population. A diverse genetic pool is essential for a species to survive in the wild.
So although cloning might help preserve some species in critical times, the best way to avoid their extinction is to protect their environment and stop senseless poaching of wild animals.
Alena Pance, Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Cambridge, UK
We pay 25 for every answer published in New Scientist. To answer this question or ask a new one email lastword@newscientist.com. Terms and conditions apply.
Please keep your answers concise and include a postal address in order to receive payment for answers, and a daytime telephone number and email address if you have one. We reserve the right to edit items for clarity and style.
New Scientist Ltd reserves all rights to reuse question and answer material that has been submitted by readers in any medium or in any format.
You can also submit answers by post to: The Last Word, New Scientist, 110 High Holborn, London WC1V 6EU, UK.
Here is the original post:
Cloning to the rescue - New Scientist
- What is Cloning? - Learn Genetics - December 12th, 2016 [December 12th, 2016]
- Pros and Cons of Cloning - Buzzle - December 21st, 2016 [December 21st, 2016]
- Cloning/Embryonic Stem Cells - National Human Genome Research ... - December 22nd, 2016 [December 22nd, 2016]
- Is human cloning wrong? | Debate.org - December 25th, 2016 [December 25th, 2016]
- Cloning - Science Daily - December 29th, 2016 [December 29th, 2016]
- Cloning - The New York Times - January 4th, 2017 [January 4th, 2017]
- Mammoth - Wikipedia - January 24th, 2017 [January 24th, 2017]
- Molecular Cloning: Basics and Applications | Protocol - January 25th, 2017 [January 25th, 2017]
- Beware Of 'Facebook Cloning' | 9news.com - 9NEWS.com - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Facebook scam lets hackers clone your account and STEAL money ... - Express.co.uk - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Beware of 'Facebook Cloning' | KGW.com - kgw.com - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Beware of Facebook 'cloning' scam - USA TODAY - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Facebook cloning debunked - The i newspaper online iNews - iNews - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Don't fall for this Facebook cloning scam | WFLA.com - WFLA - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- 20 years after Dolly the sheep, human cloning is no closer - Genetic Literacy Project - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Don't fall for this Facebook cloning scam | WDTN - WDTN - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- This Crab Clones Its Allies by Ripping Them in Half - The Atlantic - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Boffins create quantum cloning machine to intercept 'secure' messages - The INQUIRER - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Hair Cloning & Multiplication | Bernstein Medical - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Crustacean Cloning - ScienceBlog.com (blog) - February 8th, 2017 [February 8th, 2017]
- Watch out for this crazy Facebook cloning scam! - Komando - February 8th, 2017 [February 8th, 2017]
- Steve Bannon's Unproduced Movie About Cloning, Nazis, and Walt Disney Sounds Nuts - Gizmodo India - February 9th, 2017 [February 9th, 2017]
- Quantum Cloning Machine Reveals Clues That Could Protect Against Hacking - Photonics.com - February 9th, 2017 [February 9th, 2017]
- Steve Bannon wanted to make a movie about cloning, abortion, and Nazis with Mel Gibson - A.V. Club (blog) - February 9th, 2017 [February 9th, 2017]
- Police investigating recent reports of credit card cloning in Aiken ... - Aiken Standard - February 10th, 2017 [February 10th, 2017]
- Steve Bannon's Unproduced Movie About Cloning, Nazis, and Walt ... - Gizmodo - February 10th, 2017 [February 10th, 2017]
- Phone cloning - Wikipedia - February 11th, 2017 [February 11th, 2017]
- Gang arrested for cloning debit cards, stealing money - The Hindu - The Hindu - February 11th, 2017 [February 11th, 2017]
- Drive cloning in Windows 10 with free tools - Computerworld - February 12th, 2017 [February 12th, 2017]
- Cloning - The Hastings Center - February 12th, 2017 [February 12th, 2017]
- Scientists Are Close to Cloning a Woolly Mammoth - Popular Mechanics - February 16th, 2017 [February 16th, 2017]
- Antiquities Minister inaugurates first Pharaonic cloning center in Luxor - Egypt Independent - February 18th, 2017 [February 18th, 2017]
- 20 years after Dolly: Everything you always wanted to know about ... - Source - February 18th, 2017 [February 18th, 2017]
- 20 years after Dolly: Everything you always wanted to know about the cloned sheep and what came next - New Delhi Times - February 20th, 2017 [February 20th, 2017]
- 20 years after Dolly: Everything you always wanted to know about ... - The Conversation US - February 20th, 2017 [February 20th, 2017]
- Must reads: Populism, sexism, cloning, and rudeness - GlobalComment.com - February 20th, 2017 [February 20th, 2017]
- More lessons from Dolly the sheepis a clone really born at age ... - Phys.Org - February 20th, 2017 [February 20th, 2017]
- 15 Animals That Have Been Successfully Cloned by Scientists - Interesting Engineering - February 21st, 2017 [February 21st, 2017]
- Facebook does it again. WhatsApp launches revamped Status, cloning Snapchat - Catch News - February 22nd, 2017 [February 22nd, 2017]
- It's Been 20 Years Since We Cloned A Sheep. Why Haven't We Done The Same With Humans? - GOOD Magazine - February 22nd, 2017 [February 22nd, 2017]
- Reviving woolly mammoths will take more than two years - BBC News - February 23rd, 2017 [February 23rd, 2017]
- 20 years after Dolly the sheep's debut, Americans remain skeptical of cloning - Pew Research Center - February 23rd, 2017 [February 23rd, 2017]
- Another cloning success shows technology being used by everyday graziers - ABC Online - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- 20 Years After Dolly, Where Are We With Cloning? - Inverse - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- Pabrai And The Shameless Cloning Portfolio - Seeking Alpha - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- As Clone Conspiracy Ends, the Fates of Two Major Spider-Man Villains Are Revealed - Gizmodo - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- 20 years after Dolly the sheep, potential of cloning remains unclear - CNN - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- More lessons from Dolly the sheep: Is a clone really born at age zero ... - Salon - February 27th, 2017 [February 27th, 2017]
- 20th Anniversary of Dolly the Cloned Sheep | Men's Health - Men's Health - February 28th, 2017 [February 28th, 2017]
- The Angels had two No. 97s on the basepaths, may be cloning their players - MLB.com - March 1st, 2017 [March 1st, 2017]
- 20 Years After Dolly: Cloning Past, Present and Future - KQED - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- Facts About Cloning - Live Science - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- Is Max cloning Tracey the barmaid to take over Walford in ... - Metro - Metro - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- We know Dolly the sheep was cloned 20 years ago, but how old was she at birth? - Washington Post - March 3rd, 2017 [March 3rd, 2017]
- 'Miracle of nature' Scientists a step closer to HUMAN CLONING after creating mouse embryos - Express.co.uk - March 3rd, 2017 [March 3rd, 2017]
- Waxhaw police: Man charged with credit card cloning - WSOC Charlotte - March 4th, 2017 [March 4th, 2017]
- Facebook gives zero fucks about cloning Snapchat, adds geostickers in Instagram - TNW - March 8th, 2017 [March 8th, 2017]
- This man is cloning old-growth redwoods and planting them in safe places (video) - Treehugger - March 9th, 2017 [March 9th, 2017]
- Police warn of criminals cloning credit cards using stolen information - ABC Action News - March 11th, 2017 [March 11th, 2017]
- Hard drive imaging vs. cloning: What's the difference? - Windows Central - March 11th, 2017 [March 11th, 2017]
- Cloning Your VS 2017 Packages - Microsoft - Channel 9 (blog) - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]
- Hair Cloning is Happening - NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]
- Woodbury Police Need Your Help In Credit Card Cloning Case - Patch - Patch.com - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]
- Reasons Against Cloning - VIDEOS & ARTICLES - April 8th, 2017 [April 8th, 2017]
- B.o.B Talks Conspiracy Theories About 9/11, Snapchat, Cloning, Chemtrails, The Illuminati & More (VIDEO) - AllHipHop (blog) - June 6th, 2017 [June 6th, 2017]
- International grifter gets 5 years in prison for Denver credit card cloning scam - The Denver Post - June 6th, 2017 [June 6th, 2017]
- Send in the clones: Orphan Black, TV's smartest show, is back - The Guardian - June 7th, 2017 [June 7th, 2017]
- Sorry, 'Jurassic Park' fans: Scientists say dinosaur cloning probably isn't going to happen - Travel+Leisure - June 7th, 2017 [June 7th, 2017]
- Preparing winemakers for climate change through cloning - ABC Online - June 7th, 2017 [June 7th, 2017]
- Skimming, cloning become popular in Tulsa - KRMG - June 7th, 2017 [June 7th, 2017]
- Five Rules For Successful Marijuana Cloning - June 7th, 2017 [June 7th, 2017]
- Cloning Grapes Will Save Australian Wine - National Geographic Australia - June 8th, 2017 [June 8th, 2017]
- Hackers caught cloning activist Twitter accounts to spread fake news - The Independent - June 9th, 2017 [June 9th, 2017]
- Cloning Yourself in Photos or Videos - Fstoppers - June 11th, 2017 [June 11th, 2017]
- Cloning To Revive Abaco Wild Horses - Bahamas Tribune - June 17th, 2017 [June 17th, 2017]
- How Close Are We to Successfully Cloning the First Human? - Futurism - June 22nd, 2017 [June 22nd, 2017]
- Magnified: Cloning - The Hawk Eye (blog) - June 24th, 2017 [June 24th, 2017]
- Puppies cloned from ears arrive in Russia for genetic research ... - RT - June 24th, 2017 [June 24th, 2017]
- Three waiters arrested in Mumbai for fraud and cloning ATM cards ... - Hindustan Times - June 26th, 2017 [June 26th, 2017]
- This powerful new tool for cloning genes could speed up drug discovery - Boston Business Journal - June 27th, 2017 [June 27th, 2017]