Human cloning is the creation of a genetically identical copy of a human (not usually referring to monozygotic multiple births), human cell, or human tissue. The ethics of cloning is an extremely controversial issue. There are two commonly discussed types of human cloning: therapeutic cloning and reproductive cloning. Therapeutic cloning involves cloning cells from an adult for use in medicine and is an active area of research, while reproductive cloning would involve making cloned humans. Such reproductive cloning has not been performed and is illegal in many countries. A third type of cloning called replacement cloning is a theoretical possibility, and would be a combination of therapeutic and reproductive cloning. Replacement cloning would entail the replacement of an extensively damaged, failed, or failing body through cloning followed by whole or partial brain transplant.
clonaid announced birth of "first human clone" on December 26th 2002. Eve was born by caesarean section after being created by Clonaid using a technique similar to that used to clone Dolly the sheep. Clonaid said they had four other mothers expecting to give birth to clones soon and announced a second birth to a Dutch lesbian woman early in January 2003 and a third to a Japanese couple who "cloned their dead son killed in an accident", plus two others in late January. All five babies were said to be well but with no independent verification whatsoever, doubts increased by the day.
After promising immediate genetic testing on Eve and others by independent scientists, Clonaid then claimed that lawsuits launched in the US and the Netherlands were making testing impossible because the courts were likely to try and identify the children and take them into care. This increased scepticism around the world that Clonaid was involved in a major fraud, with the aim of getting more couples to part with large sums of money. In early February they promised testing of the Japanese baby was under way. By early March there was still silence. Sadly another explanation could be that apparently healthy cloned babies have rapidly developed major heath problems (as often happens in animals), or even died.
However one thing is clear: it could only be a matter of time before some team or other can prove that they have won the global human cloning race.
