Types of Cloning
Animal cloning varies immensely in both its methods as well as its uses, for example the differences between therapeutic cloning and reproductive cloning, which differ on the basis that they attempt to achieve different goals. Therapeutic cloning, which employs a technique known as somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT), involves the removal of the nucleus of an egg cell and then replacing it with the genetic material from the nucleus of a body cell and then electrically stimulating it to begin dividing. Whilst the embryo is in early stages of development, the inner cell mass of the embryo is grown in a culture dish to yield stem cells, which are then used for medicinal purposes (Burgess, D., 202). Similarly reproductive cloning also utilises SCNT however instead of destroying the embryo to produce stem cells, the embryo is instead transferred into the uterus of a surrogate mother which then undergoes a normal birth to produce a clone of the animal providi
ng the somatic cell.
Embryonic stem cells produced by therapeutic cloning has large potential in regenerative medicine particularly its existence allowing for increased testing which will benefit in development of animal models of human disease, leading to development of cures such as for ParkinsonΒs disease and diabetes (Kfoury, C., 2007; Burgess, D., 202). On the other hand reproductive cloning is solely intending to provide an identical version of a previously existing organism, consequently a different approach must be taken in order to assess the morality of each type of cloning. Additionally, cloning is both utilised for animals and humans and considerations must also be made as to whether a human or an animal is being cloned, due to the fact that animals are cloned to preserve advantageous characteristics whereas the arguments for human reproductive cloning look into personal interests, e.g. allowing a parent of a child who has died to seek redress for their loss.