Cloning

• Cloning is the process of creating a genetically identical copies of an original subject. Contrary to popular belief, cloning happens all the time in nature. A variety of plants and bacteria produce exact copies of themselves naturally, which is what may leave them all vulnerable to a certain condition. In animals as complex as primates, and humans specifically, cloning in the sense that a whole new being has been produced has not yet been completed. It does remain a fiction at the moment, but a plausible fiction.
  
  

Methods

• There are generally three types of cloning that are commonplace. There is gene cloning, which is reproducing identical copies of DNA segments but nothing else. Reproductive cloning is when an entire organism is reproduced as an exact genetic copy. Therapeutic cloning is when embryotic stem cells are experimented on to create healthy tissues to replace damaged or dead tissues in a patient. Generally when people discuss cloning, they're talking about reproductive cloning and the creation of an entire, functioning organism.
  
  

Reproductive Cloning

• Reproductive cloning is a difficult process to achieve, but a simple one to understand. When an egg is fertilized, the nucleus is removed and replaced with a nucleus of a the donor. This means that the new nucleus will instruct the fertilized egg to create an identical version of the donor. The difficulty with this is that in primates and humans, spindle proteins (which are necessary for cell division and proper growth) are located near the chromosomes. So if the original nucleus is removed, then the spindle proteins are also removed, and the cell either can't or won't divide. This can be overcome, and there are some groups who claim to have done so, but so far no agreed-on, scientific proof exists that humans have been successfully cloned.