Originally published August 7 2005
Korean scientists clone man's best friend
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Scientists in Korea have cloned a "perky, lovable" dog, which could lead to eventual cloning of other mammals, including humans, and cloning of stem cells.
South Korea's pioneering stem cell scientist has cloned a dog, smashing another biological barrier and reigniting a fierce ethical debate - while producing a perky, lovable puppy.
The researchers, led by Hwang Woo-suk, insist they cloned an Afghan hound, a resplendent supermodel in a world of mutts, only to help investigate human disease, including the possibility of cloning stem cells for treatment purposes.
"Successful cloning of an increasing number of species confirms the general impression that it would be possible to clone any mammalian species, including humans," said Ian Wilmut, a reproductive biologist at the University of Edinburgh who produced the first cloned mammal, Dolly the sheep, from an adult cell nearly a decade ago.
Researchers have since cloned cats, goats, cows, mice, pigs, rabbits, horses, deer, mules and gaur, a large wild ox of Southeast Asia.
Wilmut and others complimented Hwang's achievement, reported Wednesday in the journal Nature.
But they said politicians and scientists must face the larger and more delicate issue - how to extend research without crossing the moral boundary of duplicating human life in the lab.
"The ability to use the underlying technology in developing research models and eventually therapies is incredibly promising," said Robert Schenken, president of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine.
The cloned puppy was the lone success from more than 100 dogs implanted with more than 1,000 cloned embryos.
The researchers nicknamed their canine creation Snuppy, for "Seoul National University puppy," a reference to Hwang's lab.
The reconstructed egg holding the DNA from the donor cell was zapped with an electric current to stimulate cell division.
A cloned-to-order kitten was produced in late 2004 for $50,000 by Genetic Savings & Clone Inc. of Sausalito, Calif., which hopes to commercially clone a dog within a year.
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