Should Cloning Be Allowed to Develop Any Further or Has It Gone Far Enough?

Don’t Be A Copy Cat

Should cloning be allowed to develop any further or has it gone far enough?

For the first time in the history of science a new discovery has given us, well genetic Engineers, the power to alter our own species and all things that occur naturally; ‘cloning’. With these new powers we can produce or duplicate anything to the buttercup flower to the African elephant but with these new powers bring new questions: Should we be able to duplicate natural organisms for human advantage? , Is it right to change animal genes for it to benefit Mankind? . These are just a couple of examples of the many questions that need answering.

So far in the history of cloning (Genetic Engineering) there has been little harm to human beings or animals that have suffered during experiments. This is mainly due to the fact that when the first discovery was made of the structure of DNA (deoxyribonciceic acid) in 1953 and the unravelling of the genetic code in the sixties and seventies some scientists were aware of the potential dangers. So they insisted in 1974 they were in need of new regulations and greater self-control. So as they wished guidelines were brought out to protect physical and biological containment have been effective up to the present date.

There have been some cases where it has been argued that Genetic Engineering is dangerous even with such strict guidelines , for example the strain of ‘E’ coli cannot survive outside a laboratory so when it is put into the human blood stream a ‘super bug’ is being released , but is was proved to be slightly exaggerated

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An ever more popular form of cloning is to Genetically Engineer substances (Enhancers) which can benefit the way we grow our food. For example the softening in tomatoes which is basically done by a certain gene in the tomato to be totally ‘switched off’. Probably the most famous cloning of animals is dolly the sheep which promoted a high media profile of cloning and brought this new question : Could humans be cloned ?

At the moment the answer would have to be a definite No!