Human Cloning Austen Boer Question 1) What Is Cloning?

Human Cloning Austen Boer Question 1) What is Cloning? DNA Cloning, other Names are Molecular Cloning and Gene Cloning. Biologists transfer the DNA fragment that another organism needs or could use, then the organism that gets that fragment self-replicates the new fragment. The restriction enzymes work like scissors, they take the part of the DNA that they need and bring it to the plasmid to reproduce. To give a process to do therapeutic (accepted) and reproductive cloning (un-accepted) Therapeutic Cloning is another way. Stem cells are abstracted from an egg. This is used in order to cure things like disease using the cloning cells to do it or to recreate things like lungs so there would be no need for transplants. Reproductive Cloning is also transferring genetic material of nucleus to an egg. To create a person or animal with the same nuclear DNA. (Has only been tested on animals) Question 2) Why was the cloning of Dolly such a major stepping stone in the cloning field toward human cloning? It proved that the genetic material from an adult could be changed to make an entire new multi-cellular organism. Before this, scientists believed that once a cell became programed by it's proteins (to do it's function like be a skin cell, liver or heart cell etc...) the change was permanent and other genes in the cell would become worthless. Question 3) What has been done to clone humans Cloning humans has been made illegal in the United States. The huge amount of failures with animals, they are worried about the effects that it would have on humans, and the "large-offspring syndrome". Though it is possible to make tissue for organs to make a transplant. The therapeutic cloning is a huge part in healing processes of disease and other such things Question 4) What problems are there with the technology to clone humans? First, it has a very low success rate, nearly 1/276 chance of success. Most of the clones end up dead in infancy or due to genetic complications. Question 5) Why would people want human cloning? One reason that people want human cloning is with enough research we could cure Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease. With enough research we could cure many genetic flaws by replacing damaged cells with healthy ones. Also, we could repopulate endangered species from going extinct through reproductive cloning. Gene therapy could be used to treat certain genetic diseases by bringing virus vectors that carry corrected copies of faulty genes into the cells the organism. Question 6) Why would people not want human cloning? First, the low success rate in animals means that there is most likely a low success rate in humans too. Its one thing to have to kill animal lives, but human is a different story. Second, people are using humans like a lab rat some people want to do it just to get famous they do not realize that they are creating human life. Third, when looking at it the amount of money that it takes to do each of these experiments is a lot for the success rate. Fourth, when looking at it from a Christian stand point is we are the ones creating human life now. Is that right to be able to "play god?" Where along the line do these clones get their souls? Question 7) What really makes you "you?" Based on this, is a clone truly human? What are all things necessary to be a true human? What really makes me, me, is a mix of genetics, experiences, environment and soul. Well, three of the four things that I thought makes a person themselves a clone can have, but in clones there is no place to get a soul. I don't know exactly where along the process that someone gets their own soul, but in a reproductive cloning there might not even be a chance for a soul. That is what would set clone apart from real human. The things that are necessary are a soul, working body parts and organs and ability to pick up on emotions. Question 8) Who should make the decisions to make human cloning legal or illegal? How would they be implemented and regulated? I personally think that all kinds of cloning, whether its therapeutic or reproductive, should not be legal. Though it would be great to be able to cure many genetic diseases, I do think that it is possible that people will get carried away with therapeutic cloning. Therapeutic cloning could potentially change a persons genes to something else. I mean if we can change the genetic code with therapeutic cloning, then it could change other characteristics of people eventually, and bang... there goes individuality. Reproductive cloning in and of itself should be illegal also there is no doubt in my mind. We can do more then just depend on the science of cloning to save "the best genes in people." The fact that clones are man made and may not have a chance to get a soul is a problems too. Clones might have the chance of missing that in their life. How can we make a person that will end up being a 1 that lives out of 276 that will die? This is so wrong. The decisions for this should be made by the United Nations. The reason I say this (besides being bias) is that they have agreed to stop all types of cloning. They have great points to the fact that it not only will be ethically wrong because it would lead into changing people and/or having a very low success rate and these clones are pretty much human life. But it would also exploit women, even the amount of eggs used in reproductive is excessive but therapeutic uses even more.