How Close Are We to Human Cloning?

Science Fiction—or Science Waiting to Happen?

By Ironfield Publishing

For decades, human cloning has been a favorite subject of science fiction. Secret laboratories create duplicates of world leaders. Scientists resurrect brilliant minds.

Armies manufacture identical soldiers.

But how close is science to actually cloning a human being?

Closer than many people realize technologically—but still a very long way from doing it safely or acceptably.

We've Already Cloned Primates

Scientists have successfully cloned several mammals using somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT). The technique places genetic material from a body cell into an egg whose nucleus has been removed.

Most significantly, researchers successfully produced cloned macaque monkeys using SCNT, demonstrating that reproductive cloning can work in primates.

That inevitably raises the question: if scientists can clone monkeys, could they eventually clone humans?

Human Cells Have Already Crossed Another Threshold

Researchers have used SCNT with human cells to create embryos for deriving embryonic stem cells. That's very different from attempting to implant an embryo and produce a cloned human baby, but it demonstrates that some of the underlying biological machinery can work with human cells.

So Why Hasn't Anyone Cloned a Person?

Safety is an enormous obstacle.

Even primate cloning remains inefficient and can involve developmental abnormalities, pregnancy failures and problems with the placenta. Recent research continues to identify genetic and epigenetic complications that make primate cloning difficult.

There are also enormous ethical and regulatory barriers. The International Society for Stem Cell Research places human reproductive cloning among research activities that should not be permitted, while the FDA has asserted regulatory authority over clinical research attempting to use cloning technology to create a human being in the United States.

A Clone Wouldn't Really Be "You"

Even a successful human clone wouldn't emerge as a duplicate adult possessing someone's memories and personality.

A clone would begin life as a baby. Genetically, the person would be more comparable to an identical twin born years later. Environment, experiences, relationships and countless other factors would help shape who that individual became.

The Most Interesting Question May Be "When"

There is no verified scientific evidence that a cloned human being has been born.

Yet science has already accomplished things once considered impossible: cloning mammals, cloning primates and creating human stem-cell lines through nuclear-transfer techniques.

That leaves us with a question perfectly suited for an Ironfield thriller:

What happens when the biggest obstacle to human cloning is no longer whether we can—but whether we should?

Ironfield Library