"Should human cloning be allowed?"
The question of whether human cloning should be allowed is frequently argued by scientists because some have the view that overall it can benefit mankind. However others believe that it is too dangerous to test on humans. This report will outline the advantages and disadvantages of cloning and show religious and ethical views on this topic.
Many people are under the misconception that cloning is innovative technology, however cloning of reptiles such as frogs and toads have been taking place from the early 1970's. Consequently on 5th July 1996 Dolly the sheep was born; she was the first mammalian clone produced by somatic tissue. Dolly was genetically modified to produce therapeutic proteins in her milk. Her birth was very controversial because it was announced a year after her birth on 23rd February 1997. Unfortunately after 6 years Dolly was "put down" because of a severe lung disease which she had been suffering with for 2 years and had died in February 2003. Professor Ian Wilmut of the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh stated after Dolly's death that "animal cloning is inefficient in all species. Expect the same outcome in humans as in other species: late abortion, dead children and surviving but abnormal children." This is a view held by many sceptics of this subjects and it is a topic discussed by leading ethicists and theologians.
There are three types of cloning, they are embryo cloning, reproductive cloning (somatic cell nuclear transfer; this was the cloning used to produce Dolly) and therapeutic cloning. All of the different types of cloning require the use of an embryo which is "the developing human individual from the time of implantation to the end of the eighth week after conception." The different types of cloning are performed in these different ways:
* Embryo cloning- this uses an embryo to create monozygotic (identical) twins or triplets. The process removes a few cells from a fertilised egg and then placed under conditions which would encourage it to replicate itself, creating an identical embryo.
The question of whether human cloning should be allowed is frequently argued by scientists because some have the view that overall it can benefit mankind. However others believe that it is too dangerous to test on humans. This report will outline the advantages and disadvantages of cloning and show religious and ethical views on this topic.
Many people are under the misconception that cloning is innovative technology, however cloning of reptiles such as frogs and toads have been taking place from the early 1970's. Consequently on 5th July 1996 Dolly the sheep was born; she was the first mammalian clone produced by somatic tissue. Dolly was genetically modified to produce therapeutic proteins in her milk. Her birth was very controversial because it was announced a year after her birth on 23rd February 1997. Unfortunately after 6 years Dolly was "put down" because of a severe lung disease which she had been suffering with for 2 years and had died in February 2003. Professor Ian Wilmut of the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh stated after Dolly's death that "animal cloning is inefficient in all species. Expect the same outcome in humans as in other species: late abortion, dead children and surviving but abnormal children." This is a view held by many sceptics of this subjects and it is a topic discussed by leading ethicists and theologians.
There are three types of cloning, they are embryo cloning, reproductive cloning (somatic cell nuclear transfer; this was the cloning used to produce Dolly) and therapeutic cloning. All of the different types of cloning require the use of an embryo which is "the developing human individual from the time of implantation to the end of the eighth week after conception." The different types of cloning are performed in these different ways:
* Embryo cloning- this uses an embryo to create monozygotic (identical) twins or triplets. The process removes a few cells from a fertilised egg and then placed under conditions which would encourage it to replicate itself, creating an identical embryo.
