Cloningits applications &

implications

Cloning

Cloning has been around for centuries (e.g. in gardening, agriculture)

Single carrot cell

Cloning carrot experiment by Fredrick Steward (1958)

Cells are put in a growth medium

Clones that live among us

Types of cloning

1. Reproductive cloning

- generates an organism that has the same DNA as another organism

2. Therapeutic cloning

-technology used to produce tissues and organs from single cell to replace damaged cells/tissues/organs

Dolly (1996-2003)

- The only one success out of  276 trials

- Created at Edinburg University (UK)

- Dolly died after 6 year. Normal sheep lifespan is 8-10 years

- She suffered lung cancer and arthritis

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=txr8-0RaD-A

Is cloning Dolly reproductive or therapeutic cloning?

Why?

What are the steps in cloning Dolly?

Steps in cloning animal (cont.)• A cell is removed from

the white faced sheep (i.e. the one to be cloned). Nothing is removed from this cell

• Nucleus of an egg cell from an egg cell donor (i.e. the black-faced sheep) is removed

• The egg cell (whose nucleus is removed) and the donor cell are placed next to each other in a bath of chemicals

WATCH video: http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/tech/cloning/whatiscloning/scnt.html

Steps in cloning animal (cont)- A spark of electricity caused

the 2 cells to fuse. The fused cell now does have the donor’s nucleus

- The fused cell begins to divide to form an embryo

- The embryo is then planted

into the uterus of the foster mother

- A white-faced lamb was born. It is genetically identical to the donor, but it was raised by the foster mother

How nucleus (containing the desire genetic material) is inserted to an egg

cell?

Cell holder or stabilizer)

Needle

http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/tech/cloning/whatiscloning/images/enucleation.mpg

Other cloned animal besides Dolly

The hydrid mule Idaho Gem 

Prometea

Cloning applications• Mass production of livestock and crop

plants food quantity and quality increase

Prize Holstein cows can produce in excess of 75L of milk per day compared to 30 L per day for an average breed

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs)• Are organisms that carry genes that

originated from a different species

GloFish

Fluorescent Pigs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=YSkRz0O9ZJ0

How GMOs are made?

Transgenic Plants: BT (Bacillus thuringiensis)

corn

Cloning GMOs

• All commercial insulin is produced by bacteria that have been genetically modified to carry human insulin gene

Using Safflower to produce Life-Saving Products

• Human insulin gene also get inserted into safflower plant

• More cost-effective

• 1 hectare of cloned safflower can produce 2.5kg insuline enough to treat 2500 patient/year.http://www.sembiosys.com/

Golden rice• In Africa lack

of vitamin A is leading to blindness.

• Golden rice is a GMO that helps produce more vitamin A.

GMOs use in medicine and industryOrganims New gene insertion Benefits

GM goats Gene from a golden orb spider used to produce silk protein

The silk protein can be isolated to make high strength fiber

GM bananas

Genes for the production of a hepatitis vaccine is inserted

Banana containing vaccine; readily available in developing countries

GM pig Gene involved in producing omega-3 fatty acid

Bacon with healthier fat

Steel strength spider web

• http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/science/jan-june11/nova_01-19.html

Cloning endangered/extinct species- Captive breeding rarely works- Cloning provides an alternative

-Endangered banteng was cloned in 2003 by Advanced Cell Technology (USA)

-Extinct ibex was successfully cloned in 2009; died of lung defects

-Cloning should be used as last resort.

Banteng (wild bovine)- endangered

Spanish ibex (wild goat)- extinct

Bring Long-extinct Woolly Mammoth Back to Life

How they did it?

Scientists bought mammoth hair from eBay.com and decoded the ancient DNA inside.

Penn State scientists decoded 80 percent of the woolly mammoth genome, raising the possibility that the creature could be cloned

Cloned meat for dinner?

GMOs- Why create them?

Cloning costs and risks• Cloned plants and livestock may be expensive to produce and

maintain

• Some consumers feel cloned organisms are unnatural and buying them is unethical

• Being genetically identical means being more vulnerable to diseases

• Food choices reduced

• Long-term risks of reduced genetic diversity is unknown

Lancelot: a $155,000 cloned dog 

• Done by BioArts International in 2008

• The owner already had 8 other dogs

• Is it acceptable to spend that much on cloning a pet?Deceased

Lancelot and its clone

GM Products: Pros and Cons

Benefits • Crops

– Enhanced taste and quality – Reduced maturation time – Increased nutrients, yields, and stress tolerance – Improved resistance to disease, pests, and herbicides – New products and growing techniques

• Animals – Increased resistance, productivity, hardiness, and

feed efficiency – Better yields of meat, eggs, and milk – Improved animal health and diagnostic methods

• Environment

– "Friendly" bioherbicides and bioinsecticides

– Conservation of soil, water, and energy

– Better natural waste management

Society

– Increased food security for growing populations

Controversies• Safety

– Potential human health impacts, including allergens, transfer of antibiotic resistance markers, unknown effects

– Potential environmental impacts, including: unintended transfer of transgenes through cross-pollination, unknown effects on other organisms (e.g., soil microbes), and loss of flora and fauna biodiversity

• Access and Intellectual Property – Domination of world food production by a few

companies – Increasing dependence on industrialized nations by

developing countries – Biopiracy, or foreign exploitation of natural resources

Regulation and testing

• Use the internet to find out

1. Who responsible for regulating GMOs?

2. How long does testing a GMO take?

3. Is labeling required?

Regulation and testing

• Health Canada is responsible, under the Food and Drugs Act and its Regulations, for provisions related to public health, food safety and nutrition.

• Testing: 7-10 year process

• Labeling: required if there are side effects, voluntary otherwise.

• Ethics – Violation of natural organisms' intrinsic values – Tampering with nature by mixing genes among species – Objections to consuming animal genes in plants and vice

versa – Animal's welfarehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uInGy0G7w-U&noredirect=1

• Labeling – Not mandatory in some countries (e.g., United States) – Mixing GM crops with non-GM products confounds labeling

attempts

• Society – New advances may be skewed to interests of rich countries

Consolidation- Recap