BRAINCAKEPros and Cons of Animal Cloning
Animal cloning, by artificial twinning or somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT), has clear uses but also real problems.
Advantages
• High-value animals, such as cows with a very high milk yield or prize bulls, can be copied, so good traits are reproduced exactly.
• Artificial twinning gives many offspring from one breeding cycle, more than the parents would produce naturally.
• Rare or endangered animals can be cloned to increase their numbers.
• Pharming: a genetically modified animal that makes a useful protein (for example a drug in its milk) can be cloned to give a whole herd of producers.
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Key terms in this lesson
- somatic cell nuclear transfer
- A cloning technique in which the nucleus from a body (somatic) cell is transferred into an enucleated egg, which then develops into a genetic copy.
More in Cloning and Biotechnology
- Pros and Cons of Plant Cloning
- Natural Clones in Animals
- Artificial Twinning
- Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer
- Microorganisms in Biotechnology
- Microorganisms in Food Production
- Microorganisms in Medicine and Bioremediation
- Culturing Microorganisms
All 21 lessons in Cloning and Biotechnology · All OCR A-level Biology topics