CGS : Reproductive Cloning. Reproductive cloning is the production of a genetic duplicate of an existing organism. A human clone would be a genetic copy of an existing person. Somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) is the most common cloning technique. SCNT involves putting the nucleus of a body cell into an egg from which the nucleus has been removed. This produces a clonal embryo, which is triggered to begin developing with chemicals or electricity. Placing this cloned embryo into the uterus of a female animal and bringing it to term creates a clone, with genes identical to those of the animal from which the original body cell was taken.
More than eighteen cloned mammals have been produced with SCNT, but claims by rogue scientists to have cloned a human child have been false. New techniques, such as the derivation of induced pluripotent stem cells via cellular reprogramming, suggest other potential methods of reproductive cloning. Human reproductive cloning is almost universally opposed. Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights: UNESCO. The General Conference, Recalling that the Preamble of UNESCO’s Constitution refers to ‘the democratic principles of the dignity, equality and mutual respect of men’, rejects any ‘doctrine of the inequality of men and races’, stipulates ‘that the wide diffusion of culture, and the education of humanity for justice and liberty and peace are indispensable to the dignity of men and constitute a sacred duty which all the nations must fulfil in a spirit of mutual assistance and concern’, proclaims that ‘peace must be founded upon the intellectual and moral solidarity of mankind’, and states that the Organization seeks to advance, ‘through the educational and scientific and cultural relations of the peoples of the world, the objectives of international peace and of the common welfare of mankind for which the United Nations Organization was established and which its Charter proclaims’, Proclaims the principles that follow and adopts the present Declaration.
A. Human dignity and the human genome. WBP - Reproductive Cloning Bans. The United NationsThe United Nations General Assembly adopted the United Nations Declaration on Human Cloning on March 23, 2005 to oppose the reproductive and therapeutic cloning of human beings. Although non-binding, it is considered the official position of the UN. An effort to ratify a binding declaration was stalled over deep disagreements on whether ban research cloning as well. The foundational premise of the declaration is that reproductive cloning of human beings is contrary to human dignity. It stresses the urgency of such potential dangers as the exploitation of women and medical, physical, psychological, and social dangers for the individuals involved—all of which could be considered human rights issues. Additionally, genetic engineering technologies are considered to be contrary to human dignity and member states are urged to adopt measures to prohibit its use as well.
In recent years, human dignity has attracted considerable attention as a policy standard. Cloning_9.20B. Documentary about Cloning The First Human. Human Cloning: The Role of Law by Susan Martyn. University of Toledo - College of Law University of Toledo Law Review, Vol. 32, No. 3, Spring 2001 Abstract: Law embodies the moral judgments of a society. In the past, law has been used to encourage, leave alone, regulate, or ban new or emerging scientific potential. The novel legal issues that will be raised should human cloning become a reality lead to several tentative conclusions. Number of Pages in PDF File: 13 Keywords: Human Cloning, Legal Regulation, Law, Moral Judgments, Government Funding, Patent Protection, Laissez Faire, Human Subjects Research, Tuskegee Experiment, Family Law, Privacy, Commodification, Posner, Nonprofit JEL Classification: K32, K42 Accepted Paper Series Suggested Citation Martyn, Susan R., Human Cloning: The Role of Law.
BMC Medical Ethics | Full text | Human cloning laws, human dignity and the poverty of the policy making dialogue. Concerns About Human Dignity Numerous arguments of varying persuasive force have been put forward as justifications for a ban on reproductive cloning. To cite just a few examples, some commentators have suggested that the visceral reaction that many in the public have had to the idea of human reproductive cloning is, from a policy perspective, significant enough to justify, on its own, a regulatory response. [9] Others have suggested reproductive cloning would have an adverse impact on the social definition of family: "Modernity's assault on the family would thus be complete with the development of cloning.
However, the broadest concern, and the concern that is often explicitly mentioned in relevant policy statements, is that human reproductive cloning, at some level, infringes notions of human dignity. Below I briefly consider some of the reasons commentators remain skeptical of the claim that reproductive cloning infringes human dignity. Autonomy and Uniqueness Instrumentalism. 'Your child is your whakapapa': Maori Considerations of Assisted Reproduction and Human Relatedness | Glover | Sites: a journal of social anthropology and cultural studies. Choosing Genes for Future Children: Chapter 3 - Maori Perspectives on Pre-Birth Genetic Testing with Particular Focus on PGD by Bevan Tipene-Matua, Mark Henaghan. To gain a full appreciation of a likely Mäori response to pre-birth genetic testing it is necessary to contextualise the discussion within broader debates regarding emerging health biotechnologies.
For example, we were quickly reminded by research participants that power and control and the potential for social disparities to be accentuated were as much of an issue for pre-birth genetic testing as it is for other biotechnological innovations. Mäori responses to genetic engineering biotechnology, the domination of genetic science by corporate agendas, and suspicion of health professionals and innovations resulting from successive negative colonial experiences, are factors likely to influence how Mäori might respond to pre-birth genetic testing.
This chapter situates the discourse on Mäori perspectives of pre-birth genetic testing within broader issues confronting Mäori as a result of the biotechnology explosion in the last ten years and the completion of the human genome project. Human Cloning. Fertility experts doubt cloned embryo claims - Cloning. Scientists and medical ethicists yesterday condemned the controversial fertility doctor Panayiotis Zavos for transferring cloned human embryos into the wombs of four women. Zavos claimed that he had created 14 cloned human embryos and transferred 11 of them into the wombs of the four women, who wanted to give birth to cloned babies, although none of them had become pregnant. Leading figures in the fertility world, including Lord Winston of Imperial College London said Zavos had not produced any scientific evidence to support his statements.
Critics said this could only be done by publishing the work in a peer-reviewed scientific journal. "I do not know of any credible evidence that suggests Dr Zavos can clone a human being. This seems to be yet another one of his claims to get publicity," said Lord Winston. Zavos also revealed that he has created human-animal "hybrid" clones by fusing the cells of dead people with the empty egg cells of cows. Cloning Fact Sheet.