This technology has been in use since the 1970s and is a standard practice in molecular biology laboratories. (See Figure 8.1.) The DNA under study may then be reproduced in a host cell. Also known as molecular cloning, or gene cloning, it involves the transfer of a specific DNA fragment of interest to researchers from one organism to a self-replicating genetic element of another species such as a bacterial plasmid. For example, the term recombinant DNA technology describes the technology and mechanism of DNA cloning. This is the process that generates complete, genetically identical organisms such as Dolly, the famous Scottish sheep cloned in 1996 and named after the entertainer Dolly Parton.Ĭloning may also be described by the technology used to perform it. The third type of cloning, reproductive cloning, is the one that has received the most attention in the mass media. The second kind of cloning involves the natural process of cell division to create identical copies of the entire cell. This process produces cloned collections of DNA known as clone libraries. The first is the use of highly specialized deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) technology to produce multiple, exact copies of a single gene or other segment of DNA to obtain sufficient material to examine for research purposes.
The Human Genome Project defines three distinct types of cloning. Representative Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), July 2001
We must not say to millions of sick or injured human beings "go ahead and die and stay paralyzed because we believe … a clump of cells is more important than you are." We must advance the promise and cause of science, but must do so in a way that honors and respects life. Today's overwhelming and bipartisan House action to prohibit human cloning is a strong ethical statement, which I commend. The moral issues posed by human cloning are profound and have implications for today and for future generations.
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