From: Joao Magalhaes (joao.magalhaes@fundp.ac.be)
Date: Fri Mar 01 2002 - 10:45:01 MST
Hi!
At 08:52 01-03-2002 -0600, you wrote:
>There are more problems with cloning. Cloned animals have many biological
>problems not found in the original animals. Current techniques cause
>genetic damage to the DNA being transferred. Telomeres are copied at the
>current adult (pre-aged) level.
This is not always true. The clones from Michael West's group actually have
longer telomeres than their parents.
>Cloned animals have thus far aged
>prematurely and died younger than normal.
Some cloned animals develop diseases but their symptoms are nothing close
to accelerated aging syndromes. It's true that the longevity of cloned
animals is smaller than controls -- particularly if we take into account
deaths in animals that fail to reach adulthood -- but there is little
evidence supporting that cloned animals age biologically faster.
>I know most people on this list support reproductive cloning, as do I. But
>we need to be realistically aware that current processes are not ready for
>prime time. I do not believe any cloned animals are normal (yet). The only
>ones that appear normal are too young and have not been studied long enough.
>Many cloned animals appear normal at first and develop weird problems later
>in life.
I agree. I thought Ian Wilmut summed up my thoguhts when he said, ''cloning
by the present methods is a lottery.''
>All of the evidence points to genetic damage in the process
>itself.
From the report you mentioned, one can argue that manipulating eggs is
harmful in itself and that perhaps genetic damage is not involved, at least
not all the time. Although such argument would depend on how you define
"genetic damage".
Hasta.
Joao Pedro de Magalhaes
The University of Namur (FUNDP)
Research Unit on Cellular Biology (URBC)
Rue de Bruxelles, 61. B-5000 Namur. Belgium.
Fax: + 32 81 724135
Phone: + 32 81 724133
Reason's Triumph: http://users.compaqnet.be/jpnitya/
New Web site on Aging: http://www.senescence.info
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