Human Cloning- Scientific, Ethical and Legal Perspective - a World View

Human cloning is defined as the asexual replication of an existing genome or individual, or a replica of a DNA sequence, such as a gene produced by genetic engineering. Human cloning which was a topic of science fiction until yesterday became a reality with the arrival of "Dolly" the cloned sheep in 1997. A large number of ethical issues regarding human reproductive cloning have been raised a) physical harm to mother and foetus (b) autonomy (c) conflicts of interest (d) psychological and social harm (e) cloning is contrary to human dignity etc. There are arguments in favour of human reproductive cloning (a) A new treatment option for infertile couples (b) people should be free (autonomous) in their reproductive decisions. There is no consensus among nations regarding cloning and stem cell research. India allows stem cell research but disallows human cloning. The debate regarding 'human cloning' continues. This article brings to light the current debate on human cloning and the future possibilities.