CLONING - Explained

Dr. Gautam Allahbadia

There are two kinds of cloning - therapeutic and reproductive. In therapeutic cloning, healthy cells are replicated for the purpose of either evolving them into particular tissues or organs in the laboratory to replace diseased ones or to grow cells. Reproductive cloning, on the other hand, is the process of replicating the DNA of an individual to create another 'copy' of that individual. However, the cloned individual will not be an exact photocopy because, whatever you do, it is not possible to prevent the transfer of a lot of mitochondria, and various genes, with traits of their own, not necessarily identical to the parent cell.

There is absolutely no justification for banning reproductive human cloning altogether. In any case, it might already be a fait accompli. Indeed, amidst fiery debates over the ethics of Dr. Severino Antinori's programme to produce a cloned human baby, come a claim from the US that a French scientist has already produced such a baby.

The moment someone comes up with a pioneering case using new technology, the initial response is public outrage. NGOs and governments rush to legislate against it. This way, no new discoveries can be made ; no new technology can be perfected. The moment you ban something, the activity will be driven underground, as happens in the case of prohibition, Bootleggers thrive. In the medical field, this is more risky and dangerous, for no one knows exactly how and what is happening.

If human cloning is to be allowed, how should we go about it? The answer is to set up regulatory authorities to monitor research in this field. I think individual cases will have to be evaluated - it is not really possible to have a blanket law since the issue is highly sensitive and individual needs and circumstances differ greatly.

Let us suppose the only child of a couple in their 50s is brain dead after an accident. Since they cannot have another child the conventional way, their only hope would be to clone their dying son by using his DNA. The mother can find a surrogate to bear the child. For others who are medically unfit to have babies the conventional way - if the man has primary germ cell failure or if the woman has failed ovaries - cloning offers a ray of hope. It enables them to have their own child.

There has been widespread consternation about human cloning, many argues that animal cloning techniques have not yet been perfected, so this technology should not be extended to humans. To which I would say, this is not entirely true, for instance, it was widely reported that Dolly, the first cloned sheep, was "as old as her mom" ; that she was suffering from premature arthritis.

However, it was subsequently revealed that all of Dolly's illnesses were because she was pampered and overfed so that she was grossly overweight. After a strictly regulated diet, she now shows no signs of any disorder, nor does she have arthiritis. The media, however, does not give equal publicity to this news. It is not true therefore that cloned animals are flawed. At least, not cloned mammals which are closely related to man.

The other argument is that more than 200 cloned embryos were destroyed before Dolly could be created. To this, I would say, please go back 25 years to the laboratory of Drs.Steptoe and Edwards, who created the world's first test-tube baby. Louise Brown. More than 108 patients underwent attempts at in vitro fertilisation (IVF) treatments are so common. No one objects to the technology. Thousands of test-tube babies have been born in the last 25 years. No one has complained of any kind of abnormality.

So, like nuclear technology is not junked but is allowed to be researched into with strict regulation, frontier research in reproductive technology, too, should be subject to regulation. As for fears that the technology would be prohibitively expensive, I can only say that there will be market, just as there is for in vitro fertilisation. Couples in India spend up to Rs. 55,000 per IVF attempt. Cloning procedures would probably cost ten times more.

The World Association of Reproductive Medicine, of which I am vice-president and Dr. Severino Antinori president, seeks to enlighten scientists about the advance in reproductive medicine. Dr. Antinori has publicised his attempts at human cloning. But there are several others who are keeping their research a secret. Dr. antinori is criticised for not publishing his research on the subject. How can he do so before his project is complete:? Steptoe and Edwards published their work only after Louise Brown was born, not before.

In the beginning, IVF researchers faces stiff opposition from the Catholic Church, Women's organisations and others. Today, the technique is part of normal infertility treatment. We are on a learning curve, so new technology should not be banned, only regulated.

(Courtesy: The Times of India, Dec., 28, 2002)