Experts say if you can clone a mouse you can clone a human. University of Hawaii scientists say cloning mice is even more difficult than cloning humans, but the recent experiment proves to be far more significant than Dolly the sheep. The cloning process has now been replicated from one species to another, bringing scientists closer to the goal of human cloning. Once the process reaches the human stage, the potential medical benefits are far-reaching, from curing cancer to regrowing heart muscle after a heart attack. Given the numerous scientific and medical advancements possible, human cloning should not be banned.
Nineteen European nations signed a treaty in January stating that cloning people was a violation of human dignity and a misuse of science. The treaty is, in part, a response to the fear that human cloning can happen within the next two years, said Chicago physicist Richard Seed, who is ready to begin human cloning now. Germany and Britain did not sign the treaty, but they have very different reasons. The Germans allegedly forbid all research on human embryos. They believe the treaty is too weak and doesn’t go far enough in preventing misuse. After Dolly, Britain obviously supports cloning research. The fear of cloning is based on potential misuse such as cloning thoroughbred racehorses or creating an army of compliant slaves.
Another fear is that the clone will be genetic duplication of only one of its parents. However, couples who cannot conceive naturally might prefer their own genes instead of using an anonymous egg or sperm donor. Proponents say this kind of a situation will not harm a child. Genes play only a small part in developing a child’s personality. Twins are perfectly capable of carving out their own individuality, and adopted children have more in common with the parents who raised them than they do their birth parents. Again, some parents will prefer genetic engineering over adoption, which allows them to remain natural birth parents. However, the cloning procedure requires a womb for the cloned cell to develop properly, and finding willing surrogate mothers might prove to be costly.
Another advantage of cloning is the replication of organs. Close to three thousand people die each year in America while waiting for donor organs. Human cloning could compliment or provide an alternative to xenotransplantation — the use of live non-human animal cells, tissues and organs. Current problems with xenotransplants include latent infections and viruses not detected in the donor animal that may flourish in the human environment. Also, in organ transplants, it is common for the immune system to reject a foreign organ. Readily available cloned human organs could eliminate these problems. Organ cloning, which is similar to growing skin grafts, can also assist the regeneration of damaged muscles.
The technology for human cloning is here and it’s not going to go away. Still, cloning a complete human being is far off. Only 2 percent to 3 percent of the mice were successfully cloned, so much research is still needed. Unwarranted fears should not prevent the benefits cloning offers and governments need to let the free market decide the fate of human cloning in the future.