Towards Cloning of Domestic Animals

Abstract

A short time ago it was reported that the medical research councils of nine European countries had agreed on a policy concerning in vitro fertilization (IVF) in humans [1]. This policy contained inter alia a ban on cloning of human embryos — quite rightly, I think. For while it is easy to envisage a useful role for cloning in livestock breeding, it is very difficult to find convincing arguments in favour of the use of cloning in human embryology. On the contrary, there are a number of strong arguments which readily come to mind against cloning of human embryos. One might therefore wonder whether the topic of mammalian cloning ought not have been excluded from the programme of a congress dealing with the future perspectives of human IVF. It would certainly be inappropriate to suggest that the experiments which I am about to describe represent animal models to be emulated in human IVF clinics in years to come. Nonetheless, experiments with livestock embryos are without doubt of general interest to mammalian embryologists, including those concerned with clinical human embryology.