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Cloning Fact Sheet

The term cloning describes a number of different processes that can be used to produce genetically identical copies of a biological entity. The copied material, which has the same genetic makeup as the original, is referred to as a clone. Researchers have cloned a wide range of biological materials, including genes, cells, tissues and even entire organisms, such as a sheep.

Do clones ever occur naturally?

Yes. In nature, some plants and single-celled organisms, such as bacteria , produce genetically identical offspring through a process called asexual reproduction. In asexual reproduction, a new individual is generated from a copy of a single cell from the parent organism.

Natural clones, also known as identical twins, occur in humans and other mammals. These twins are produced when a fertilized egg splits, creating two or more embryos that carry almost identical DNA . Identical twins have nearly the same genetic makeup as each other, but they are genetically different from either parent.

What are the types of artificial cloning?

There are three different types of artificial cloning: gene cloning, reproductive cloning and therapeutic cloning.

Gene cloning produces copies of genes or segments of DNA. Reproductive cloning produces copies of whole animals. Therapeutic cloning produces embryonic stem cells for experiments aimed at creating tissues to replace injured or diseased tissues.

Gene cloning, also known as DNA cloning, is a very different process from reproductive and therapeutic cloning. Reproductive and therapeutic cloning share many of the same techniques, but are done for different purposes.

Cloning

What sort of cloning research is going on at NHGRI?

Gene cloning is the most common type of cloning done by researchers at NHGRI. NHGRI researchers have not cloned any mammals and NHGRI does not clone humans.

How are genes cloned?

Researchers routinely use cloning techniques to make copies of genes that they wish to study. The procedure consists of inserting a gene from one organism, often referred to as "foreign DNA," into the genetic material of a carrier called a vector. Examples of vectors include bacteria, yeast cells, viruses or plasmids, which are small DNA circles carried by bacteria. After the gene is inserted, the vector is placed in laboratory conditions that prompt it to multiply, resulting in the gene being copied many times over.

How are animals cloned?

In reproductive cloning, researchers remove a mature somatic cell , such as a skin cell, from an animal that they wish to copy. They then transfer the DNA of the donor animal's somatic cell into an egg cell, or oocyte, that has had its own DNA-containing nucleus removed.

Researchers can add the DNA from the somatic cell to the empty egg in two different ways. In the first method, they remove the DNA-containing nucleus of the somatic cell with a needle and inject it into the empty egg. In the second approach, they use an electrical current to fuse the entire somatic cell with the empty egg.

In both processes, the egg is allowed to develop into an early-stage embryo in the test-tube and then is implanted into the womb of an adult female animal.

Ultimately, the adult female gives birth to an animal that has the same genetic make up as the animal that donated the somatic cell. This young animal is referred to as a clone. Reproductive cloning may require the use of a surrogate mother to allow development of the cloned embryo, as was the case for the most famous cloned organism, Dolly the sheep.

What animals have been cloned?

Over the last 50 years, scientists have conducted cloning experiments in a wide range of animals using a variety of techniques. In 1979, researchers produced the first genetically identical mice by splitting mouse embryos in the test tube and then implanting the resulting embryos into the wombs of adult female mice. Shortly after that, researchers produced the first genetically identical cows, sheep and chickens by transferring the nucleus of a cell taken from an early embryo into an egg that had been emptied of its nucleus.

It was not until 1996, however, that researchers succeeded in cloning the first mammal from a mature (somatic) cell taken from an adult animal. After 276 attempts, Scottish researchers finally produced Dolly, the lamb from the udder cell of a 6-year-old sheep. Two years later, researchers in Japan cloned eight calves from a single cow, but only four survived.

Besides cattle and sheep, other mammals that have been cloned from somatic cells include: cat, deer, dog, horse, mule, ox, rabbit and rat. In addition, a rhesus monkey has been cloned by embryo splitting.

Have humans been cloned?

Despite several highly publicized claims, human cloning still appears to be fiction. There currently is no solid scientific evidence that anyone has cloned human embryos.

In 1998, scientists in South Korea claimed to have successfully cloned a human embryo, but said the experiment was interrupted very early when the clone was just a group of four cells. In 2002, Clonaid, part of a religious group that believes humans were created by extraterrestrials, held a news conference to announce the birth of what it claimed to be the first cloned human, a girl named Eve. However, despite repeated requests by the research community and the news media, Clonaid never provided any evidence to confirm the existence of this clone or the other 12 human clones it purportedly created.

In 2004, a group led by Woo-Suk Hwang of Seoul National University in South Korea published a paper in the journal Science in which it claimed to have created a cloned human embryo in a test tube. However, an independent scientific committee later found no proof to support the claim and, in January 2006, Science announced that Hwang's paper had been retracted.

From a technical perspective, cloning humans and other primates is more difficult than in other mammals. One reason is that two proteins essential to cell division, known as spindle proteins, are located very close to the chromosomes in primate eggs. Consequently, removal of the egg's nucleus to make room for the donor nucleus also removes the spindle proteins, interfering with cell division. In other mammals, such as cats, rabbits and mice, the two spindle proteins are spread throughout the egg. So, removal of the egg's nucleus does not result in loss of spindle proteins. In addition, some dyes and the ultraviolet light used to remove the egg's nucleus can damage the primate cell and prevent it from growing.

Do cloned animals always look identical?

No. Clones do not always look identical. Although clones share the same genetic material, the environment also plays a big role in how an organism turns out.

For example, the first cat to be cloned, named Cc, is a female calico cat that looks very different from her mother. The explanation for the difference is that the color and pattern of the coats of cats cannot be attributed exclusively to genes. A biological phenomenon involving inactivation of the X chromosome (See sex chromosome ) in every cell of the female cat (which has two X chromosomes) determines which coat color genes are switched off and which are switched on. The distribution of X inactivation, which seems to occur randomly, determines the appearance of the cat's coat.

What are the potential applications of cloned animals?

Reproductive cloning may enable researchers to make copies of animals with the potential benefits for the fields of medicine and agriculture.

For instance, the same Scottish researchers who cloned Dolly have cloned other sheep that have been genetically modified to produce milk that contains a human protein essential for blood clotting. The hope is that someday this protein can be purified from the milk and given to humans whose blood does not clot properly. Another possible use of cloned animals is for testing new drugs and treatment strategies. The great advantage of using cloned animals for drug testing is that they are all genetically identical, which means their responses to the drugs should be uniform rather than variable as seen in animals with different genetic make-ups.

After consulting with many independent scientists and experts in cloning, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) decided in January 2008 that meat and milk from cloned animals, such as cattle, pigs and goats, are as safe as those from non-cloned animals. The FDA action means that researchers are now free to using cloning methods to make copies of animals with desirable agricultural traits, such as high milk production or lean meat. However, because cloning is still very expensive, it will likely take many years until food products from cloned animals actually appear in supermarkets.

Another application is to create clones to build populations of endangered, or possibly even extinct, species of animals. In 2001, researchers produced the first clone of an endangered species: a type of Asian ox known as a guar. Sadly, the baby guar, which had developed inside a surrogate cow mother, died just a few days after its birth. In 2003, another endangered type of ox, called the Banteg, was successfully cloned. Soon after, three African wildcats were cloned using frozen embryos as a source of DNA. Although some experts think cloning can save many species that would otherwise disappear, others argue that cloning produces a population of genetically identical individuals that lack the genetic variability necessary for species survival.

Some people also have expressed interest in having their deceased pets cloned in the hope of getting a similar animal to replace the dead one. But as shown by Cc the cloned cat, a clone may not turn out exactly like the original pet whose DNA was used to make the clone.

What are the potential drawbacks of cloning animals?

Reproductive cloning is a very inefficient technique and most cloned animal embryos cannot develop into healthy individuals. For instance, Dolly was the only clone to be born live out of a total of 277 cloned embryos. This very low efficiency, combined with safety concerns, presents a serious obstacle to the application of reproductive cloning.

Researchers have observed some adverse health effects in sheep and other mammals that have been cloned. These include an increase in birth size and a variety of defects in vital organs, such as the liver, brain and heart. Other consequences include premature aging and problems with the immune system. Another potential problem centers on the relative age of the cloned cell's chromosomes. As cells go through their normal rounds of division, the tips of the chromosomes, called telomeres, shrink. Over time, the telomeres become so short that the cell can no longer divide and, consequently, the cell dies. This is part of the natural aging process that seems to happen in all cell types. As a consequence, clones created from a cell taken from an adult might have chromosomes that are already shorter than normal, which may condemn the clones' cells to a shorter life span. Indeed, Dolly, who was cloned from the cell of a 6-year-old sheep, had chromosomes that were shorter than those of other sheep her age. Dolly died when she was six years old, about half the average sheep's 12-year lifespan.

What is therapeutic cloning?

Therapeutic cloning involves creating a cloned embryo for the sole purpose of producing embryonic stem cells with the same DNA as the donor cell. These stem cells can be used in experiments aimed at understanding disease and developing new treatments for disease. To date, there is no evidence that human embryos have been produced for therapeutic cloning.

The richest source of embryonic stem cells is tissue formed during the first five days after the egg has started to divide. At this stage of development, called the blastocyst, the embryo consists of a cluster of about 100 cells that can become any cell type. Stem cells are harvested from cloned embryos at this stage of development, resulting in destruction of the embryo while it is still in the test tube.

What are the potential applications of therapeutic cloning?

Researchers hope to use embryonic stem cells, which have the unique ability to generate virtually all types of cells in an organism, to grow healthy tissues in the laboratory that can be used replace injured or diseased tissues. In addition, it may be possible to learn more about the molecular causes of disease by studying embryonic stem cell lines from cloned embryos derived from the cells of animals or humans with different diseases. Finally, differentiated tissues derived from ES cells are excellent tools to test new therapeutic drugs.

What are the potential drawbacks of therapeutic cloning?

Many researchers think it is worthwhile to explore the use of embryonic stem cells as a path for treating human diseases. However, some experts are concerned about the striking similarities between stem cells and cancer cells. Both cell types have the ability to proliferate indefinitely and some studies show that after 60 cycles of cell division, stem cells can accumulate mutations that could lead to cancer. Therefore, the relationship between stem cells and cancer cells needs to be more clearly understood if stem cells are to be used to treat human disease.

What are some of the ethical issues related to cloning?

Gene cloning is a carefully regulated technique that is largely accepted today and used routinely in many labs worldwide. However, both reproductive and therapeutic cloning raise important ethical issues, especially as related to the potential use of these techniques in humans.

Reproductive cloning would present the potential of creating a human that is genetically identical to another person who has previously existed or who still exists. This may conflict with long-standing religious and societal values about human dignity, possibly infringing upon principles of individual freedom, identity and autonomy. However, some argue that reproductive cloning could help sterile couples fulfill their dream of parenthood. Others see human cloning as a way to avoid passing on a deleterious gene that runs in the family without having to undergo embryo screening or embryo selection.

Therapeutic cloning, while offering the potential for treating humans suffering from disease or injury, would require the destruction of human embryos in the test tube. Consequently, opponents argue that using this technique to collect embryonic stem cells is wrong, regardless of whether such cells are used to benefit sick or injured people.

Last updated: August 15, 2020

Currently five states prohibit the cloning of human beings. In most states, specific exceptions are provided for the purpose of scientific research and cell-based therapies. A complete list of current state laws on cloning human.

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Should Human Cloning Be Allowed? No, It’s a Moral Monstrosity

Published December 5, 2001

The Wallstreet Journal

By Eric Cohen

Dr. Michael West, the lead scientist on the team that recently cloned the first human embryos, believes his mission in life is “to end suffering and death.” “For the sake of medicine,” he informs us, “we need to set our fears aside.” For the sake of health, in other words, we need to overcome our moral inhibitions against cloning and eugenics.

The human cloning announcement was not a shock. We have been “progressing” down this road for years, while averting our gaze from the destination. Now we have cloned human embryos. That means that women’s eggs were procured, their genetic material removed, the DNA from someone else inserted, and the resulting cloned embryos manufactured as genetic replicas of an existing person. In Dr. West’s experiments, the embryos died very quickly. But the hope is that someday these embryos will serve as a source of rejection-free stem cells that can help cure diseases.

For now, this is science fiction, or a rosy form of speculation. No one has ever been treated with “therapeutic cloning” or embryonic stem cells. There have been no human trials. But it is true that this research may work in the future (though the benefits would likely be decades away). In addition, beyond cloning, scientists have larger ambitions, including “tinkering” with DNA before it is placed in an egg, and adding designer genes that would make clones into “super clones,” stem cells into “super stem cells.”

Yet while Dr. West and his colleagues say that they have no interest in creating cloned humans — on the grounds that doing so is not yet safe — they do not seem too frightened by the prospect of laying the groundwork for those who would do just that. “We didn’t feel that the abuse of this technology, its potential abuses, should stop us from doing what we believe is the right thing in medicine,” Dr. West said.

The Senate, it seems, is also not very concerned. Majority Leader Tom Daschle wants to put off until spring a vote on the Human Cloning Prohibition Act, which the House passed by 265-162 in July. And on Monday, the Senate chose not to consider a six-month moratorium on all human cloning. As Sen. Harry Reid has said, a moratorium for “six months or two months or two days would impede science.” And that, he believes, we cannot do.

It is understandable that many senators want to avoid a decision on this controversial issue, and no surprise that those driven by a desire to advance science and to heal the sick at any cost resist a ban. But as the ethicist Paul Ramsey wrote, “The good things that men do can be complete only by the things they refuse to do.” And cloning is one of those things we should refuse to do.

The debate is usually divided into two issues — reproductive cloning (creating cloned human beings) and therapeutic cloning (creating cloned human embryos for research and destruction). For now, there is near-universal consensus that we should shun the first. The idea of mother-daughter twins or genetically-identical “daddy juniors” stirs horror in us. Our moral sense revolts at the prospect, because so many of our cherished principles would be violated: the principle that children should not be designed in advance; that newborns should be truly new, without the burden of a genetic identity already lived; that a society where cloning is easy (requiring a few cells from anywhere in the body) means anyone could be cloned without knowledge or consent; and that replacing lost loved ones with “copies” is an insult to the ones lost, since it denies the uniqueness and sacredness of their existence. For these reasons, Americans agree that human cloning should never happen — not merely because the procedure is not yet “safe,” but because it is wrong.

Many research advocates say that they, too, are against “reproductive cloning.” But to protect their research, they seek to restrict only the implantation of cloned embryos, not the creation of cloned embryos for research. This is untenable: Once we begin stockpiling cloned embryos for research, it will be virtually impossible to control how they are used. We would be creating a class of embryos that, by law, must be destroyed. And the only remedy for wrongfully implanting cloned embryos would be forced abortions, something neither pro-lifers nor reproductive rights advocates would tolerate, nor should.

But the cloning debate is not simply the latest act in the moral divide over abortion. It is the “opening skirmish” — as Leon Kass, the president’s bioethics czar, describes it — in deciding whether we wish to “put human nature itself on the operating table, ready for alteration, enhancement, and wholesale redesign.” Lured by the seductive promise of medical science to “end” suffering and disease, we risk not seeing the dark side of the eugenic project.

Three horrors come to mind: First, the designing of our descendents, whether through cloning or germ-line engineering, is a form of generational despotism. Second, in trying to make human beings live indefinitely, our scientists have begun mixing our genes with those of cows, pigs, and jellyfish. And in trying to stamp out disease by any means necessary, we risk beginning the “compassionate” project of killing off the diseased themselves, something that has already begun with the selective abortion by parents of “undesirable” embryos.

Proponents of the biogenetic revolution will surely say that such warnings are nothing more than superstitions. Naive to the destructive power of man’s inventions, they will say that freedom means leaving scientists to experiment as they see fit. They will say that those who wish to stop the unchecked advance of biotechnology are themselves “genetic fundamentalists,” who see human beings as nothing more than their genetic make-ups. Banning human cloning, one advocate says, “would set a very dangerous precedent of bringing the police powers of the federal government into the laboratories.”

But the fact is that society accepts the need to regulate behavior for moral reasons — from drug use to nuclear weapons research to dumping waste. And those who say that human identity is “more than a person’s genetic make-up” are typically the ones who seek to crack man’s genetic code, so that they might “improve” humans in the image they see fit. In promising biological utopia, they justify breaching fundamental moral boundaries.

C. S. Lewis saw this possibility long ago in “The Abolition of Man.” As he put it, “Each new power won by man is a power over man as well.” In order to stop the dehumanization of man, and the creation of a post-human world of designer babies, man-animal chimeras, and “compassionate killing” of the disabled, we may have to forego some research. We may have to say no to certain experiments before they begin. The ban on human cloning is an ideal opportunity to reassert democratic control over science, and to reconnect technological advance with human dignity and responsibility.

Source Notes Copyright: 2001 The Wall Street Journal

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The Ethics of Human Cloning and Stem Cell Research

  • Markkula Center for Applied Ethics
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Report from a conference on state regulation of cloning and stem cell research.

"California Cloning: A Dialogue on State Regulation" was convened October 12, 2001, by the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University. Its purpose was to bring together experts from the fields of science, religion, ethics, and law to discuss how the state of California should proceed in regulating human cloning and stem cell research.

A framework for discussing the issue was provided by Center Director of Biotechnology and Health Care Ethics Margaret McLean, who also serves on the California State Advisory Committee on Human Cloning. In 1997, the California legislature declared a "five year moratorium on cloning of an entire human being" and requested that "a panel of representatives from the fields of medicine, religion, biotechnology, genetics, law, bioethics and the general public" be established to evaluate the "medical, ethical and social implications" of human cloning (SB 1344). This 12-member Advisory Committee on Human Cloning convened five public meetings, each focusing on a particular aspect of human cloning: e.g., reproductive cloning, and cloning technology and stem cells. The committee is drafting a report to the legislature that is due on December 31, 2001. The report will discuss the science of cloning, and the ethical and legal considerations of applications of cloning technology. It will also set out recommendations to the legislature regarding regulation of human cloning. The legislature plans to take up this discussion after January. The moratorium expires the end of 2002.

What should the state do at that point? More than 80 invited guests came to SCU for "California Cloning" to engage in a dialogue on that question. These included scientists, theologians, businesspeople from the biotechnology industry, bioethicists, legal scholars, representatives of non-profits, and SCU faculty. Keynote Speaker Ursula Goodenough, professor of biology at Washington University and author of Genetics , set the issues in context with her talk, "A Religious Naturalist Thinks About Bioethics." Four panels addressed the specific scientific, religious, ethical, and legal implications of human reproductive cloning and stem cell research. This document gives a brief summary of the issues as they were raised by the four panels.

Science and Biotechnology Perspectives

Thomas Okarma, CEO of Geron Corp., launched this panel with an overview of regenerative medicine and distinguished between reproductive cloning and human embryonic stem cell research. He helped the audience understand the science behind the medical potential of embryonic stem cell research, with an explanation of the procedures for creating stem cell lines and the relationship of this field to telomere biology and genetics. No brief summary could do justice to the science. The reader is referred to the report of the National Bioethics Advisory Committee (http://bioethics.georgetown.edu/nbac/stemcell.pdf) for a good introduction.

Responding to Okarma, were J. William Langston, president of the Parkinson’s Institute, and Phyllis Gardner, associate professor of medicine and former dean for medical education at Stanford University. Both discussed the implications of the president’s recent restrictions on stem cell research for the non-profit sector. Langston compared the current regulatory environment to the Reagan era ban on fetal cell research, which he believed was a serious setback for Parkinson’s research. He also pointed out that stem cell research was only being proposed using the thousands of embryos that were already being created in the process of fertility treatments. These would ultimately be disposed of in any event, he said, arguing that it would be better to allow them to serve some function rather than be destroyed. President Bush has confined federally-funded research to the 64 existing stem cell lines, far too few in Langston’s view. In addition, Langston opposed bans on government funding for stem cell research because of the opportunities for public review afforded by the process of securing government grants.

Gardner talked about the differences between academic and commercial research, suggesting that both were important for the advancement of science and its application. Since most of the current stem cell lines are in the commercial sector and the president has banned the creation of new lines, she worried that universities would not continue to be centers of research in this important area. That, she argued, would cut out the more serendipitous and sometimes more altruistic approaches of academic research. Also, it might lead to more of the brain drain represented by the recent move of prominent UCSF stem cell researcher Roger Pedersen to Britain. Gardner expressed a hope that the United States would continue to be the "flagship" in stem cell research. Her concerns were echoed later by moderator Allen Hammond, SCU law professor, who urged the state, which has been at the forefront of stem cell research to consider the economic impact of banning such activity. All three panelists commended the decision of the state advisory committee to deal separately with the issues of human cloning and stem cell research.

Religious Perspectives

Two religion panelists, Suzanne Holland and Laurie Zoloth, are co editors of The Human Embryonic Stem Cell Debate: Science, Ethics and Public Policy (MIT Press, 2001). Holland, assistant professor of Religious and Social Ethics at the University of Puget Sound, began the panel with a discussion of Protestant ideas about the sin of pride and respect for persons and how these apply to human reproductive cloning. Given current safety concerns about cloning, she was in favor of a continuing ban. But ultimately, she argued, cloning should be regulated rather than banned outright. In fact, she suggested, the entire fertility industry requires more regulation. As a basis for such regulation, she proposed assessing the motivation of those who want to use the technology. Those whose motives arise from benevolence--for example, those who want to raise a child but have no other means of bearing a genetically related baby--should be allowed to undergo a cloning procedure. Those whose motives arise more from narcissistic considerations -- people who want immortality or novelty -- should be prohibited from using the technology. She proposed mandatory counseling and a waiting period as a means of assessing motivation.

Zoloth reached a different conclusion about reproductive cloning based on her reading of Jewish sources. She argued that the availability of such technology would make human life too easily commodified, putting the emphasis more on achieving a copy of the self than on the crucial parental act of creating "a stranger to whom you would give your life." She put the cloning issue in the context of a system where foster children cannot find homes and where universal health care is not available for babies who have already been born. While Zoloth reported that Jewish ethicists vary considerably in their views about reproductive cloning, there is fairly broad agreement that stem cell research is justified. Among the Jewish traditions she cited were:

The embryo does not have the status of a human person.

There is a commandment to heal.

Great latitude is permitted for learning.

The world is uncompleted and requires human participation to become whole.

Catholic bioethicist Albert Jonsen, one of the deans of the field, gave a historical perspective on the cloning debate, citing a paper by Joshua Lederburg in the 1960s, which challenged his colleagues to look at the implications of the then-remote possibility. He also traced the development of Catholic views on other new medical technologies. When organ transplantation was first introduced, it was opposed as a violation of the principal, "First, do no harm" and as a mutilation of the human body. Later, the issue was reconceived in terms of charity and concern for others. One of the key questions, Jonsen suggested, is What can we, as a society that promotes religious pluralism, do when we must make public policy on issues where religious traditions may disagree. He argued that beneath the particular teachings of each religion are certain broad themes they share, which might provide a framework for the debate. These include human finitude, human fallibility, human dignity, and compassion.

Ethics Perspectives

Lawrence Nelson, adjunct associate professor of philosophy at SCU, opened the ethics panel with a discussion of the moral status of the human embryo. Confining his remarks to viable, extracorporeal embryos (embryos created for fertility treatments that were never implanted), Nelson argued that these beings do have some moral status--albeit it weak--because they are alive and because they are valued to varying degrees by other moral agents. This status does entitle the embryo to some protection. In Nelson’s view, the gamete sources whose egg and sperm created these embryos have a unique connection to them and should have exclusive control over their disposition. If the gamete sources agree, Nelson believes the embryos can be used for research if they are treated respectfully. Some manifestations of respect might be:

They are used only if the goal of the research cannot be obtained by other methods.

The embryos have not reached gastrulation (prior to 14 to 18 days of development).

Those who use them avoid considering or treating them as property.

Their destruction is accompanied by some sense of loss or sorrow.

Philosophy Professor Barbara MacKinnon (University of San Francisco), editor of Human Cloning: Science, Ethics, and Public Policy , began by discussing the distinction between reproductive and therapeutic cloning and the slippery slope argument. She distinguished three different forms of this argument and showed that for each, pursuing stem cell research will not inevitably lead to human reproductive cloning. MacKinnon favored a continuing ban on the latter, citing safety concerns. Regarding therapeutic cloning and stem cell research, she criticized consequentialist views such as that anything can be done to reduce human suffering and that certain embryos would perish anyway. However, she noted that non-consequentialist concerns must also be addressed for therapeutic cloning, among them the question of the moral status of the early embryo. She also made a distinction between morality and the law, arguing that not everything that is immoral ought to be prohibited by law, and showed how this position relates to human cloning.

Paul Billings, co-founder of GeneSage, has been involved in crafting an international treaty to ban human reproductive cloning and germ-line genetic engineering. As arguments against human cloning he cited:

There is no right to have a genetically related child.

Cloning is not safe.

Cloning is not medically necessary.

Cloning could not be delivered in an equitable manner.

Billings also believes that the benefits of stem cell therapies have been "wildly oversold." Currently, he argues, there are no effective treatments coming from this research. He is also concerned about how developing abilities in nuclear transfer technology may have applications in germ-line genetic engineering that we do not want to encourage. As a result, he favors the current go-slow approach of banning the creation of new cell lines until some therapies have been proven effective. At the same time, he believes we must work to better the situation of the poor and marginalized so their access to all therapies is improved.

Legal Perspectives

Member of the State Advisory Committee on Human Cloning Henry "Hank" Greely addressed some of the difficulties in creating a workable regulatory system for human reproductive cloning. First he addressed safety, which, considering the 5 to 10 times greater likelihood of spontaneous abortion in cloned sheep, he argued clearly justifies regulation. The FDA has currently claimed jurisdiction over this technology, but Greely doubted whether the courts would uphold this claim. Given these facts, Greely saw three alternatives for the state of California:

Do nothing; let the federal government take care of it.

Create an FDA equivalent to regulate the safety of the process, an alternative he pointed out for which the state has no experience.

Continue the current ban on the grounds of safety until such time as the procedure is adjudged safe. Next Greely responded to suggestions that the state might regulate by distinguishing between prospective cloners on the basis of their motivation, for example, denying a request to clone a person to provide heart tissue for another person but okaying a request if cloning were the only opportunity a couple might have to conceive a child. Greely found the idea of the state deciding on such basis deeply troubling because it would necessitate "peering into someone’s soul" in a manner that government is not adept at doing.

The impact of regulation on universities was the focus of Debra Zumwalt’s presentation. As Stanford University general counsel, Zumwalt talked about the necessity of creating regulations that are clear and simple. Currently, federal regulations on stem cells are unclear, she argued, making it difficult for universities and other institutions to tell if they are in compliance. She believes that regulations should be based on science and good public policy rather than on politics. As a result, she favored overall policy being set by the legislature but details being worked out at the administrative level by regulatory agencies with expertise. Whatever regulations California develops should not be more restrictive than the federal regulations, she warned, or research would be driven out of the state. Like several other speakers, Zumwalt was concerned about federal regulations restricting stem cell research to existing cell lines. That, she feared, would drive all research into private hands. "We must continue to have a public knowledge base," she said. Also, she praised the inherent safeguards in academic research including peer review, ethics panels, and institutional review boards.

SCU Presidential Professor of Ethics and the Common Good June Carbone looked at the role of California cloning decisions in contributing to the governance of biotechnology. California, she suggested, cannot address these issues alone, and thus might make the most useful contribution by helping to forge a new international moral consensus through public debate. Taking a lesson from U.S. response to recent terrorist attacks, she argued for international consensus based on the alliance of principle and self-interest. Such consensus would need to be enforced both by carrot and stick and should, she said, include a public-private partnership to deal with ethical issues. Applying these ideas to reproductive cloning, she suggested that we think about which alliances would be necessary to prevent or limit the practice. Preventing routine use might be accomplished by establishing a clear ethical and professional line prohibiting reproductive cloning. Preventing exceptional use (a determined person with sufficient money to find a willing doctor) might not be possible. As far as stem cell research is concerned, Carbone argued that the larger the investment in such research, the bigger the carrot--the more the funder would be able to regulate the process. That, she suggested, argues for a government role in the funding. If the professional community does not respect the ethical line drawn by politicians, and alternative funding is available from either public sources abroad or private sources at home, the U.S. political debate runs the risk of becoming irrelevant.

"California Cloning" was organized by the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics and co-sponsored by the Bannan Center for Jesuit Education and Christian Values; the Center for Science, Technology, and Society; the SCU School of Law; the High Tech Law Institute; the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Community of Science Scholars Initiative; and the law firm of Latham & Watkins.

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Law and Medicine: Current Legal Issues Volume 3

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The Ethics of Human Cloning

  • Published: August 2000
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Recent events in Britain and the United States have shown that human cloning, as well as cloning animals, raises important ethical questions. Human cloning requires us to think about the nature of a human embryo, the moral status of the human embryo, what is required by respect for human embryos, and whether the distinction between ‘spare’ embryos (that is, those left over from in vitro fertilization or IVF) and embryos deliberately created for research purposes has moral significance. This chapter discusses embryonic stem cell research, the moral status of the embryo, and morally permissible sources of stem cells.

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Human Cloning

Human reproductive cloning – producing a genetic copy of an existing person using somatic cell nuclear transfer – has never been done. Many scientists believe that it can never be safe. In opinion polls , , overwhelming majorities consistently reject its use. The U.S. has no federal law on human reproductive cloning, but several states, dozens of countries, and international agreements prohibit it.

Research cloning – producing cloned human embryos from which to derive embryonic stem cells (theoretically for customized medical treatment or research) – has been supplanted by techniques to derive pluripotent stem cells from somatic cells. Concerns raised by research cloning include its reliance on large numbers of women’s eggs (involving risks that are understudied and often downplayed), unrealistic claims about “personalized” therapies, and the need for effective oversight to prevent rogue use of cloned embryos for reproductive human cloning.

Scientists successfully clone monkeys; are humans up next?

Aggregated News

For the first time, researchers have used the cloning technique that produced Dolly the sheep to create healthy monkeys, bringing science an important step closer to being able to do the same with humans.

Since Dolly’s birth in 1996, scientists...

Born This Week: Dolly the Sheep

A Star is Born

On July 5, 1996, the most famous individual sheep in history was born: Dolly, the first mammal cloned from an adult cell.

Scientists had cloned frogs previously, but many considered using an adult mammalian cell to produce a new creature with the same genome to be impossible. There was no public notice on the day of Dolly’s birth; the announcement was made on February 24, 1997, by Ian Wilmut and colleagues at the Roslin Institute, Scotland...

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  • Published: 21 March 2017

The global governance of human cloning: the case of UNESCO

  • Adèle Langlois 1  

Palgrave Communications volume  3 , Article number:  17019 ( 2017 ) Cite this article

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Since Dolly the Sheep was cloned in 1996, the question of whether human reproductive cloning should be banned or pursued has been the subject of international debate. Feelings run strong on both sides. In 2005, the United Nations adopted its Declaration on Human Cloning to try to deal with the issue. The declaration is ambiguously worded, prohibiting “all forms of human cloning inasmuch as they are incompatible with human dignity and the protection of human life”. It received only ambivalent support from UN member states. Given this unsatisfactory outcome, in 2008 UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) set up a Working Group to investigate the possibility of a legally binding convention to ban human reproductive cloning. The Working Group was made up of members of the International Bioethics Committee, established in 1993 as part of UNESCO’s Bioethics Programme. It found that the lack of clarity in international law is unhelpful for those states yet to formulate national regulations or policies on human cloning. Despite this, member states of UNESCO resisted the idea of a convention for several years. This changed in 2015, but there has been no practical progress on the issue. Drawing on official records and first-hand observations at bioethics meetings, this article examines the human cloning debate at UNESCO from 2008 onwards, thus building on and advancing current scholarship by applying recent ideas on global governance to an empirical case. It concludes that, although human reproductive cloning is a challenging subject, establishing a robust global governance framework in this area may be possible via an alternative deliberative format, based on knowledge sharing and feasibility testing rather than the interest-based bargaining that is common to intergovernmental organizations and involving a wide range of stakeholders. This article is published as part of a collection on global governance.

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Introduction

UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) was founded in 1945, aiming to “build peace in the minds of men” through education, science, culture and communication ( UNESCO, 2007 ). Its Bioethics Programme began in 1993. The organization deems itself uniquely placed to lead the way in setting bioethical standards, as the only UN agency with a mandate for both the human and social sciences ( UNESCO, 2016e ). To this end, it has adopted three declarations on bioethics: the 1997 Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights (UNESCO, 1997), the 2003 International Declaration on Human Genetic Data (UNESCO, 2003) and the 2005 Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights (UNESCO, 2005b). After drafting three declarations in the space of a decade, UNESCO decided to take a “normative pause” and instead focus on fostering take-up of the existing declarations regionally and nationally ( UNESCO, 2005a ). Before long, however, it started to consider a fourth bioethics instrument, an international convention on human cloning. From 2008 to 2011 it investigated whether an international convention to ban human reproductive cloning is warranted. The Working Group assigned to this question “flip-flopped” back and forth: in 2008 it recommended a convention, in 2009 it decided continued international dialogue would be sufficient and in 2010 it went back to a convention. As member states could not agree on a way forward, the issue was dropped in 2011 without a firm decision being made on the need or otherwise for a convention. This can be seen as a global governance failure. In 2014, the Bioethics Programme began to revisit the issue. This time there was greater consensus on the need for a ban on human reproductive cloning, but no practical progress has been made.

This article takes a traditional global governance scenario—a debate within a UN agency about whether to draft an international convention—and asks why the outcome was unsatisfactory. The analysis draws on first-hand observations of UNESCO’s publicly held bioethics meetings in 2010 and 2011, official UNESCO records of these and other meetings and UNESCO reports on human cloning. After a brief introduction to (a) developments in global governance and (b) the science and ethics of human cloning, the article charts the progress and ultimate collapse of the UNESCO cloning debate from 2008 to 2011 and developments from 2014 onwards. It concludes that, although human reproductive cloning is a challenging subject, establishing a global governance framework in this area may be possible via an alternative deliberative format.

Global governance

Ruggie (2014 : 5) defines governance as “systems of authoritative norms, rules, institutions, and practices by means of which any collectivity, from the local to the global, manages its common affairs”. At the global level these systems, particularly within formal intergovernmental settings such as UNESCO, are increasingly seen to be inadequate, with scholars variously describing them as “facing a deep crisis” ( Pauwelyn et al., 2014 : 737), “suboptimal” ( Ruggie, 2014 : 15) and suffering the “pathologies” of gridlock, fragmentation, disconnect between related issue areas and conflicts of interest ( Pegram and Acuto, 2015 : 586). The old, hierarchical model of multilateral governance is considered too rigid ( Pauwelyn et al., 2014 : 737) and to have “limited utility in dealing with many of today’s most significant global challenges” ( Ruggie, 2014 : 8). Traditional intergovernmental organizations have not adapted to the increasing complexity of society and the ensuing need for flexible regulatory mechanisms that can keep pace with scientific development ( Pauwelyn et al., 2014 : 742–743).

These problems have led to changes and innovations in both the theory and practice of global governance ( Ruggie, 2014 ; Weiss and Wilkinson, 2014 ; Pegram and Acuto, 2015 : 588). As Pauwelyn et al. (2014: 734) note, “Formal international law is stagnating in terms of both quantity and quality. It is increasingly superseded by ‘informal international lawmaking’ involving new actors, new processes, and new outputs”. They refer to this stagnation as “treaty fatigue” ( Pauwelyn et al., 2014 : 739). The international system is becoming more pluralist and less dominated by sovereign states pursuing narrow interests. There has been movement towards voluntary rather than binding regulation, as well as capacity building ( Pauwelyn et al., 2014 : 736; Pegram and Acuto, 2015 : 591). Particularly for emerging areas, such as the internet, regulation has been informal, with no discussion of a legally binding treaty ( Pauwelyn et al., 2014 : 738). In turn, a “second generation” of global governance scholarship, which recognizes the complexity of global governance in a changed global context, is focusing less exclusively on intergovernmental politics. In the introduction to their special issue of Millennium on global governance’s “interregnum”, Pegram and Acuto (2015 : 586 and 588) predict a “more innovative global governance research and practice-oriented agenda” and a transition to “a potentially more pluralist (and hopefully more democratic) intellectual and practical ecosystem, as well as to new structures of power”. This article applies some of these new practices and ideas to UNESCO’s human cloning debate, answering Pegram and Acuto’s call for “more empirical research” ( Pegram and Acuto, 2015 : 595).

Human cloning and its current international regulation

Although the idea of human cloning excites strong views, there is much confusion about what it would actually entail. Cloning can take two forms: “reproductive” cloning and “therapeutic” or “research” cloning. These terms are not scientifically accurate, but are commonly used nevertheless. They stem from the process of somatic cell nuclear transfer, whereby an enucleated egg receives a nucleus from a somatic (body) cell. In reproductive cloning, the embryo is implanted into a female for gestation. Through this method, Dolly the Sheep became the first mammal to be cloned in July 1996. In therapeutic cloning, an embryo is harvested for stem cells rather than brought to term ( Wilmut et al., 1998 : 21; Bowring, 2004 : 402–403; Isasi et al., 2004 : 628; United Nations University Institute of Advanced Studies, 2007 : 6). Although therapeutic cloning is held by many to have great potential medically, as a source of compatible tissue and organs for those who need transplants, it generates considerable controversy. For people who see human life as beginning at fertilization, therapeutic cloning is also reproductive ( Isasi et al., 2004 : 628; Lo et al., 2010 : 17).

Since the cloning of Dolly the Sheep, ethicists, lawyers and scientists have argued vigorously both for and against developing this technology for use in humans. Those in favour draw on liberal values, citing reproductive freedom, or hope that cloning will provide a new means to tackle infertility. Those against fear for the psychological health of the clone, who would be unable to enjoy what they see as the inherently human quality of having a unique identity. Clones might be expected by their “parents” to conform to a particular life pattern, or feel shackled by knowing about the life of the person from whom they were cloned. Those on both sides mostly agree that, based on the poor success rate in animal cloning and the potential health risks to mother and child, on safety grounds it would be unethical to attempt human cloning currently ( Kass, 1998 : 694–695; Robertson, 1998 : 1372, 1410–1411 and 1415–1416; Burley and Harris, 1999 : 110; de Melo-Martín, 2002 : 248–250; Harris-Short, 2004 : 333 and 344; Tannert, 2006 : 239; Mameli, 2007 : 87; Morales, 2009 : 43; Shapsay, 2012 : 357; The Ethics Committee of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, 2012 : 804–805; Wilmut, 2014 : 40–41).

Many countries have banned reproductive and/or therapeutic cloning. In most cases, their laws refer to somatic cell nuclear transfer rather than cloning more generally and thus newer technologies are not covered ( Lo et al., 2010 : 16). Several international and regional measures also prohibit human reproductive cloning: UNESCO’s 1997 Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights (UNESCO, 1997), the World Health Organization’s resolutions of 1997 and 1998 on the implications of cloning for human health (WHO, 1998), the Council of Europe’s 1998 Additional Protocol to the Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine, on the Prohibition of Cloning Human Beings (Council of Europe, 1998) and the European Union’s 2000 (amended 2007) Charter of Fundamental Human Rights (European Union, 2012). As the Council of Europe’s protocol has been ratified by only 23 of its 47 member states, the EU Charter is limited to the enactment of EU law and UNESCO’s declaration is by definition non-binding, none of these represent an absolute ban ( Council of Europe, 2016 ; European Commission, 2016 ). Hence, at the request of France and Germany, in 2001 the UN General Assembly began to deliberate on a binding treaty to prohibit human reproductive cloning. Four years of dispute and discord followed. Some states were concerned that an embargo on reproductive cloning specifically would implicitly endorse therapeutic or research cloning, whilst those wishing to pursue therapeutic cloning could not support a holistic ban. With agreement on a binding convention seemingly elusive, the General Assembly opted for a non-binding declaration. The United Nations Declaration on Human Cloning was duly adopted on 8 March 2005, but not unanimously. 84 states voted in favour, 34 voted against and 37 abstained ( Arsanjani, 2006 ; Isasi and Annas, 2006 ; Cameron and Henderson, 2007 ). The declaration, rather ambiguously, calls on states to “prohibit all forms of human cloning inasmuch as they are incompatible with human dignity and the protection of human life” ( United Nations, 2005 ). It is considered too weak an instrument to either thwart rogue research or promote legitimate scientific endeavour ( Isasi and Annas, 2006 : 63; United Nations University Institute of Advanced Studies, 2007 : 19).

The UNESCO Bioethics Programme

The UNESCO Bioethics Programme began in 1993 with the formation of the International Bioethics Committee (IBC), made up of independent experts. An Intergovernmental Bioethics Committee (IGBC), comprising state representatives, followed in 1999. Each committee has 36 members. The IBC meets yearly and the IGBC biennially. Regular joint meetings of the two committees are also held. The IBC has various functions, including promoting bioethics education and reflection on ethical issues. The IGBC’s mandate is to examine the recommendations of the IBC and report back to the Director-General of UNESCO ( UNESCO, 1998 ). The IBC works on the basis of 2-year Work Programmes (human cloning, for example, featured in the 2008–2009 and 2010–2011 programmes), with reflections on particular topics being drafted by specially appointed Working Groups, comprising a small number of IBC members, over the 2-year cycle. Each Group presents their work-in-progress at IBC and IGBC meetings and takes the views expressed at these meetings into account in their final reports.

Scholars from both within and without the Bioethics Programme have analysed its efficacy as a forum for ethical debate and standard-setting. Footnote 1 These analyses have mostly focused on the negotiation of the 2005 Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights . The interest-based bargaining often seen within intergovernmental organizations led to vague wording on beginning and end of life issues and risk assessment, while controversial issues such as sex selection, gene therapy and stem cell research were left out entirely, as states could not reach a consensus on these ( Schmidt, 2007 ; Langlois, 2013 ). UNESCO claims that its status as an intergovernmental body differentiates it from ethics institutions outside of the UN like the World Medical Association, a professional body ( ten Have, 2006 : 342). However, there has been a lack of buy-in from the global bioethics community, particularly academics, who have questioned the expertise and representativeness of the IBC ( Cameron 2014 : 237 and 240). The lack of enforcement power of the 2005 declaration, as a non-binding instrument, has also been noted. Yet Cameron (2014 : 252 and 261) argues that declarations have advantages over conventions, because of their reliance on moral persuasion and their inclusivity in comparison to conventions, which are only binding on those states that accede to them. UNESCO suffered a major setback in 2011, when the United States withdrew funding in light of Palestine’s admittance as a member state, a cut of 22 per cent of the operational budget ( UNESCO, 2011e ; UNESCO, 2013a ). 2 The Bioethics Programme has emerged relatively unscathed, however, as its budget allocation has largely been protected (UNESCO, 2013c; UNESCO, 2016a ).

The human cloning debate at UNESCO 2008–2011

At the request of then Director-General of UNESCO, Koïchiro Matsuura, in 2008 the IBC decided to investigate the possibility of a convention on human cloning and appointed a Working Group on Human Cloning and International Governance ( UNESCO, 2009a : 1–2). This was a response to the publication of a report the previous year by the United Nations University’s Institute of Advanced Studies, entitled Is Human Reproductive Cloning Inevitable: Future Options for UN Governance . The Working Group was tasked with reviewing “whether the scientific, ethical, social, political and legal developments on human cloning in recent years justify a new initiative at international level”, rather than examining the ethics and science of human cloning per se or drafting a legal text ( UNESCO, 2008a : 1). The IBC and IGBC meetings where human cloning was discussed took place as follows: ( Table 1 )

The Working Group’s first report was an interim report, published in September 2008. It recommended a new, binding international convention to ban human reproductive cloning ( UNESCO, 2008b : 4). The report was discussed the following month by the IBC and IGBC (the IBC met for 2 days by itself and then jointly with the IGBC for 2 days), where it was given an ambivalent reception. Many participants did not believe there had been sufficient change in national positions to avoid a repetition of the fractious debate and unsatisfactory outcome at the UN General Assembly a few years before. On the other hand, some delegates underlined the potential utility of a convention for those developing countries yet to legislate on cloning ( UNESCO, 2010a : 6 and 12). In response to these discussions, the Working Group was more cautious in its final report of June 2009. Judging that the introduction of a new international normative instrument would be premature, it recommended increased global dialogue as an alternative ( UNESCO, 2009a : 7). This suggestion was commended by the IGBC at its July 2009 meeting, with several participants noting that developing countries that do not have “a well-developed national bioethics infrastructure” would benefit particularly from international level debate ( UNESCO, 2009b : 4).

The cloning mandate continued into the next Work Programme of 2010–2011. After discussion at its November 2009 meeting and on the advice of the IGBC, the IBC instructed an expanded Working Group to continue its work on cloning by examining three issues: (a) the ethical impact of terminology (b) dissemination activities and (c) regulation of human reproductive cloning (including by moratorium). The Working Group duly delivered a draft report to the IBC and joint IBC–IGBC meetings of October 2010. On options for regulation, it found that a more robust instrument on human reproductive cloning than existed currently was needed, such as an international convention or moratorium ( UNESCO, 2010b : 1 and 6). The reception from the IBC and IGBC was again mixed, as reported by the UNESCO website:

IBC members were unequivocal in expressing concern that the recent scientific developments have raised a need for a binding international legal instrument. However, feedback by Member States of IGBC was indicative that the political hurdles that have prevented the realization of such instrument in the past are still in place. [ sic ] ( UNESCO, 2016b )

As noted in the official record of the IBC-only meeting, members considered it “imperative” that binding international law to ban human reproductive cloning be put in place ( UNESCO, 2011d : 6). By contrast, within the joint IBC–IGBC meeting that followed, the US delegation was perplexed as to why the possibility of a convention was “back on the table”, after it had seemingly been rejected in the 2008–2009 Working Group’s final report. It advocated ongoing dialogue instead, alongside support for states developing national regulations on cloning. Germany and Brazil also backed the status quo, prompting one IBC member to ask why in 2010 they believed a convention to be premature, when in 2001, the year the idea was first put to the UN, they had thought one timely. Meanwhile, some developing countries stated their desire for a convention on cloning (but not necessarily a prohibitive one) (personal observations, Joint Session of the IBC and IGBC, October 2010). Given the diversity of views, it was left that the IGBC would “thoroughly examine the issue” at its next session (to be held in September the following year), after the IBC, via the Working Group, had finalized its report (UNESCO, 2016b).

The IBC held its next meeting in May–June 2011, at which the Working Group presented a draft “final statement” rather than a finalized version of the draft report of the previous year. This statement repeated the recommendations of the 2010 draft report, emphasizing that developing countries that do not have national regulations on human reproductive cloning are in particular need of a binding international convention or moratorium. In addition, it suggested that “technical manipulations of human embryo, either for research or therapeutic purposes” [ sic ] (that is, what is commonly known as therapeutic or research cloning) should carry on being regulated at domestic level, in accordance with social, historical and religious contexts ( UNESCO, 2011b : 3). The IBC chose not to adopt the statement because of the now “divergent positions” of its members on both the ethics and governance of cloning ( UNESCO, 2011c : 4). At the ethical level, some members were not convinced that the potential for detrimental genetic determinism was a strong enough argument against reproductive cloning, whilst at the political level, some felt the committee could make little progress while consensus among states remained elusive (personal observations, Eighteenth Session of the IBC, May–June 2011).

At the IGBC’s September 2011 meeting, the outgoing IBC Chair reported on his committee’s activities. With regard to the cloning debate, he explained that despite some members having wanted to go to a vote on whether to adopt the Working Group’s draft statement, he had opposed this, because the IBC had always operated by consensus in the past. He also expressed his belief that consensus on a ban will always be impossible to achieve, because at its core the issue is philosophical rather than scientific, concerning the status of the early embryo. IGBC delegations agreed for the most part, the United States, Austria and Denmark echoing IBC members in predicting that further efforts to reach an agreement on regulation would prove fruitless (personal observations, Seventh Session of the IGBC, September 2011). The official conclusions of the meeting noted the topic’s ongoing importance, but also the absence of any consensus among both states and IBC members. Hence the IGBC merely called on UNESCO “to continue to follow the developments in this field in order to anticipate emerging ethical challenges” ( UNESCO, 2011a: 3 ). Subsequently, the 2012–2013 IBC Work Programme consigned cloning to monitoring by a few IBC members, who were in turn to report any significant developments in the field to the committee and thereby the Director-General of UNESCO ( UNESCO, 2016f ).

After 4 years of work and discussion, then, UNESCO’s inability to come to a consensus on whether or not a convention to ban human reproductive cloning would be desirable meant that a decision against a convention was made by default. The Working Group’s draft final statement of 2011 had concluded, “The current non-binding international regulations cannot be considered sufficient in addressing the challenges posed by the contemporary scientific developments and to safeguard the interests of the developing countries that still lack specific regulations in this area” ( UNESCO, 2011b : 3). If this is the case, UNESCO’s failure to meet the need identified by its Working Group is problematic, as there is a governance gap.

2014–2015 developments

In its 2014–2015 Work Programme the IBC revisited the topic of human cloning as part of its wider efforts to update its earlier work on the human genome and human rights. The June 2015 draft report of the Working Group appointed to this task reiterated the need for a ban on human reproductive cloning. It also called for “a global forum of scientists and bioethicists, under the auspices of the United Nations” to investigate what the consequences of new genomic technologies might be and stated, “The United Nations should be responsible for making fundamental normative decisions. The precautionary principle should be respected, ensuring that substantial consensus of the scientific community on the safety of new technological applications be the premise for any further consideration” ( UNESCO, 2015b : 25–27).

The IGBC, on reviewing this draft report at its July 2015 meeting (Ninth Session), found the IBC’s recommendations to be “pertinent and timely” (UNESCO, 2015a: 2). This was in marked contrast to the comments by some of its members a few years before that a ban on human reproductive cloning would be “premature” ( UNESCO, 2009a : 7). Perhaps wary of ceding “territory”, the IGBC stressed that UNESCO was the appropriate forum for discussion of a ban. In the official conclusions of the meeting, it also invited the Secretariat of the Bioethics Programme to “collect and compile existing legal models, case studies and best practices” on cloning and other issues relating to the human genome addressed in the report ( UNESCO, 2015a : 2–3). The draft was revised in light of the IGBC’s comments and then discussed and revised again at the IBC’s 22 nd Session in October 2015. The final version— Report of the IBC on Updating Its Reflection on the Human Genome and Human Rights —states that the UN should be responsible for fundamental normative decisions “through its several agencies and bodies and other possible procedures of consultation and evaluation” rather than a new global forum. It also asserts UNESCO’s position as a key player in the bioethics community, adding that, in terms of any revisions to existing declarations, “First of all, this is a task to perform for UNESCO, building on its well-established, pivotal role as a global forum for global bioethics” ( UNESCO, 2015c : 27–29).

The report addresses several issues that fall under the banner of the human genome and human rights, not just cloning. Nevertheless, cloning is prominent. The Executive Summary includes an “open list” of recommended actions for states and governments. The first item is: “Produce an international legally binding instrument to ban human cloning for reproductive purposes”. There are also recommendations for scientists and regulatory bodies, who are to “renounce the pursuit of spectacular experiments that do not comply with the respect of fundamental human rights” ( UNESCO, 2015c : 3–4). The main text expands on this, to state that such experiments should be discouraged (by not being allocated public funds, for instance) and in some cases prohibited, where there is no medical justification and a risk to safety. That this refers to cloning is made explicit, as follows: “Research on the possibility of cloning human beings for reproductive purposes remains the most illustrative example of what should remain banned all over the world” ( UNESCO, 2015c : 26). More generally, the report advocates a conservative approach to decision- and law-making that may be particularly relevant to human embryonic stem cell research, or “therapeutic cloning”. It encourages the adoption of legislation at international and national levels that is “as non-controversial as possible, especially with regard to the issues of modifying the human genome and producing and destroying human embryos”, to respect differing sensitivities and cultures ( UNESCO, 2015c : 3 and 6). Footnote 2 With regard to developing countries, the report acknowledges that they may not have major access to new genomic technologies in the near future, but recommends that LMIC (low and middle income country) governments develop national policies on genomics “within the context of their national economic and sociocultural uniqueness” ( UNESCO, 2015c : 29). The report also makes recommendations for “all actors of civil society”, including the media, educators and businesses. The former are to “avoid any sensationalism”, whilst the latter are not to chase profit by operating in countries with weak regulations ( UNESCO, 2015c : 3–4).

Hofferberth (2015 : 616) is critical of the assumption that “global problems are tractable and solutions feasible if actors will only come and work together to solve them”. As shown above, some members of the IBC and IGBC believed that the reason why they failed to reach consensus during the first 4 years of debate on human cloning (2008–2011) was the inherently irresolvable nature of the problem itself. But other controversial areas, such as business and human rights, have not proved immune to recent efforts towards policy and norm convergence ( Ruggie, 2014 : 6). Another possible explanation for the failure, then, is that the legal and organizational structures directing the deliberation did not lend themselves to consensual decision-making. In the early 2000s the UN General Assembly had found that the old model of state-based treaty negotiation did not work for human cloning, when it failed to agree on a convention and chose a non-binding declaration instead. UNESCO’s experience was similar, although it was not negotiations on treaty content that failed, but the preceding stage of deciding whether or not to attempt to draft a treaty. In raising the possibility of a convention in 2008, UNESCO was going against the emerging trend within global governance towards voluntary rather than binding regulation, combined with capacity building. Germany, for example, which was one of the states that originally espoused the idea of a human cloning convention at the UN in 2001, now looks for other, less rigid means by which the goals of a proposed treaty can be reached ( Pauwelyn et al., 2014 : 739). Within UNESCO, as in other intergovernmental organizations, it is states that make the final decisions, so even if in 2011 the IBC (made up of independent experts) had continued to insist on the desirability of a convention, it would only have had the power to recommend to member states that they take the idea forward.

Pauwelyn et al. (2014 : 734) advocate “thick stakeholder consensus” over the “thin state consent” that is the hallmark of the old hierarchical approach to governance. As a treaty could be based on back-room deals between undemocratic states and yet be recognized as international law, they argue that formality is no guarantee of legitimacy, if the latter is assessed in terms of inclusiveness and effectiveness rather than tradition. Rather, the process by which agreement is reached is crucial, as well as the outcome. Careful, open and expert deliberation can lead to high quality outputs, which may or may not be legally binding ( Pauwelyn et al., 2014 : 748–749). One way to achieve both process and output would be to loosen UNESCO’s understanding of “consensus”. By sticking to a rigid definition of consensus at its 2011 meeting, the IBC effectively gave each member a veto. Pauwelyn et al. (2014 : 754–755) contrast this type of arrangement with the “standards world” (that is, the International Organization for Standardization and the International Electrotechnical Commission), which sits outside the intergovernmental system. Here, where governance is seen to be nimbler and more flexible than in traditional governance settings, “consensus” means that “the views of all parties concerned must be taken into any account and an attempt must be made to reconcile conflicting arguments”, so that general agreement can be reached. This level of consensus might be a more realistic target for the IBC and IGBC, enabling them to move forward.

One problem the Bioethics Programme has faced consistently is lack of time for in-depth discussion. At the IBC meeting in May–June 2011, for instance, the public session devoted to cloning lasted little more than an hour (although the committee later continued its discussions in a private meeting). This was not unusual. At the IGBC’s September 2013 meeting (Eighth Session), which reviewed 20 years of the Bioethics Programme, one delegate stated that their government would stop funding their attendance at such meetings unless more time were given to dialogue and papers were sent out early enough for delegates to consult with the relevant ministries on what position they should take (personal observations, Eighteenth Session of the IBC, May–June 2011 and Eighth Session of the IGBC, September 2013 4 ). The Bioethics Programme has already started to implement such changes. More time was allocated to each discussion topic at the IBC and joint IBC–IGBC meetings of September 2014 than at previous sessions, an online forum for past and present IBC members has been established and concept notes to invite written comments from the IGBC on the IBC’s work ahead of meetings have been introduced ( UNESCO, 2015d : 2 and 17).

If deliberations were to emulate recent innovations in other intergovernmental fora, they might be improved further. After its disappointing Copenhagen round in 2009, the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change has moved from formal treaty negotiations that encouraged bargaining and confrontation to workshops and roundtables designed to foster knowledge exchange. This has resulted in “positive competitive dynamics” among states wishing to be leaders in the field of climate change mitigation ( Rietig, 2014 : 372–374). Other stakeholders have also been given a stronger voice; the Paris conference of 2015 made space for NGOs, businesses and cities to share best practices. Furthermore, the Paris Agreement of December 2015 takes a bottom-up approach, in that it is based on Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (pledged targets and actions) by individual states ( Busby, 2016 : 3, 4 and 7). Similarly, after the UN failed to adopt both a code of conduct and a set of norms on business and human rights after several years of trying, it piloted a different standard-setting method. Based on a series of site visits to firms and communities, extensive research and testing of key proposals through feasibility studies, pilot grievance mechanisms and scenario-based exercises, as well as multistakeholder consultations, the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights were endorsed by the Human Rights Council in 2011 and have since been adopted by several other bodies, including business associations. Ruggie (2014 : 5–6 and 10), who directed the consultation process, claims that producing the guiding principles through this “polycentric governance” enabled them to achieve the “thick” consensus advocated by Pauwelyn et al .

Ruggie (2014 : 10) argues that conceptual arguments must be supported by experiential ones if they are to persuade people of the need for change. The cloning debate is necessarily conceptual, as while questions over safety prevail there is no way to experience cloning to see whether fears (about autonomy and individuality, for example) are founded or unfounded. The closest proxies are animal cloning and twin studies. Yet sharing of national regulations and policies on cloning via workshops and roundtables and scenario-based exercises involving potential stakeholders would be feasible. Similar exercises (collating examples of legal frameworks, best practices and case studies) were suggested by the IGBC in their response to the IBC’s 2015 draft report on the human genome and human rights. Such activities could meet developing countries’ needs for something on which to base national cloning legislation, identified by all three IBC Working Groups (2008–2009, 2010–2011 and 2014–2015), by alternative means to a binding international convention, the latest recommendations of the IBC on this (and the IGBC’s endorsement of them) notwithstanding. Continuing to develop the Bioethics Programme’s deliberative format, away from short, formal discussions within committees towards more in-depth information exchange between a broader range of stakeholders, bottom-up pledges of action and development of best practice through feasibility studies, may not result in a decision to begin negotiating a treaty (or even a softer declaration), but could lead to a set of resources and commitments that might prove equally effective in promoting ethical behaviour on the part of states and other actors. An added benefit would be that this type of less legalistic, more flexible deliberative output could be more easily adapted and developed to take account of future scientific advances ( Pauwelyn et al., 2014 : 742–743). Even if UNESCO were to decide to follow the IBC’s 2015 recommendation to pursue the elaboration a further international legal instrument on human cloning, adopting these measures could result in a qualitatively stronger instrument than the Universal Declaration of Bioethics and Human Rights , for example, as there would be less interest-based bargaining and more buy-in from stakeholders.

When intergovernmental organizations are unable to agree on a form of binding international law such as a convention, they sometimes settle for a declaration, which is less demanding of states. This occurred at the UN in 2005, when the General Assembly could not resolve its members’ differences on what the content and reach of a convention on human cloning should be. Declarations have been the preferred option for UNESCO’s Bioethics Programme in the past, as the drafting period is usually shorter than for a convention and the final product is more likely to inspire consensus, partly because it will be seen to be more flexible and less onerous than a binding piece of legislation ( Langlois, 2013 : 65–66). But this was not a viable path for UNESCO when it came to the regulation of human cloning, because an international declaration—the United Nations Declaration on Human Cloning of 2005—already existed. The Bioethics Programme thus broke with previous practice and began to investigate the possibility of a convention on cloning in 2008. There was tension between IBC and IGBC members over whether a convention would be desirable, with the former (the independent experts) supporting a ban on human reproductive cloning and the latter (representing states) concerned that negotiations would simply revisit the disagreements of the UN General Assembly debates of a few years before. Ultimately, with consensus within and between the two committees proving elusive, the idea of a cloning convention dropped from their agendas in 2012.

The idea was taken up again in 2014, as part of the IBC’s work on the human genome. We can only speculate as to why the IGBC of 2015 was keener on a ban on human reproductive cloning than the IGBC of 2008–2011. The United States was no longer a member, but Germany and Brazil still were ( UNESCO, 2016c ). It could be that, since the first human therapeutic (or research) cloning via somatic cell nuclear transfer took place in 2013 ( Tachibana et al., 2013 ), human reproductive cloning has moved from the realms of science fiction to real possibility in the eyes of policy-makers. Or the changes to the deliberative format at IBC and IGBC meetings introduced in 2014, such as pre-session concept notes and longer discussions, may have engendered greater consensus between the two committees. Yet, despite this consensus, there has been no move on the part of UNESCO to start to develop a treaty. In past standard-setting endeavours, an IBC Working Group has done the initial drafting, but the IBC Work Programme of 2016–2017 makes no mention of human cloning ( UNESCO, 2016d ).

For those states that have yet to formulate national regulations or policies on human cloning, the continued lack of clear guidance at international level may be particularly unhelpful. Thus better global governance in this area is needed. In its 2015 report on the human genome and human rights, the IBC fell somewhere between old and new forms of global governance. There was a strong call for an international binding instrument on human reproductive cloning, to be produced by states and governments, but there were also recommended actions and principles for a broad range of stakeholders, including national governments, scientists, the media, educators and corporations. The science and politics of human cloning have moved on since 2011, when states’ positions were seemingly intractable. Were the Bioethics Programme to mirror successful moves in other fora, such as the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Human Rights Council, towards knowledge sharing, scenario-based exercises and action pledges involving a wide range of stakeholders, a robust global governance framework for human cloning—whether a legally binding instrument or something more flexible—might be achievable.

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How to cite this article : Langlois A (2017) The global governance of human cloning: the case of UNESCO. Palgrave Communications . 3:17019 doi: 10.1057/palcomms.2017.19. Footnote 3 Footnote 4

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This cautious, conservative approach is in marked contrast to the advice John Harris, an ethicist, gave at the celebration event to mark the twentieth anniversary of UNESCO’s Bioethics Programme, held at UNESCO headquarters in Paris in September 2013. He stated, “There is the danger—and this is the note on which I wish to end—the danger presented by the precautionary principle itself, which I also believe is one of the biggest dangers facing society and humanity. People often believe that there is some moral imperative to be ultra-cautious in permitting new research, particularly in the general field of genetics. And this caution has also been very true of UNESCO’s approach. However, it is not unusual to find this so-called precautionary principle being invoked in circumstances in which it is far from clear in which direction, if any, caution lies. We cannot know in which direction caution lies without having some rational basis for establishing the scale of likely dangers from pursuing particular programmes of research and innovation and comparing those with the on-going costs of failing to pursue that research to a conclusion. … I hope UNESCO will avoid the terrible mistake it made in Article 11 of the declaration on the human genome of saying, without argument or evidence, without a scintilla of support, that human cloning was contrary to human dignity and must be outlawed. We’re going to have to rethink that. We’re going to need human cloning as one technique among many others. … We need to rethink our prejudices. We need to be slow to outlaw technology. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do it, but we should also do so on the full consideration of the evidence and the argument and never simply because it would be cheap, easy and popular.” (Transcribed from the live webcast of the event, 5 September 2013. Available at: mms://stream.unesco.org/live/room_11_en.wmv . Last accessed 5 September 2013.)

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research of cloning humans is permitted

June 27, 2005

A Patchwork of Laws

Richard Gardner and Tim Watson find much disagreement around the world about what should be allowed with stem cells--in spite of attempts at finding consensus

By Richard Gardner and Tim Watson

Whether scientists can capitalise on the huge potential that stem cell research and therapeutic cloning promise depends on where in the world they work. There is a disparate and confusing patchwork of legislation, with little agreement between countries on exactly what should be permitted and what should be banned. Attempts to reach consensus have failed in Europe and at the United Nations, and in some countries the debate remains unresolved at the national level.

The science is complex, and the ethical dimensions equally so. But the problem lies in the major differences of opinion over which parts of the science are considered acceptable.

There are three main scientific issues at the heart of the debate--human embryonic stem cells, reproductive cloning and therapeutic cloning. To some, all three are equally unacceptable, but to others they are different enough to merit separate consideration.

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The source of human embryonic stem cells is a major point of contention, as they are taken from embryos that are just a few days old. They are primarily taken from embryos that have been left over from fertility treatments, but this limits the types of research that can be carried out. A possible alternative, and one that raises further moral quandaries, is to produce cloned embryos.

Since the cloning of Dolly the sheep in 1997, the world has had to grapple with the serious prospect that cloning a human might indeed be possible. The single point which all countries seem agreed upon is that, for now, attempting to create a human clone, also known as reproductive cloning, is scientifically unsafe, ethically unsound and unacceptable socially.

But there is a related procedure known as therapeutic cloning whereby the early embryo never develops beyond a microscopic ball of cells in the laboratory. During this time, research is carried out on it, most often to extract stem cells, but it can also be to understand better the early development of genetically based diseases.

Some countries have put in place total bans on all forms of human cloning, others have banned reproductive cloning but still allow therapeutic cloning and some have so far failed to introduce any regulations, often as the result of a failure to reach agreement. Many countries also have regulations on the derivation and use in research of human embryonic stem cells.

To illustrate the range of regulation, we can look at the huge differences between the US and the UK.

The UK is one of a handful of countries to have introduced legislation with the express purpose of allowing the use of human embryos for stem cell research and therapeutic cloning. In 2001 the UK introduced primary legislation against reproductive cloning; however, this action was taken after it had extended the terms of the Human Fertility and Embryology Act governing licensed research on early human embryos.

These measures were taken following wide public debate and were passed by majorities of more than two to one in both Houses of Parliament. The Royal Society, as the UK's national academy of science, played a significant role in informing the debate during this process. The result has been a carefully regulated process, which has so far resulted in two licences being granted to carry out research into diabetes and into motor neurone disease.

By stark contrast, in the US, despite an influential religious lobby consistently condemning any research involving embryos, there is no primary federal legislation to regulate any form of human cloning. This reflects a split between those who strongly believe all cloning should be banned and those who wish to see only reproductive cloning banned and an inability to come up with suitable legislation, despite numerous and ongoing efforts.

The latest development was the re-submission of the Human Cloning Prohibition Act of 2005 to Congress by Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas on March 17. This proposed a federal ban, which makes no distinction between reproductive and therapeutic cloning and has strong support but has already failed to make it into law twice since 2001. Brownback has also declared his equally strong opposition to any effort in the House of Representatives to reconsider an existing ban on federal funding of some embryonic stem cell research.

Worryingly, no federal legislation exists to stop a privately funded laboratory attempting to create a human clone. But any outcome of research would then be subject to Food and Drug Administration approval, which it would be extremely unlikely to pass.

Scientists can receive federal funds to use human embryonic stem cells in their research, but only the cell lines created prior to 2001, of which only 22 are available. Also, some states have now enacted their own legislation, in some cases to ban all cloning and embryonic stem cell research and in others to allow therapeutic cloning and even pledge millions of dollars of funding, most notably in California.

Countries where therapeutic cloning and stem cell research are permitted often regard it as great news that the US is lagging behind. Levels of investment in this kind of research in the UK are testament to this. But in the long term, losing out on the expertise and resources of the world's leading scientific nation means patients around the world will lose out, too, because a global effort is needed to make the most rapid progress.

Elsewhere, the opinions and legislation are equally varied. Europe is divided on the issues. Most countries, including Germany, Austria, France and the Netherlands, have brought in legislation to ban reproductive and therapeutic cloning. Yet they are in the curious position of not going as far as countries such as Italy, Ireland, Norway and Denmark, which have also restricted research using human embryonic stem cells. This raises an interesting moral question of whether these nations will allow their patients to receive the treatments developed in the future using technologies that they consider unacceptable.

Belgium, Sweden and Spain allow therapeutic cloning and human embryonic stem cell use in similar frameworks to the UK, and there is now public pressure in Germany and Italy to revisit their legislation, while Ireland is already doing so.

In Asia, the picture is very different. Japan, China, Singapore and South Korea all follow the UK's approach. India is embracing human embryonic stem cell research, as realised recently at an Indo-UK meeting organised by the Royal Society and aimed at spawning international collaborations in the field. But so far it still has a ban on therapeutic and reproductive cloning.

South America is as divided as Europe. Ecuador bans embryonic stem cell research and both types of cloning; Brazil bans cloning, but a new law allows and funds embryonic stem cell research; Argentina, Chile, Peru and Uruguay ban both types of cloning, and legislation either allows or does not cover embryonic stem cells, and only Colombia permits therapeutic cloning as well as human embryonic stem cell research.

In the Middle East, only Israel and Turkey have any relevant legislation. Israel permits therapeutic cloning and embryonic stem cell research while banning reproductive cloning. Turkey has effectively the same--although stem cell research is not explicitly permitted, it is just not mentioned.

On the continent of Africa, only South Africa (embryonic stem cell research--yes; both types of cloning--no) and Tunisia (embryonic not specifically prohibited; both types of cloning--banned) have enacted laws.

For the countries that do not have national legislation we can gain an idea of their attitudes from the ill-fated attempts to gain consensus at the European and international levels.

The Council of Europe has introduced the ambiguous European Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine. It is not clear whether it bans therapeutic cloning. Thirty-one of the 45 member states have signed, of which 15 have also ratified. In response to the debate in the UK, which preceded the introduction of its legislation on cloning, an additional Protocol on the Prohibition of Cloning Human Beings was drafted to try to influence the outcome. Unsurprisingly, the UK has not signed either, but as neither the convention nor the protocol gives any sanctions for violation it is unlikely to have any major effect. Portugal, though, has signed and ratified the convention, despite no national legislation, which is a likely indication of its views.

At the United Nations we see a similarly confused picture. A committee was formed in 2001 to consider "the elaboration of an international convention against the reproductive cloning of human beings". Four years of stop-start debate and negotiations saw member states unable to get anywhere near a consensus on whether therapeutic cloning should be included in the ban.

One of the most influential groups during the tail end of the debate was the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC). It is suspected that part of the reason that those seeking a ban on all forms of cloning, such as the US and Costa Rica, did not push for a convention was because of a last-minute indication that the OIC would support an alternative proposal. Initiated by Belgium and supported by the UK, the proposal asked that individual countries be allowed to make their own decision on therapeutic cloning.

Instead the result was a poorly worded and ambiguous political declaration that appears to ban all forms of cloning. But because it is nonbinding, it will have absolutely no effect on countries that wish to forge ahead with therapeutic cloning.

Unfortunately, this outcome also means that no clear message has been sent to maverick scientists that the entire world believes that reproductive cloning is unacceptable.

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What the data says about abortion in the u.s..

Pew Research Center has conducted many surveys about abortion over the years, providing a lens into Americans’ views on whether the procedure should be legal, among a host of other questions.

In a  Center survey  conducted nearly a year after the Supreme Court’s June 2022 decision that  ended the constitutional right to abortion , 62% of U.S. adults said the practice should be legal in all or most cases, while 36% said it should be illegal in all or most cases. Another survey conducted a few months before the decision showed that relatively few Americans take an absolutist view on the issue .

Find answers to common questions about abortion in America, based on data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Guttmacher Institute, which have tracked these patterns for several decades:

How many abortions are there in the U.S. each year?

How has the number of abortions in the u.s. changed over time, what is the abortion rate among women in the u.s. how has it changed over time, what are the most common types of abortion, how many abortion providers are there in the u.s., and how has that number changed, what percentage of abortions are for women who live in a different state from the abortion provider, what are the demographics of women who have had abortions, when during pregnancy do most abortions occur, how often are there medical complications from abortion.

This compilation of data on abortion in the United States draws mainly from two sources: the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Guttmacher Institute, both of which have regularly compiled national abortion data for approximately half a century, and which collect their data in different ways.

The CDC data that is highlighted in this post comes from the agency’s “abortion surveillance” reports, which have been published annually since 1974 (and which have included data from 1969). Its figures from 1973 through 1996 include data from all 50 states, the District of Columbia and New York City – 52 “reporting areas” in all. Since 1997, the CDC’s totals have lacked data from some states (most notably California) for the years that those states did not report data to the agency. The four reporting areas that did not submit data to the CDC in 2021 – California, Maryland, New Hampshire and New Jersey – accounted for approximately 25% of all legal induced abortions in the U.S. in 2020, according to Guttmacher’s data. Most states, though,  do  have data in the reports, and the figures for the vast majority of them came from each state’s central health agency, while for some states, the figures came from hospitals and other medical facilities.

Discussion of CDC abortion data involving women’s state of residence, marital status, race, ethnicity, age, abortion history and the number of previous live births excludes the low share of abortions where that information was not supplied. Read the methodology for the CDC’s latest abortion surveillance report , which includes data from 2021, for more details. Previous reports can be found at  stacks.cdc.gov  by entering “abortion surveillance” into the search box.

For the numbers of deaths caused by induced abortions in 1963 and 1965, this analysis looks at reports by the then-U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare, a precursor to the Department of Health and Human Services. In computing those figures, we excluded abortions listed in the report under the categories “spontaneous or unspecified” or as “other.” (“Spontaneous abortion” is another way of referring to miscarriages.)

Guttmacher data in this post comes from national surveys of abortion providers that Guttmacher has conducted 19 times since 1973. Guttmacher compiles its figures after contacting every known provider of abortions – clinics, hospitals and physicians’ offices – in the country. It uses questionnaires and health department data, and it provides estimates for abortion providers that don’t respond to its inquiries. (In 2020, the last year for which it has released data on the number of abortions in the U.S., it used estimates for 12% of abortions.) For most of the 2000s, Guttmacher has conducted these national surveys every three years, each time getting abortion data for the prior two years. For each interim year, Guttmacher has calculated estimates based on trends from its own figures and from other data.

The latest full summary of Guttmacher data came in the institute’s report titled “Abortion Incidence and Service Availability in the United States, 2020.” It includes figures for 2020 and 2019 and estimates for 2018. The report includes a methods section.

In addition, this post uses data from StatPearls, an online health care resource, on complications from abortion.

An exact answer is hard to come by. The CDC and the Guttmacher Institute have each tried to measure this for around half a century, but they use different methods and publish different figures.

The last year for which the CDC reported a yearly national total for abortions is 2021. It found there were 625,978 abortions in the District of Columbia and the 46 states with available data that year, up from 597,355 in those states and D.C. in 2020. The corresponding figure for 2019 was 607,720.

The last year for which Guttmacher reported a yearly national total was 2020. It said there were 930,160 abortions that year in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, compared with 916,460 in 2019.

  • How the CDC gets its data: It compiles figures that are voluntarily reported by states’ central health agencies, including separate figures for New York City and the District of Columbia. Its latest totals do not include figures from California, Maryland, New Hampshire or New Jersey, which did not report data to the CDC. ( Read the methodology from the latest CDC report .)
  • How Guttmacher gets its data: It compiles its figures after contacting every known abortion provider – clinics, hospitals and physicians’ offices – in the country. It uses questionnaires and health department data, then provides estimates for abortion providers that don’t respond. Guttmacher’s figures are higher than the CDC’s in part because they include data (and in some instances, estimates) from all 50 states. ( Read the institute’s latest full report and methodology .)

While the Guttmacher Institute supports abortion rights, its empirical data on abortions in the U.S. has been widely cited by  groups  and  publications  across the political spectrum, including by a  number of those  that  disagree with its positions .

These estimates from Guttmacher and the CDC are results of multiyear efforts to collect data on abortion across the U.S. Last year, Guttmacher also began publishing less precise estimates every few months , based on a much smaller sample of providers.

The figures reported by these organizations include only legal induced abortions conducted by clinics, hospitals or physicians’ offices, or those that make use of abortion pills dispensed from certified facilities such as clinics or physicians’ offices. They do not account for the use of abortion pills that were obtained  outside of clinical settings .

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A line chart showing the changing number of legal abortions in the U.S. since the 1970s.

The annual number of U.S. abortions rose for years after Roe v. Wade legalized the procedure in 1973, reaching its highest levels around the late 1980s and early 1990s, according to both the CDC and Guttmacher. Since then, abortions have generally decreased at what a CDC analysis called  “a slow yet steady pace.”

Guttmacher says the number of abortions occurring in the U.S. in 2020 was 40% lower than it was in 1991. According to the CDC, the number was 36% lower in 2021 than in 1991, looking just at the District of Columbia and the 46 states that reported both of those years.

(The corresponding line graph shows the long-term trend in the number of legal abortions reported by both organizations. To allow for consistent comparisons over time, the CDC figures in the chart have been adjusted to ensure that the same states are counted from one year to the next. Using that approach, the CDC figure for 2021 is 622,108 legal abortions.)

There have been occasional breaks in this long-term pattern of decline – during the middle of the first decade of the 2000s, and then again in the late 2010s. The CDC reported modest 1% and 2% increases in abortions in 2018 and 2019, and then, after a 2% decrease in 2020, a 5% increase in 2021. Guttmacher reported an 8% increase over the three-year period from 2017 to 2020.

As noted above, these figures do not include abortions that use pills obtained outside of clinical settings.

Guttmacher says that in 2020 there were 14.4 abortions in the U.S. per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44. Its data shows that the rate of abortions among women has generally been declining in the U.S. since 1981, when it reported there were 29.3 abortions per 1,000 women in that age range.

The CDC says that in 2021, there were 11.6 abortions in the U.S. per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44. (That figure excludes data from California, the District of Columbia, Maryland, New Hampshire and New Jersey.) Like Guttmacher’s data, the CDC’s figures also suggest a general decline in the abortion rate over time. In 1980, when the CDC reported on all 50 states and D.C., it said there were 25 abortions per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44.

That said, both Guttmacher and the CDC say there were slight increases in the rate of abortions during the late 2010s and early 2020s. Guttmacher says the abortion rate per 1,000 women ages 15 to 44 rose from 13.5 in 2017 to 14.4 in 2020. The CDC says it rose from 11.2 per 1,000 in 2017 to 11.4 in 2019, before falling back to 11.1 in 2020 and then rising again to 11.6 in 2021. (The CDC’s figures for those years exclude data from California, D.C., Maryland, New Hampshire and New Jersey.)

The CDC broadly divides abortions into two categories: surgical abortions and medication abortions, which involve pills. Since the Food and Drug Administration first approved abortion pills in 2000, their use has increased over time as a share of abortions nationally, according to both the CDC and Guttmacher.

The majority of abortions in the U.S. now involve pills, according to both the CDC and Guttmacher. The CDC says 56% of U.S. abortions in 2021 involved pills, up from 53% in 2020 and 44% in 2019. Its figures for 2021 include the District of Columbia and 44 states that provided this data; its figures for 2020 include D.C. and 44 states (though not all of the same states as in 2021), and its figures for 2019 include D.C. and 45 states.

Guttmacher, which measures this every three years, says 53% of U.S. abortions involved pills in 2020, up from 39% in 2017.

Two pills commonly used together for medication abortions are mifepristone, which, taken first, blocks hormones that support a pregnancy, and misoprostol, which then causes the uterus to empty. According to the FDA, medication abortions are safe  until 10 weeks into pregnancy.

Surgical abortions conducted  during the first trimester  of pregnancy typically use a suction process, while the relatively few surgical abortions that occur  during the second trimester  of a pregnancy typically use a process called dilation and evacuation, according to the UCLA School of Medicine.

In 2020, there were 1,603 facilities in the U.S. that provided abortions,  according to Guttmacher . This included 807 clinics, 530 hospitals and 266 physicians’ offices.

A horizontal stacked bar chart showing the total number of abortion providers down since 1982.

While clinics make up half of the facilities that provide abortions, they are the sites where the vast majority (96%) of abortions are administered, either through procedures or the distribution of pills, according to Guttmacher’s 2020 data. (This includes 54% of abortions that are administered at specialized abortion clinics and 43% at nonspecialized clinics.) Hospitals made up 33% of the facilities that provided abortions in 2020 but accounted for only 3% of abortions that year, while just 1% of abortions were conducted by physicians’ offices.

Looking just at clinics – that is, the total number of specialized abortion clinics and nonspecialized clinics in the U.S. – Guttmacher found the total virtually unchanged between 2017 (808 clinics) and 2020 (807 clinics). However, there were regional differences. In the Midwest, the number of clinics that provide abortions increased by 11% during those years, and in the West by 6%. The number of clinics  decreased  during those years by 9% in the Northeast and 3% in the South.

The total number of abortion providers has declined dramatically since the 1980s. In 1982, according to Guttmacher, there were 2,908 facilities providing abortions in the U.S., including 789 clinics, 1,405 hospitals and 714 physicians’ offices.

The CDC does not track the number of abortion providers.

In the District of Columbia and the 46 states that provided abortion and residency information to the CDC in 2021, 10.9% of all abortions were performed on women known to live outside the state where the abortion occurred – slightly higher than the percentage in 2020 (9.7%). That year, D.C. and 46 states (though not the same ones as in 2021) reported abortion and residency data. (The total number of abortions used in these calculations included figures for women with both known and unknown residential status.)

The share of reported abortions performed on women outside their state of residence was much higher before the 1973 Roe decision that stopped states from banning abortion. In 1972, 41% of all abortions in D.C. and the 20 states that provided this information to the CDC that year were performed on women outside their state of residence. In 1973, the corresponding figure was 21% in the District of Columbia and the 41 states that provided this information, and in 1974 it was 11% in D.C. and the 43 states that provided data.

In the District of Columbia and the 46 states that reported age data to  the CDC in 2021, the majority of women who had abortions (57%) were in their 20s, while about three-in-ten (31%) were in their 30s. Teens ages 13 to 19 accounted for 8% of those who had abortions, while women ages 40 to 44 accounted for about 4%.

The vast majority of women who had abortions in 2021 were unmarried (87%), while married women accounted for 13%, according to  the CDC , which had data on this from 37 states.

A pie chart showing that, in 2021, majority of abortions were for women who had never had one before.

In the District of Columbia, New York City (but not the rest of New York) and the 31 states that reported racial and ethnic data on abortion to  the CDC , 42% of all women who had abortions in 2021 were non-Hispanic Black, while 30% were non-Hispanic White, 22% were Hispanic and 6% were of other races.

Looking at abortion rates among those ages 15 to 44, there were 28.6 abortions per 1,000 non-Hispanic Black women in 2021; 12.3 abortions per 1,000 Hispanic women; 6.4 abortions per 1,000 non-Hispanic White women; and 9.2 abortions per 1,000 women of other races, the  CDC reported  from those same 31 states, D.C. and New York City.

For 57% of U.S. women who had induced abortions in 2021, it was the first time they had ever had one,  according to the CDC.  For nearly a quarter (24%), it was their second abortion. For 11% of women who had an abortion that year, it was their third, and for 8% it was their fourth or more. These CDC figures include data from 41 states and New York City, but not the rest of New York.

A bar chart showing that most U.S. abortions in 2021 were for women who had previously given birth.

Nearly four-in-ten women who had abortions in 2021 (39%) had no previous live births at the time they had an abortion,  according to the CDC . Almost a quarter (24%) of women who had abortions in 2021 had one previous live birth, 20% had two previous live births, 10% had three, and 7% had four or more previous live births. These CDC figures include data from 41 states and New York City, but not the rest of New York.

The vast majority of abortions occur during the first trimester of a pregnancy. In 2021, 93% of abortions occurred during the first trimester – that is, at or before 13 weeks of gestation,  according to the CDC . An additional 6% occurred between 14 and 20 weeks of pregnancy, and about 1% were performed at 21 weeks or more of gestation. These CDC figures include data from 40 states and New York City, but not the rest of New York.

About 2% of all abortions in the U.S. involve some type of complication for the woman , according to an article in StatPearls, an online health care resource. “Most complications are considered minor such as pain, bleeding, infection and post-anesthesia complications,” according to the article.

The CDC calculates  case-fatality rates for women from induced abortions – that is, how many women die from abortion-related complications, for every 100,000 legal abortions that occur in the U.S .  The rate was lowest during the most recent period examined by the agency (2013 to 2020), when there were 0.45 deaths to women per 100,000 legal induced abortions. The case-fatality rate reported by the CDC was highest during the first period examined by the agency (1973 to 1977), when it was 2.09 deaths to women per 100,000 legal induced abortions. During the five-year periods in between, the figure ranged from 0.52 (from 1993 to 1997) to 0.78 (from 1978 to 1982).

The CDC calculates death rates by five-year and seven-year periods because of year-to-year fluctuation in the numbers and due to the relatively low number of women who die from legal induced abortions.

In 2020, the last year for which the CDC has information , six women in the U.S. died due to complications from induced abortions. Four women died in this way in 2019, two in 2018, and three in 2017. (These deaths all followed legal abortions.) Since 1990, the annual number of deaths among women due to legal induced abortion has ranged from two to 12.

The annual number of reported deaths from induced abortions (legal and illegal) tended to be higher in the 1980s, when it ranged from nine to 16, and from 1972 to 1979, when it ranged from 13 to 63. One driver of the decline was the drop in deaths from illegal abortions. There were 39 deaths from illegal abortions in 1972, the last full year before Roe v. Wade. The total fell to 19 in 1973 and to single digits or zero every year after that. (The number of deaths from legal abortions has also declined since then, though with some slight variation over time.)

The number of deaths from induced abortions was considerably higher in the 1960s than afterward. For instance, there were 119 deaths from induced abortions in  1963  and 99 in  1965 , according to reports by the then-U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare, a precursor to the Department of Health and Human Services. The CDC is a division of Health and Human Services.

Note: This is an update of a post originally published May 27, 2022, and first updated June 24, 2022.

research of cloning humans is permitted

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National Academy of Sciences (US), National Academy of Engineering (US), Institute of Medicine (US) and National Research Council (US) Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy. Scientific and Medical Aspects of Human Reproductive Cloning. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 2002.

Cover of Scientific and Medical Aspects of Human Reproductive Cloning

Scientific and Medical Aspects of Human Reproductive Cloning.

  • Hardcopy Version at National Academies Press

2 Cloning: Definitions And Applications

In this chapter, we address the following questions in our task statement:

What does cloning of animals including humans mean? What are its purposes? How does it differ from stem cell research?

To organize its response to those questions, the panel developed a series of subquestions, which appear as the section headings in the following text.

  • WHAT IS MEANT BY REPRODUCTIVE CLONING OF ANIMALS INCLUDING HUMANS?

Reproductive cloning is defined as the deliberate production of genetically identical individuals. Each newly produced individual is a clone of the original. Monozygotic (identical) twins are natural clones. Clones contain identical sets of genetic material in the nucleus—the compartment that contains the chromosomes—of every cell in their bodies. Thus, cells from two clones have the same DNA and the same genes in their nuclei.

All cells, including eggs, also contain some DNA in the energy-generating “factories” called mitochondria. These structures are in the cytoplasm, the region of a cell outside the nucleus. Mitochondria contain their own DNA and reproduce independently. True clones have identical DNA in both the nuclei and mitochondria, although the term clones is also used to refer to individuals that have identical nuclear DNA but different mitochondrial DNA.

  • HOW IS REPRODUCTIVE CLONING DONE?

Two methods are used to make live-born mammalian clones. Both require implantation of an embryo in a uterus and then a normal period of gestation and birth. However, reproductive human or animal cloning is not defined by the method used to derive the genetically identical embryos suitable for implantation. Techniques not yet developed or described here would nonetheless constitute cloning if they resulted in genetically identical individuals of which at least one were an embryo destined for implantation and birth.

The two methods used for reproductive cloning thus far are as follows:

• Cloning using somatic cell nuclear transfer ( SCNT ) [ 1 ]. This procedure starts with the removal of the chromosomes from an egg to create an enucleated egg. The chromosomes are replaced with a nucleus taken from a somatic (body) cell of the individual or embryo to be cloned. This cell could be obtained directly from the individual, from cells grown in culture, or from frozen tissue. The egg is then stimulated, and in some cases it starts to divide. If that happens, a series of sequential cell divisions leads to the formation of a blastocyst, or preimplantation embryo. The blastocyst is then transferred to the uterus of an animal. The successful implantation of the blastocyst in a uterus can result in its further development, culminating sometimes in the birth of an animal. This animal will be a clone of the individual that was the donor of the nucleus. Its nuclear DNA has been inherited from only one genetic parent.

The number of times that a given individual can be cloned is limited theoretically only by the number of eggs that can be obtained to accept the somatic cell nuclei and the number of females available to receive developing embryos. If the egg used in this procedure is derived from the same individual that donates the transferred somatic nucleus, the result will be an embryo that receives all its genetic material—nuclear and mitochondrial—from a single individual. That will also be true if the egg comes from the nucleus donor's mother, because mitochondria are inherited maternally. Multiple clones might also be produced by transferring identical nuclei to eggs from a single donor. If the somatic cell nucleus and the egg come from different individuals, they will not be identical to the nuclear donor because the clones will have somewhat different mitochondrial genes [ 2 ; 3 ]

• Cloning by embryo splitting. This procedure begins with in vitro fertilization ( IVF ): the union outside the woman's body of a sperm and an egg to generate a zygote. The zygote (from here onwards also called an embryo) divides into two and then four identical cells. At this stage, the cells can be separated and allowed to develop into separate but identical blastocysts, which can then be implanted in a uterus. The limited developmental potential of the cells means that the procedure cannot be repeated, so embryo splitting can yield only two identical mice and probably no more than four identical humans.

The DNA in embryo splitting is contributed by germ cells from two individuals—the mother who contributed the egg and the father who contributed the sperm. Thus, the embryos, like those formed naturally or by standard IVF , have two parents. Their mitochondrial DNA is identical. Because this method of cloning is identical with the natural formation of monozygotic twins and, in rare cases, even quadruplets, it is not discussed in detail in this report.

  • WILL CLONES LOOK AND BEHAVE EXACTLY THE SAME?

Even if clones are genetically identical with one another, they will not be identical in physical or behavioral characteristics, because DNA is not the only determinant of these characteristics. A pair of clones will experience different environments and nutritional inputs while in the uterus, and they would be expected to be subject to different inputs from their parents, society, and life experience as they grow up. If clones derived from identical nuclear donors and identical mitocondrial donors are born at different times, as is the case when an adult is the donor of the somatic cell nucleus, the environmental and nutritional differences would be expected to be more pronounced than for monozygotic (identical) twins. And even monozygotic twins are not fully identical genetically or epigenetically because mutations, stochastic developmental variations, and varied imprinting effects (parent-specific chemical marks on the DNA) make different contributions to each twin [ 3 ; 4 ].

Additional differences may occur in clones that do not have identical mitochondria. Such clones arise if one individual contributes the nucleus and another the egg—or if nuclei from a single individual are transferred to eggs from multiple donors. The differences might be expected to show up in parts of the body that have high demands for energy—such as muscle, heart, eye, and brain—or in body systems that use mitochondrial control over cell death to determine cell numbers [ 5 ; 6 ].

  • WHAT ARE THE PURPOSES OF REPRODUCTIVE CLONING?

Cloning of livestock [ 1 ] is a means of replicating an existing favorable combination of traits, such as efficient growth and high milk production, without the genetic “lottery” and mixing that occur in sexual reproduction. It allows an animal with a particular genetic modification, such as the ability to produce a pharmaceutical in milk, to be replicated more rapidly than does natural mating [ 7 ; 8 ]. Moreover, a genetic modification can be made more easily in cultured cells than in an intact animal, and the modified cell nucleus can be transferred to an enucleated egg to make a clone of the required type. Mammals used in scientific experiments, such as mice, are cloned as part of research aimed at increasing our understanding of fundamental biological mechanisms.

In principle, those people who might wish to produce children through human reproductive cloning [ 9 ] include:

  • Infertile couples who wish to have a child that is genetically identical with one of them, or with another nucleus donor
  • Other individuals who wish to have a child that is genetically identical with them, or with another nucleus donor
  • Parents who have lost a child and wish to have another, genetically identical child
  • People who need a transplant (for example, of cord blood) to treat their own or their child's disease and who therefore wish to collect genetically identical tissue from a cloned fetus or newborn.

Possible reasons for undertaking human reproductive cloning have been analyzed according to their degree of justification. For example, in reference 10 it is proposed that human reproductive cloning aimed at establishing a genetic link to a gametically infertile parent would be more justifiable than an attempt by a sexually fertile person aimed at choosing a specific genome.

Transplantable tissue may be available without the need for the birth of a child produced by cloning. For example, embryos produced by in vitro fertilization ( IVF ) can be typed for transplant suitability, and in the future stem cells produced by nuclear transplantation may allow the production of transplantable tissue.

The alternatives open to infertile individuals are discussed in Chapter 4 .

  • HOW DOES REPRODUCTIVE CLONING DIFFER FROM STEM CELL RESEARCH?

The recent and current work on stem cells that is briefly summarized below and discussed more fully in a recent report from the National Academies entitled Stem Cells and the Future of Regenerative Medicine [ 11 ] is not directly related to human reproductive cloning. However, the use of a common initial step—called either nuclear transplantation or somatic cell nuclear transfer ( SCNT )—has led Congress to consider bills that ban not only human reproductive cloning but also certain areas of stem cell research. Stem cells are cells that have the ability to divide repeatedly and give rise to both specialized cells and more stem cells. Some, such as some blood and brain stem cells, can be derived directly from adults [ 12 - 19 ] and others can be obtained from preimplantation embryos. Stem cells derived from embryos are called embryonic stem cells ( ES cells ). The above-mentioned report from the National Academies provides a detailed account of the current state of stem cell research [ 11 ].

ES cells are also called pluripotent stem cells because their progeny include all cell types that can be found in a postimplantation embryo, a fetus, and a fully developed organism. They are derived from the inner cell mass of early embryos (blastocysts) [ 20 - 23 ]. The cells in the inner cell mass of a given blastocyst are genetically identical, and each blastocyst yields only a single ES cell line. Stem cells are rarer [ 24 ] and more difficult to find in adults than in preimplantation embryos, and it has proved harder to grow some kinds of adult stem cells into cell lines after isolation [ 25 ; 26 ].

Production of different cells and tissues from ES cells or other stem cells is a subject of current research [ 11 ; 27 - 31 ]. Production of whole organs other than bone marrow (to be used in bone marrow transplantation) from such cells has not yet been achieved, and its eventual success is uncertain.

Current interest in stem cells arises from their potential for the therapeutic transplantation of particular healthy cells, tissues, and organs into people suffering from a variety of diseases and debilitating disorders. Research with adult stem cells indicates that they may be useful for such purposes, including for tissues other than those from which the cells were derived [ 12 ; 14 ; 17 ; 18 ; 25 - 27 ; 32 - 43 ]. On the basis of current knowledge, it appears unlikely that adults will prove to be a sufficient source of stem cells for all kinds of tissues [ 11 ; 44 - 47 ]. ES cell lines are of potential interest for transplantation because one cell line can multiply indefinitely and can generate not just one type of specialized cell, but many different types of specialized cells (brain, muscle, and so on) that might be needed for transplants [ 20 ; 28 ; 45 ; 48 ; 49 ]. However, much more research will be needed before the magnitude of the therapeutic potential of either adult stem cells or ES cells will be well understood.

One of the most important questions concerning the therapeutic potential of stem cells is whether the cells, tissues, and perhaps organs derived from them can be transplanted with minimal risk of transplant rejection. Ideally, adult stem cells advantageous for transplantation might be derived from patients themselves. Such cells, or tissues derived from them, would be genetically identical with the patient's own and not be rejected by the immune system. However, as previously described, the availability of sufficient adult stem cells and their potential to give rise to a full range of cell and tissue types are uncertain. Moreover, in the case of a disorder that has a genetic origin, a patient's own adult stem cells would carry the same defect and would have to be grown and genetically modified before they could be used for therapeutic transplantation.

The application of somatic cell nuclear transfer or nuclear transplantation offers an alternative route to obtaining stem cells that could be used for transplantation therapies with a minimal risk of transplant rejection. This procedure—sometimes called therapeutic cloning, research cloning, or nonreproductive cloning, and referred to here as nuclear transplantation to produce stem cells —would be used to generate pluripotent ES cells that are genetically identical with the cells of a transplant recipient [ 50 ]. Thus, like adult stem cells, such ES cells should ameliorate the rejection seen with unmatched transplants.

Two types of adult stem cells—stem cells in the blood forming bone marrow and skin stem cells—are the only two stem cell therapies currently in use. But, as noted in the National Academies' report entitled Stem Cells and the Future of Regenerative Medicine , many questions remain before the potential of other adult stem cells can be accurately assessed [ 11 ]. Few studies on adult stem cells have sufficiently defined the stem cell's potential by starting from a single, isolated cell, or defined the necessary cellular environment for correct differentiation or the factors controlling the efficiency with which the cells repopulate an organ. There is a need to show that the cells derived from introduced adult stem cells are contributing directly to tissue function, and to improve the ability to maintain adult stem cells in culture without the cells differentiating. Finally, most of the studies that have garnered so much attention have used mouse rather than human adult stem cells.

ES cells are not without their own potential problems as a source of cells for transplantation. The growth of human ES cells in culture requires a “feeder” layer of mouse cells that may contain viruses, and when allowed to differentiate the ES cells can form a mixture of cell types at once. Human ES cells can form benign tumors when introduced into mice [ 20 ], although this potential seems to disappear if the cells are allowed to differentiate before introduction into a recipient [ 51 ]. Studies with mouse ES cells have shown promise for treating diabetes [ 30 ], Parkinson's disease [ 52 ], and spinal cord injury [ 53 ].

The ES cells made with nuclear transplantation would have the advantage over adult stem cells of being able to provide virtually all cell types and of being able to be maintained in culture for long periods of time. Current knowledge is, however, uncertain, and research on both adult stem cells and stem cells made with nuclear transplantation is required to understand their therapeutic potentials. (This point is stated clearly in Finding and Recommendation 2 of Stem Cells and the Future of Regenerative Medicine [ 11 ] which states, in part, that “studies of both embryonic and adult human stem cells will be required to most efficiently advance the scientific and therapeutic potential of regenerative medicine.”) It is likely that the ES cells will initially be used to generate single cell types for transplantation, such as nerve cells or muscle cells. In the future, because of their ability to give rise to many cell types, they might be used to generate tissues and, theoretically, complex organs for transplantation. But this will require the perfection of techniques for directing their specialization into each of the component cell types and then the assembly of these cells in the correct proportion and spatial organization for an organ. That might be reasonably straightforward for a simple structure, such as a pancreatic islet that produces insulin, but it is more challenging for tissues as complex as that from lung, kidney, or liver [ 54 ; 55 ].

The experimental procedures required to produce stem cells through nuclear transplantation would consist of the transfer of a somatic cell nucleus from a patient into an enucleated egg, the in vitro culture of the embryo to the blastocyst stage, and the derivation of a pluripotent ES cell line from the inner cell mass of this blastocyst. Such stem cell lines would then be used to derive specialized cells (and, if possible, tissues and organs) in laboratory culture for therapeutic transplantation. Such a procedure, if successful, can avoid a major cause of transplant rejection. However, there are several possible drawbacks to this proposal. Experiments with animal models suggest that the presence of divergent mitochondrial proteins in cells may create “minor” transplantation antigens [ 56 ; 57 ] that can cause rejection [ 58 - 63 ]; this would not be a problem if the egg were donated by the mother of the transplant recipient or the recipient herself. For some autoimmune diseases, transplantation of cells cloned from the patient's own cells may be inappropriate, in that these cells can be targets for the ongoing destructive process. And, as with the use of adult stem cells, in the case of a disorder that has a genetic origin, ES cells derived by nuclear transplantation from the patient's own cells would carry the same defect and would have to be grown and genetically modified before they could be used for therapeutic transplantation. Using another source of stem cells is more likely to be feasible (although immunosuppression would be required) than the challenging task of correcting the one or more genes that are involved in the disease in adult stem cells or in a nuclear transplantation-derived stem cell line initiated with a nucleus from the patient.

In addition to nuclear transplantation, there are two other methods by which researchers might be able to derive ES cells with reduced likeli hood for rejection. A bank of ES cell lines covering many possible genetic makeups is one possibility, although the National Academies report entitled Stem Cells and the Future of Regenerative Medicine rated this as “difficult to conceive” [ 11 ]. Alternatively, embryonic stem cells might be engineered to eliminate or introduce certain cell-surface proteins, thus making the cells invisible to the recipient's immune system. As with the proposed use of many types of adult stem cells in transplantation, neither of these approaches carries anything close to a promise of success at the moment.

The preparation of embryonic stem cells by nuclear transplantation differs from reproductive cloning in that nothing is implanted in a uterus. The issue of whether ES cells alone can give rise to a complete embryo can easily be misinterpreted. The titles of some reports suggest that mouse embryos can be derived from ES cells alone [ 64 - 72 ]. In all cases, however, the ES cells need to be surrounded by cells derived from a host embryo, in particular trophoblast and primitive endoderm. In addition to forming part of the placenta, trophoblast cells of the blastocyst provide essential patterning cues or signals to the embryo that are required to determine the orientation of its future head and rump (anterior-posterior) axis. This positional information is not genetically determined but is acquired by the trophoblast cells from events initiated soon after fertilization or egg activation. Moreover, it is critical that the positional cues be imparted to the inner cells of the blastocyst during a specific time window of development [ 73 - 76 ]. Isolated inner cell masses of mouse blastocysts do not implant by themselves, but will do so if combined with trophoblast vesicles from another embryo [ 77 ]. By contrast, isolated clumps of mouse ES cells introduced into trophoblast vesicles never give rise to anything remotely resembling a postimplantation embryo, as opposed to a disorganized mass of trophoblast. In other words, the only way to get mouse ES cells to participate in normal development is to provide them with host embryonic cells, even if these cells do not remain viable throughout gestation (Richard Gardner, personal communication). It has been reported that human [ 20 ] and primate [ 78 - 79 ] ES cells can give rise to trophoblast cells in culture. However, these trophoblast cells would presumably lack the positional cues normally acquired during the development of a blastocyst from an egg. In the light of the experimental results with mouse ES cells described above, it is very unlikely that clumps of human ES cells placed in a uterus would implant and develop into a fetus. It has been reported that clumps of human ES cells in culture, like clumps of mouse ES cells, give rise to disorganized aggregates known as embryoid bodies [ 80 ].

Besides their uses for therapeutic transplantation, ES cells obtained by nuclear transplantation could be used in laboratories for several types of studies that are important for clinical medicine and for fundamental research in human developmental biology. Such studies could not be carried out with mouse or monkey ES cells and are not likely to be feasible with ES cells prepared from normally fertilized blastocysts. For example, ES cells derived from humans with genetic diseases could be prepared through nuclear transplantation and would permit analysis of the role of the mutated genes in both cell and tissue development and in adult cells difficult to study otherwise, such as nerve cells of the brain. This work has the disadvantage that it would require the use of donor eggs. But for the study of many cell types there may be no alternative to the use of ES cells; for these cell types the derivation of primary cell lines from human tissues is not yet possible.

If the differentiation of ES cells into specialized cell types can be understood and controlled, the use of nuclear transplantation to obtain genetically defined human ES cell lines would allow the generation of genetically diverse cell lines that are not readily obtainable from embryos that have been frozen or that are in excess of clinical need in IVF clinics. The latter do not reflect the diversity of the general population and are skewed toward genomes from couples in which the female is older than the period of maximal fertility or one partner is infertile. In addition, it might be important to produce stem cells by nuclear transplantation from individuals who have diseases associated with both simple [81] and complex (multiple-gene) heritable genetic predilections. For example, some people have mutations that predispose them to “Lou Gehrig's disease” (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS); however, only some of these individuals become ill, presumably because of the influence of additional genes. Many common genetic predilections to diseases have similarly complex etiologies; it is likely that more such diseases will become apparent as the information generated by the Human Genome Project is applied. It would be possible, by using ES cells prepared with nuclear transplantation from patients and healthy people, to compare the development of such cells and to study the fundamental processes that modulate predilections to diseases.

Neither the work with ES cells , nor the work leading to the formation of cells and tissues for transplantation, involves the placement of blastocysts in a uterus. Thus, there is no embryonic development beyond the 64 to 200 cell stage, and no fetal development.

2-1. Reproductive cloning involves the creation of individuals that contain identical sets of nuclear genetic material ( DNA ). To have complete genetic identity, clones must have not only the same nuclear genes, but also the same mitochondrial genes.

2-2. Cloned mammalian animals can be made by replacing the chromosomes of an egg cell with a nucleus from the individual to be cloned, followed by stimulation of cell division and implantation of the resulting embryo.

2-3. Cloned individuals, whether born at the same or different times, will not be physically or behaviorally identical with each other at comparable ages.

2-4. Stem cells are cells that have an extensive ability to self-renew and differentiate, and they are therefore important as a potential source of cells for therapeutic transplantation. Embryonic stem cells derived through nuclear transplantation into eggs are a potential source of pluripotent (embryonic) stem cell lines that are immunologically similar to a patient's cells. Research with such cells has the goal of producing cells and tissues for therapeutic transplantation with minimal chance of rejection.

2-5. Embryonic stem cells and cell lines derived through nuclear transplantation could be valuable for uses other than organ transplantation. Such cell lines could be used to study the heritable genetic components associated with predilections to a variety of complex genetic diseases and test therapies for such diseases when they affect cells that are hard to study in isolation in adults.

2-6. The process of obtaining embryonic stem cells through nuclear transplantation does not involve the placement of an embryo in a uterus, and it cannot produce a new individual.

  • Cite this Page National Academy of Sciences (US), National Academy of Engineering (US), Institute of Medicine (US) and National Research Council (US) Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy. Scientific and Medical Aspects of Human Reproductive Cloning. Washington (DC): National Academies Press (US); 2002. 2, Cloning: Definitions And Applications.
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Beyond cloning: Harnessing the power of virtual quantum broadcasting

by Tejasri Gururaj , Phys.org

Beyond cloning: Harnessing the power of virtual quantum broadcasting

In a new study, scientists propose the concept of "virtual quantum broadcasting," which provides a workaround to the longstanding no-cloning theorem, thereby offering new possibilities for the transmission of quantum information.

The study , published in Physical Review Letters , outlines a virtual broadcasting map that creates correlated copies "virtually." Through a series of four theorems, the researchers establish the viability of this map, which allows for the creation of correlated copies of quantum states over time.

Further, the researchers demonstrate the robustness of the canonical framework, prove its physical approximation to the universal cloner, and detail how the map can be implemented.

Virtual quantum broadcasting promises to impact many fields of quantum information processing by leveraging time-based correlations, thereby avoiding the limitations imposed by the no-cloning theorem.

Why can't we copy and paste?

Quantum mechanics, while incredibly powerful, is built such that it prevents information from being replicated or copied. A quantum state encapsulates all the relevant information in the system and collapses or changes to one of the possible outcomes of the measurement when measured or observed.

It means that we can't copy the state since it needs to be measured to be able to do that. This principle is known as the no-cloning theorem. In simpler terms, you can't just copy and paste quantum information as you would with classical data.

This limitation poses a significant obstacle for quantum communication systems that rely on efficiently being able to transmit and reproduce quantum information.

The research team consisted of Prof. Arthur Parzygnat from MIT, Prof. James Fullwood from Hainan University, Prof. Francesco Buscemi from Nagoya University, and Prof. Giulio Chiribella from the University of Hong Kong, who explained their motivation to Phys.org.

They were motivated by this problem presented by the no-cloning theorem. Their aim was to study the evolution of quantum states over time and understand what "correlation does not imply causation" meant for purely quantum states.

Virtual quantum broadcasting

"Our way around this was to introduce virtual quantum broadcasting channels, which, though not genuine physical processes, have many important applications in quantum information processing ," explained Prof. Parzygnat.

Unlike traditional copying methods, which are prohibited by the no-cloning theorem, these virtual broadcasting channels or maps operate virtually, meaning they don't involve direct physical replication.

Instead, the map establishes correlations between different instances of a quantum state, effectively allowing for the transmission of information without violating the fundamental principles of quantum mechanics .

The virtual broadcasting map is unique and satisfies three simple axioms, which the researchers lay out in theorem 1. The axioms governing the virtual broadcasting map ensure consistency under changes in:

  • The frame of reference.
  • Symmetry between the receiving ends.
  • The ability to copy classical information unaffected by decoherence.

These are the basic requirements of a virtual broadcasting map.

The researchers further prove (in theorem 2) that a physical approximation of such a map could be created using a universal cloner, a device that can make the most faithful copies of an arbitrary quantum state possible.

Next, the researchers show how the broadcasting map can be achieved by decomposition (theorem 3). It establishes that the map can be broken down into two operations:

  • A measure-and-prepare protocol involves performing a virtual measurement on the quantum system to create a virtual performing a virtual measurement on the quantum system.
  • Next, two copies of the virtual quantum state are generated based on the outcomes of the virtual measurement performed in the previous step.

Finally, they establish (in theorem 4) the equivalence between the action of a time evolution function and the action of the virtual broadcasting map on any arbitrary state. This implies that the virtual broadcasting map behaves like a time operation, allowing for the creation of correlated virtual copies of quantum states over time.

"The most appealing feature of this work is that the map is uniquely characterized by a simple set of natural requirements. That's why we call it canonical. Such a unique property, in turn, seems to point to a whole new part of quantum theory, i.e., its time-like structure, which is still largely unexplored," explained Prof. Buscemi.

Impact on quantum applications

By establishing a virtual quantum broadcasting theorem, the researchers have brought forth a host of new possibilities for quantum computing, quantum information, and quantum cryptography.

"One avenue I find particularly interesting, and which I am currently working on with Prof. Parzygnat, is how a virtually broadcast state can potentially encode the measurement statistics of two timelike separated measurements in a given laboratory," said Prof. Fullwood.

This phenomenon suggests that the virtually broadcast state, as outlined, captures not just the expectation values but also the probabilities of joint measurement outcomes.

This supports the interpretation of virtual broadcasting as a spatiotemporal process that mirrors the flow of quantum information over time, "similar to how spacetime encapsulates the evolution of space over time," added Prof. Fullwood.

The researchers also point out that virtual broadcasting reveals the hidden structure behind many quantum information technologies. Prof. Chiribella explains this with an example in the context of quantum communication, "A natural way for an eavesdropper to tap into a quantum communication channel is to attempt to copy quantum states."

"As it turns out, the best approximate way to copy the quantum state is to realize a physical approximation of our virtual broadcasting."

This understanding can enhance security measures in quantum communication by offering insights into potential eavesdropping techniques and their countermeasures.

The researchers point to us entering a new area of quantum theory previously considered unorthodox or off-limits, such as the direct measurement of accuracy in quantum devices, as allowed by the virtual broadcasting map.

"Perhaps the answers to many fundamental questions can be found here," concluded Prof. Buscemi.

Journal information: Physical Review Letters , arXiv

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IMAGES

  1. Human Cloning & Its Types

    research of cloning humans is permitted

  2. Human cloning

    research of cloning humans is permitted

  3. InfoGraphic on Cloning

    research of cloning humans is permitted

  4. 13 Examples of Cloning in Real Life

    research of cloning humans is permitted

  5. Human cloning

    research of cloning humans is permitted

  6. History and the Importance of Cloning

    research of cloning humans is permitted

COMMENTS

  1. Cloning Fact Sheet

    Cloning Fact Sheet. The term cloning describes a number of different processes that can be used to produce genetically identical copies of a biological entity. The copied material, which has the same genetic makeup as the original, is referred to as a clone. Researchers have cloned a wide range of biological materials, including genes, cells ...

  2. Cloning humans? Biological, ethical, and social considerations

    On January 14, 2001, the British government amended the Human Fertilization and Embryology Act of 1990 by allowing embryo research on stem cells and allowing therapeutic cloning. The Human Fertilization and Embryology Act of 2008 explicitly prohibited reproductive cloning but allowed experimental stem cell research for treating diabetes ...

  3. What are the laws about human cloning in the United States?

    Currently five states prohibit the cloning of human beings. In most states, specific exceptions are provided for the purpose of scientific research and cell-based therapies. A complete list of current state laws on cloning human.

  4. Should Human Cloning Be Allowed? No, It's a Moral Monstrosity

    Banning human cloning, one advocate says, "would set a very dangerous precedent of bringing the police powers of the federal government into the laboratories." But the fact is that society accepts the need to regulate behavior for moral reasons — from drug use to nuclear weapons research to dumping waste.

  5. Cloning: A Review on Bioethics, Legal, Jurisprudence and Regenerative

    Cloning is the outcome of the hard works on use of genetic engineering in animal breeding, treatment of hereditary diseases in human and replicating organisms. 16 In 1901, transfer of nucleus of a salamander embryonic cell to a enucleated cell was successfully undertaken. During 1940-1950, scientists could clone embryos in mammals.

  6. Stem Cell Research: Why Medicine Should Reject Human Cloning

    Whereas the deliberations of international, national, and state regulatory bodies have, in most cases, favored the prohibition of what has been called reproductive cloning—in which a cloned human embryo is created with the intent that a human clone will be born—they have differed considerably over what has been termed research cloning. Research cloning involves the creation of a cloned ...

  7. The Ethics of Human Cloning and Stem Cell Research

    Bioethics Resources. The Ethics of Human Cloning and Stem Cell Research. "California Cloning: A Dialogue on State Regulation" was convened October 12, 2001, by the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University. Its purpose was to bring together experts from the fields of science, religion, ethics, and law to discuss how the state ...

  8. Human cloning

    Human cloning is banned by the Presidential Decree 200/97 of 7 March 1997. Australia: Some forms legal: Australia has prohibited human cloning, though as of December 2006, a bill legalizing therapeutic cloning and the creation of human embryos for stem cell research passed the House of Representatives. Within certain regulatory limits, and ...

  9. Variations and voids: the regulation of human cloning around the world

    Variation and non-reproductive cloning (NRC) NRC represents the source of considerable regulatory variation. While NRC is not permitted in seventeen of the countries studied, it could be permitted in up to thirteen other countries. Regulatory uncertainties make it impossible to be sure in some of these counties.

  10. The Ethics of Human Cloning

    The creation of 'Dolly clones' (in Alta Charo's evocative expression) is what is meant by this sense of 'human cloning': the cloning of human beings. It is the possibility of cloning humans that has received intense media attention, and spurred legislation all over the world to prevent its occurrence. 1.

  11. Human Cloning

    Human reproductive cloning - producing a genetic copy of an existing person using somatic cell nuclear transfer - has never been done. Many scientists believe that it can never be safe. In opinion polls, , overwhelming majorities consistently reject its use. The U.S. has no federal law on human reproductive cloning, but several states, dozens of countries, and international agreements ...

  12. The global governance of human cloning: the case of UNESCO

    It could be that, since the first human therapeutic (or research) cloning via somatic cell nuclear transfer took place in 2013 (Tachibana et al., 2013), human reproductive cloning has moved from ...

  13. PDF The Ethical Implications of Human Cloning

    The Ethical Implications of Human Cloning. and on embryos created for research (whether natural or cloned) are morally on a par.This conclusion can be accepted by people who hold very different views about the moral status of the embryo. If cloning for stem cell research violates the respect the embryo is due,then so does stem cell research on ...

  14. Human Cloning: Recent Advances and Bioethical Issues

    Canada bans cloning humans, cloning stem cells, growing human embryos for research purposes, and buying or selling of embryos, sperm, eggs or other human reproductive material (Philipkoski & Philipkoski, 2004). The UN Declaration on Human Cloning says that human cloning is "incompatible with human dignity and the protection of human life."

  15. Human Cloning Ethical Issues Legal Implications

    The process of creating genetically identical copy of existing human beings is known as "Human Cloning". The word clone has been derived from a Greek term "Klon" which means a "sprout" or "twig".1 Except the naturally born identical twins, each person consists of a unique genetic. structure and hence, is different from one another.

  16. PDF HUMAN CLONING AND HUMAN RIGHTS: A Commentary

    research.16 Medical research using human subjects may be conducted only if its objectives and potential benefits out- weigh the inherent risks and burdens to the participants.I7 According to this standard, research in reproductive cloning should not be allowed. A recent U.S. report con-

  17. Cloning Is Here: Can We Really Live with Ourselves?

    Cloning is the process of creating a new living organism from another living being, with the result that they are genetically identical. In the United States, the legal reaction to this has been surprisingly muted, at least at the federal level. Although Congress sought to pass legislation restricting cloning in 2001, the measure did not become ...

  18. Human cloning laws, human dignity and the poverty of the policy making

    The regulation of human cloning continues to be a significant national and international policy issue. Despite years of intense academic and public debate, there is little clarity as to the philosophical foundations for many of the emerging policy choices. The notion of "human dignity" is commonly used to justify cloning laws. The basis for this justification is that reproductive human cloning ...

  19. Arguments for Human Therapeutic Cloning

    What is present legal status of cloning? Human cloning for any purpose - reproductive or therapeutic - is illegal in Japan. In the United Kingdom, a government-appointed panel recently recommended that scientists should be permitted to create cloned embryos by nuclear transfer for research purposes only, and that these embryos cannot be ...

  20. A Patchwork of Laws

    Countries where therapeutic cloning and stem cell research are permitted often regard it as great news that the US is lagging behind. Levels of investment in this kind of research in the UK are ...

  21. PDF World Human Cloning Policies

    − The act defines embryo as a fusion of gametes, so therapeutic cloning is permitted, but reproductive cloning is prohibited (Medical Research Act of 1999). France − Embryonic stem cell research is allowed, but therapeutic and reproductive cloning are banned. − Research on human embryonic stem cells is now allowed until embryos are 6-8

  22. Ethical Issues of Human Cloning : Journal of Medical Sciences

    Cloning is banned due to many ethical and moral values. Moreover, it faces many emotional reactions, psychological, and social issues as well. According to the Islamic point of view, the cloning of an embryo is a sin, and it is against nature due to the hazards that an embryo faces during a cloning process. However, Islam gives its permission ...

  23. Researcher proposes a new definition of a human embryo from a legal

    Iñigo de Miguel-Beriain, researcher in the UPV/EHU's Research Group on Social and Legal Sciences applied to New Technosciences, has published a paper in EMBO Reports in which he provides a ...

  24. What the data says about abortion in the U.S.

    (These deaths all followed legal abortions.) Since 1990, the annual number of deaths among women due to legal induced abortion has ranged from two to 12. The annual number of reported deaths from induced abortions (legal and illegal) tended to be higher in the 1980s, when it ranged from nine to 16, and from 1972 to 1979, when it ranged from 13 ...

  25. In a First, Genetically Edited Pig Kidney Is Transplanted Into Human

    Mass General Brigham has a rich history in organ transplant innovation. HMS surgeons at Brigham and Women's Hospital performed the first successful human organ transplant — also of a kidney — in 1954. Today's Mass General transplant clinicians and surgeons have nearly 30 years of combined experience with xenotransplantation research.

  26. Cloning: Definitions And Applications

    This procedure—sometimes called therapeutic cloning, research cloning, or nonreproductive cloning, and referred to here as nuclear transplantation to produce stem cells—would be used to generate pluripotent ES cells that are genetically identical with the cells of a transplant recipient [ 50]. Thus, like adult stem cells, such ES cells ...

  27. Beyond cloning: Harnessing the power of virtual quantum broadcasting

    In a new study, scientists propose the concept of "virtual quantum broadcasting," which provides a workaround to the longstanding no-cloning theorem, thereby offering new possibilities for the ...