NEWSROOM – In late January, scientists at the Chinese Academy of Sciences Institute in Shanghai were the first to use nuclear transfer to clone primates, in this case, long tailed macaques named Huahua and Zhongzhong (their names together "Zhonghua" mean "Chinese Nation"). This is a huge step forward in the field of genetic duplication.
The process of nuclear transfer isn't new. In 1996, "Dolly" the sheep became the first successfully cloned mammal using this technique. However, nuclear transfer had never been successfully used to clone primates, until Huahua and Zhongzhong.
This form of reproductive cloning using the nucleus from one cell in the cell of another results in genetically identical copies of the organism. Although hundreds of simpler animals have been cloned in this manner, this previously was not successful for primates, as they proved too complex. So far, Zhongzhong and Huahua seem to be happy, healthy, and without any physical or mental defects.
Mrs. Hubertus, AP Biology teacher, shared the implications of a successfully cloned primate.
While human cloning does not seem likely in the near future, some other applications and alternatives to this practice could be used to help repopulate endangered species or even bring long extinct ones back to life. The future of cloning holds endless possibilities.