View source for Human cloning

{{Short description|Creation of a genetically identical copy of a human}} 
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2023}}
[[File:The development and the ways to rejuvenate cells - en.svg|thumb|upright=1.85|Diagram of the ways to reprogram cells along with the development of humans]] 

'''Human cloning''' is the creation of a genetically [[Cloning|identical copy]] of a human. The term is generally used to refer to artificial human [[cloning]], which is the reproduction of human [[Cell (biology)|cells]] and [[Tissue (biology)|tissue]]. It does not refer to the natural conception and delivery of [[monozygotic|identical]] [[multiple birth|twins]]. The possibilities of human cloning [[ethics of cloning|have raised controversies]]. These ethical concerns have prompted several nations to pass laws regarding human cloning.

Two commonly discussed types of human cloning are ''therapeutic cloning'' and ''reproductive cloning''.

Therapeutic cloning would involve cloning cells from a human for use in medicine and transplants. It is an active area of research, and is in medical practice over the world. Two common methods of therapeutic cloning that are being researched are [[somatic-cell nuclear transfer]] and (more recently) [[Induced pluripotent stem cell|pluripotent stem cell induction]].

Reproductive cloning would involve making an entire cloned human, instead of just specific cells or tissues.

==History==
Although the possibility of [[cloning]] humans had been the subject of speculation for much of the 20th century, scientists and policymakers began to take the prospect seriously in 1969. [[J. B. S. Haldane]] was the first to introduce the idea of human cloning, for which he used the terms "clone" and "cloning",<ref>{{cite book|title=Should scientists pursue cloning?|last=Thomas|first=Isabel|publisher=Raintree|date=2013|isbn=978-1-4062-3391-9|location=London|page=5}}</ref> which had been used in agriculture since the early 20th century. In his speech on "Biological Possibilities for the Human Species of the Next Ten Thousand Years" at the ''[[Ciba Foundation]] Symposium on Man and his Future'' in 1963, he said:<ref>{{cite book|title=Man and his future|author=Haldane, J.B.S.|publisher=J. & A. Churchill|year=1963|isbn=978-0-470-71479-9|editor=Wolstenholme, Gordon|series=Novartis Foundation Symposia|location=London|pages=337–361|chapter=Biological Possibilities for the Human Species in the Next Ten Thousand Years|doi=10.1002/9780470715291.ch22}}</ref>
{{Blockquote|It is extremely hopeful that some human cell lines can be grown on a medium of precisely known chemical composition. Perhaps the first step will be the production of a clone from a single fertilized egg, as in ''[[Brave New World]]''...

Assuming that cloning is possible, I expect that most clones would be made from people aged at least fifty, except for athletes and dancers, who would be cloned younger. They would be made from people who were held to have excelled in a socially acceptable accomplishment...}}

Nobel Prize-winning geneticist [[Joshua Lederberg]] advocated cloning and [[genetic engineering]] in an article in ''[[The American Naturalist]]'' in 1966 and again, the following year, in ''[[The Washington Post]]''.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Lederberg |first=Joshua |date=1966 |title=Experimental Genetics and Human Evolution |journal=The American Naturalist |volume=100 |issue=915 |pages=519–531 |doi=10.1086/282446 |bibcode=1966BuAtS..22h...4L |s2cid=222323744 }}</ref> He sparked a debate with conservative bioethicist [[Leon Kass]], who wrote at the time that "the programmed reproduction of man will, in fact, dehumanize him." Another [[Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine|Nobel Laureate]], [[James D. Watson]], publicized the potential and the perils of cloning in his ''[[Atlantic Monthly]]'' essay, "Moving Toward the Clonal Man", in 1971.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Watson|first=James D.|date=1 May 1971|title=Moving Toward the Clonal Man|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1971/05/moving-toward-the-clonal-man/305435/|access-date=29 March 2023|website=The Atlantic|language=en|archive-date=28 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230328082449/https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/1971/05/moving-toward-the-clonal-man/305435/|url-status=live}}</ref>

With the cloning of a sheep known as [[Dolly (sheep)|Dolly]] in 1996 by [[somatic cell nuclear transfer]] (SCNT), the idea of human cloning became a hot debate topic.<ref name=TIME>{{cite news|title=Researchers Clone Cells From Two Adult Men|first=Alice|last=Park|date=17 April 2014|magazine=Time|url=https://time.com/65610/cloning-cells-from-two-adult-men/|access-date=18 April 2014|archive-date=24 January 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190124141322/http://time.com/65610/cloning-cells-from-two-adult-men/|url-status=live}}</ref> Many nations outlawed it, while a few scientists promised to make a clone within the next few years. The first [[Hybrid (biology)|hybrid]] human clone was created in November 1998, by [[Advanced Cell Technology]]. It was created using SCNT; a nucleus was taken from a man's leg cell and inserted into a cow's egg from which the nucleus had been removed, and the hybrid cell was cultured and developed into an [[embryo]]. The embryo was destroyed after 12 days.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/371378.stm |work=BBC News |title=Details of hybrid clone revealed |date=18 June 1999 |access-date=30 April 2010 |archive-date=14 November 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101114064034/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/371378.stm |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2004 and 2005, [[Hwang Woo-suk]], a professor at [[Seoul National University]], published two separate articles in the journal [[Science (journal)|'' Science'']] claiming to have successfully harvested pluripotent, [[embryonic stem cells]] from a cloned human blastocyst using SCNT techniques. Hwang claimed to have created eleven different patient-specific stem cell lines. This would have been the first major breakthrough in human cloning.<ref>Fischbak, Ruth L., John D. Loike, Janet Mindes, and Columbia Center for New Media Teaching & Learning. [http://stemcellbioethics.wikischolars.columbia.edu/The+Cloning+Scandal+of+Hwang+Woo-Suk The Cloning Scandal of Hwang Woo-Suk] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141027154510/http://stemcellbioethics.wikischolars.columbia.edu/The+Cloning+Scandal+of+Hwang+Woo-Suk |date=27 October 2014 }}, part of the online course, [http://stemcellbioethics.wikischolars.columbia.edu/ Stem Cells: Biology, Ethics, and Applications] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140827195610/http://stemcellbioethics.wikischolars.columbia.edu/ |date=27 August 2014 }}</ref> However, in 2006 ''Science'' retracted both of his articles on account of clear evidence that much of his data from the experiments was fabricated.<ref name="pmid17138870">{{cite journal|last=Kennedy |first=D. |date=2006|title=Responding to fraud|journal=Science|volume=314|issue=5804|page=1353|doi=10.1126/science.1137840|pmid=17138870|s2cid=37403975|doi-access=free}}</ref>

In January 2008, Dr. Andrew French and [[Samuel H. Wood|Samuel Wood]] of the biotechnology company [[Stemagen]] announced that they successfully created the first five mature human embryos using SCNT. In this case, each embryo was created by taking a nucleus from a skin cell (donated by Wood and a colleague) and inserting it into a human egg from which the nucleus had been removed. The embryos were developed only to the [[blastocyst]] stage, at which point they were studied in processes that destroyed them.  Members of the lab said that their next set of experiments would aim to generate embryonic stem cell lines; these are the "holy grail" that would be useful for therapeutic or reproductive cloning.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Weiss|first=Rick|date=18 January 2008|title=Mature Human Embryos Created From Adult Skin Cells|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]|language=en-US|url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/17/AR2008011700324.html|access-date=29 March 2023|issn=0190-8286|archive-date=12 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230712065533/https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/17/AR2008011700324.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="pmid18202077">{{cite journal |last1=French |first1=Andrew J. |last2=Adams |first2=Catharine A. |last3=Anderson |first3=Linda S. |last4=Kitchen |first4=John R. |last5=Hughes |first5=Marcus R. |last6=Wood |first6=Samuel H. |title=Development of Human Cloned Blastocysts Following Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer with Adult Fibroblasts |journal=Stem Cells |date=February 2008 |volume=26 |issue=2 |pages=485–493 |doi=10.1634/stemcells.2007-0252 |pmid=18202077 |s2cid=21251761 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

In 2011, scientists at the New York Stem Cell Foundation announced that they had succeeded in generating embryonic stem cell lines, but their process involved leaving the [[oocyte]]'s nucleus in place, resulting in [[triploid]] cells, which would not be useful for cloning.<ref name=TrounsonComment/><ref name="pmid21979046">{{cite journal |vauthors=Noggle S, Fung HL, Gore A, Martinez H, Satriani KC, Prosser R, Oum K, Paull D, Druckenmiller S, Freeby M, Greenberg E, Zhang K, Goland R, Sauer MV, Leibel RL, Egli D | title = Human oocytes reprogram somatic cells to a pluripotent state | journal = Nature | volume = 478 | issue = 7367 | pages = 70–5 |date= 2011 | pmid = 21979046 | doi = 10.1038/nature10397 | bibcode = 2011Natur.478...70N | s2cid = 4370078 }}</ref><ref name="pmid21979039">{{cite journal |vauthors=Daley GQ, Solbakk JH | title = Stem cells: Triple genomes go far | journal = Nature | volume = 478 | issue = 7367 | pages = 40–1 |date= 2011 | pmid = 21979039 | doi = 10.1038/478040a | bibcode = 2011Natur.478...40D | s2cid = 203897553 | doi-access = free }}</ref>

In 2013, a group of scientists led by [[Shoukhrat Mitalipov]] published the first report of embryonic stem cells created using SCNT.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Tachibana |first1=Masahito |last2=Amato |first2=Paula |last3=Sparman |first3=Michelle |last4=Gutierrez |first4=Nuria Marti |last5=Tippner-Hedges |first5=Rebecca |last6=Ma |first6=Hong |last7=Kang |first7=Eunju |last8=Fulati |first8=Alimujiang |last9=Lee |first9=Hyo-Sang |last10=Sritanaudomchai |first10=Hathaitip |last11=Masterson |first11=Keith |last12=Larson |first12=Janine |last13=Eaton |first13=Deborah |last14=Sadler-Fredd |first14=Karen |last15=Battaglia |first15=David |date=2013-05-15 |title=Human Embryonic Stem Cells Derived by Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer |journal=Cell |language=en |volume=153 |issue=6 |pages=1228–1238 |doi=10.1016/j.cell.2013.05.006 |pmc=3772789 |pmid=23683578}}</ref> In this experiment, the researchers developed a protocol for using SCNT in human cells, which differs slightly from the one used in other organisms.  Four embryonic stem cell lines from human fetal somatic cells were derived from those blastocysts. All four lines were derived using oocytes from the same donor, ensuring that all [[mitochondrial DNA]] inherited was identical.<ref name=TrounsonComment>{{cite journal |vauthors=Trounson A, DeWitt ND | title = Pluripotent stem cells from cloned human embryos: success at long last | journal = Cell Stem Cell | volume = 12 | issue = 6 | pages = 636–8 |date= 2013 | pmid = 23746970 | doi = 10.1016/j.stem.2013.05.022 | doi-access = free }}</ref> A year later, a team led by [[Robert Lanza]] at Advanced Cell Technology reported that they had replicated Mitalipov's results and further demonstrated the effectiveness by cloning adult cells using SCNT.<ref name=TIME /><ref name="pmid24746675">{{cite journal |vauthors=Chung YG, Eum JH, Lee JE, Shim SH, Sepilian V, Hong SW, Lee Y, Treff NR, Choi YH, Kimbrel EA, Dittman RE, Lanza R, Lee DR | title = Human somatic cell nuclear transfer using adult cells | journal = Cell Stem Cell | volume = 14 | issue = 6 | pages = 777–80 |date= 2014 | pmid = 24746675 | doi = 10.1016/j.stem.2014.03.015 | doi-access = free }}</ref>

In 2018, the first successful [[clone (cell biology)|cloning]] of [[primates]] using SCNT was reported with the birth of two live female clones, [[crab-eating macaques]] named [[Zhong Zhong and Hua Hua]].<ref name="CELL-20180124">{{cite journal |author=Liu, Zhen|display-authors=et al |title=Cloning of Macaque Monkeys by Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer |date=24 January 2018 |journal=[[Cell (journal)|Cell]] |volume=172 |issue=4 |pages=881–887.e7 |doi=10.1016/j.cell.2018.01.020 |pmid=29395327 |s2cid=206567964 |doi-access=free }}</ref><ref name="SCINAT-20180124">{{cite journal |last=Normile |first=Dennis |title=These monkey twins are the first primate clones made by the method that developed Dolly |url=https://www.science.org/content/article/these-monkey-twins-are-first-primate-clones-made-method-developed-dolly |date=24 January 2018 |journal=[[Science (journal)|Science]] |doi=10.1126/science.aat1066 |access-date=24 January 2018 |archive-date=27 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180127202402/https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2018/01/these-monkey-twins-are-first-primate-clones-made-method-developed-dolly |url-status=live |url-access=subscription }}</ref>

==Methods==

===Somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT)===
{{Main|Somatic cell nuclear transfer}}
[[File:Cloning diagram english.svg|thumb|upright=1.3|Diagram of SCNT process]]

In somatic cell nuclear transfer ("SCNT"), the nucleus of a [[somatic cell]] is taken from a donor and transplanted into a host [[Oocyte|egg cell]], which had its own genetic material removed previously, making it an enucleated egg. After the donor somatic cell genetic material is transferred into the host oocyte with a micropipette, the somatic cell genetic material is fused with the egg using an electric current. Once the two cells have fused, the new cell can be permitted to grow in a [[In vivo|surrogate]] or [[In vitro|artificially]].<ref>{{cite book |last= Gilbert |first= Scott F. |date=30 June 2013 |title= Developmental Biology| edition= 10th |publisher=Sinauer Associates, Inc. |pages=32–33 |isbn=978-0-87893-978-7 }}</ref> This is the process that was used to successfully clone Dolly the sheep (see {{section link|#History}}).<ref name="TIME"/> The technique, now refined, has indicated that it was possible to replicate cells and reestablish pluripotency, or "the potential of an embryonic cell to grow into any one of the numerous different types of mature body cells that make up a complete organism".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/science/cloning|title=cloning {{!}} Definition, Process, & Types|website=Encyclopædia Britannica|language=en|access-date=16 December 2019|archive-date=26 April 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200426233507/https://www.britannica.com/science/cloning|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs)===
{{Main|Induced pluripotent stem cell}}
[[File:Overview of iPS cells.png|thumb|upright=1.25|Overview of iPS cells]]

Creating induced [[Pluripotency|pluripotent]] [[stem cell]]s ("iPSCs") is a long and inefficient process. [[cell potency|Pluripotency]] refers to a stem cell that has the potential to [[cellular differentiation|differentiate]] into any of the three [[germ layers]]: [[endoderm]] (interior stomach lining, gastrointestinal tract, the lungs), [[mesoderm]] (muscle, bone, blood, urogenital), or [[ectoderm]] (epidermal tissues and nervous tissue).<ref name=Binder>{{cite book|editor-last1= Binder| editor-first1= Marc D.|title=Encyclopedia of Neuroscience|year=2009|publisher=Springer|location=Berlin|isbn=978-3-540-23735-8|edition=online|editor-last2=Hirokawa| editor-first2= Nobutaka| editor-first3= Uwe |editor-last3= Windhorst}}</ref> A specific set of genes, often called "reprogramming factors", are introduced into a specific adult cell type. These factors send [[cell signalling|signals]] in the mature cell that cause the cell to become a pluripotent stem cell. This process is highly studied and new techniques are being discovered frequently on how to improve this induction process.

Depending on the method used, reprogramming of adult cells into iPSCs for [[Implantation (human embryo)|implantation]] could have severe limitations in humans. If a virus is used as a reprogramming factor for the cell, cancer-causing genes called [[oncogenes]] may be [[regulation of gene expression|activated]]. These cells would appear as rapidly dividing cancer cells that do not respond to the body's natural cell signaling process. However, in 2008 scientists discovered a technique that could remove the presence of these oncogenes after pluripotency induction, thereby increasing the potential use of iPSC in humans.<ref name="Cancer threat removed">{{cite news |url=http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-sci-stemcell6-2009mar06,0,63456.story |title=Cancer threat removed from stem cells, scientists say |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |first=Karen |last=Kaplan |date=6 March 2009 |access-date=15 April 2014 |archive-date=10 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090310085937/http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-sci-stemcell6-2009mar06,0,63456.story |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Comparing SCNT to reprogramming===
Both the processes of SCNT and iPSCs have benefits and deficiencies. Historically, reprogramming methods were better studied than SCNT derived embryonic stem cells (ESCs).<ref name=TrounsonComment/> However, more recent studies have put more emphasis on developing new procedures for SCNT-ESCs. The major advantage of SCNT over iPSCs at this time is the speed with which cells can be produced. iPSCs derivation takes several months while SCNT would take a much shorter time, which could be important for medical applications. New studies are working to improve the process of iPSC in terms of both speed and efficiency with the discovery of new reprogramming factors in oocytes.{{citation needed|date=May 2014}} Another advantage SCNT could have over iPSCs is its potential to treat [[mitochondrial disease]], as it uses a donor oocyte.<ref name=TrounsonComment/> No other advantages are known at this time in using stem cells derived from one method over stem cells derived from the other.<ref name="pmid24180743">{{cite journal |vauthors= Langerova A, Fulka H, Fulka J | title = Somatic cell nuclear transfer-derived embryonic stem cell lines in humans: pros and cons | journal = Cellular Reprogramming | volume = 15 | issue = 6 | pages = 481–3 |date= 2013 | pmid = 24180743 | doi = 10.1089/cell.2013.0054 }}</ref>

{{clear}}

==Uses and actual potential==
[[File:Stem cell treatments.png|thumb|upright=1.25|Stem cell treatments]]

Work on cloning techniques has advanced understanding of [[developmental biology]] in humans. Observing human pluripotent stem cells grown in culture provides great insight into [[Human embryogenesis|human embryo development]], which otherwise cannot be seen. Scientists are now able to better define steps of early human development. Studying [[signal transduction]] along with genetic manipulation within the early human embryo has the potential to provide answers to many developmental diseases and defects. Many human-specific signaling pathways have been discovered by studying human embryonic stem cells. Studying developmental pathways in humans has given developmental biologists more evidence toward the hypothesis that developmental pathways are conserved throughout species.<ref name="pmid23362344">{{cite journal |vauthors=Zhu Z, Huangfu D | title = Human pluripotent stem cells: an emerging model in developmental biology | journal = Development | volume = 140 | issue = 4 | pages = 705–17 |date= 2013 | pmid = 23362344 | pmc = 3557771 | doi = 10.1242/dev.086165 }}</ref>

iPSCs and cells created by SCNT are useful for research into the causes of disease, and as model systems used in [[drug discovery]].<ref name="pmid23801830">{{cite journal |vauthors=Subba Rao M, Sasikala M, Nageshwar Reddy D | title = Thinking outside the liver: induced pluripotent stem cells for hepatic applications | journal = World J. Gastroenterol. | volume = 19 | issue = 22 | pages = 3385–96 |date= 2013 | pmid = 23801830 | pmc = 3683676 | doi = 10.3748/wjg.v19.i22.3385 | doi-access = free }}</ref><ref name="pmid24232258">{{cite journal |vauthors=Tobe BT, Brandel MG, Nye JS, Snyder EY | title = Implications and limitations of cellular reprogramming for psychiatric drug development | journal = Exp. Mol. Med. | volume = 45 | issue = 11 | pages = e59 |date= 2013 | pmid = 24232258 | pmc = 3849573 | doi = 10.1038/emm.2013.124 }}</ref>

Cells produced with SCNT, or iPSCs could eventually be used in [[stem cell therapy]],<ref name=Singec07>{{cite journal |last1=Singec |first1=Ilyas |last2=Jandial |first2=Rahul |last3=Crain |first3=Andrew |last4=Nikkhah |first4=Guido |last5=Snyder |first5=Evan Y. |title=The Leading Edge of Stem Cell Therapeutics |journal=Annual Review of Medicine |date=February 2007 |volume=58 |issue=1 |pages=313–328 |doi=10.1146/annurev.med.58.070605.115252 |pmid=17100553 |s2cid=18623750 }}</ref> or to [[tissue engineering|create organs]] to be used in transplantation, known as [[regenerative medicine]]. Stem cell therapy is the use of stem cells to treat or prevent a disease or condition. [[Bone marrow transplantation]] is a widely used form of stem cell therapy.<ref name=NCI>{{Cite web|date=9 September 2005|title=Blood-Forming Stem Cell Transplants - NCI|url=https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/treatment/types/stem-cell-transplant/stem-cell-fact-sheet|access-date=29 March 2023|website=cancer.gov|language=en|archive-date=13 March 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150313043919/http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Therapy/bone-marrow-transplant|url-status=live}}</ref> No other forms of stem cell therapy are in clinical use at this time. Research is underway to potentially use stem cell therapy to treat [[heart disease]], [[diabetes]], and [[spinal cord injuries]].<ref name="NIH">[http://stemcells.nih.gov/info/basics/pages/basics6.aspx Cell Basics: What are the potential uses of human stem cells and the obstacles that must be overcome before these potential uses will be realized?] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170224060453/https://stemcells.nih.gov/info/basics/pages/basics6.aspx |date=24 February 2017 }}. In Stem Cell Information World Wide Web site. Bethesda, MD: National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2009. cited Sunday, 26 April 2009</ref><ref>{{cite journal |vauthors=Cummings BJ, Uchida N, Tamaki SJ, Salazar DL, Hooshmand M, Summers R, Gage FH, Anderson AJ | title = Human neural stem cells differentiate and promote locomotor recovery in spinal cord-injured mice | journal = Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. | volume = 102 | issue = 39 | pages = 14069–74 | date = September 2005 | pmid = 16172374 | pmc = 1216836 | doi = 10.1073/pnas.0507063102 | bibcode = 2005PNAS..10214069C | doi-access = free }}</ref> Regenerative medicine is not in clinical practice, but is heavily researched for its potential uses. This type of medicine would allow for autologous transplantation, thus removing the risk of organ transplant rejection by the recipient.<ref name="pmid23945396">{{cite journal |last=Svendsen |first=C.N. | title = Back to the future: how human induced pluripotent stem cells will transform regenerative medicine | journal = Hum. Mol. Genet. | volume = 22 | issue = R1 | pages = R32–8 |date= 2013 | pmid = 23945396 | pmc = 3782070 | doi = 10.1093/hmg/ddt379 }}</ref> For instance, a person with liver disease could potentially have a new liver grown using their same genetic material and transplanted to remove the damaged liver.<ref name="pmid23322990">{{cite journal |vauthors=Booth C, Soker T, Baptista P, Ross CL, Soker S, Farooq U, Stratta RJ, Orlando G | title = Liver bioengineering: current status and future perspectives | journal = World J. Gastroenterol. | volume = 18 | issue = 47 | pages = 6926–34 |date= 2012 | pmid = 23322990 | pmc = 3531676 | doi = 10.3748/wjg.v18.i47.6926 | doi-access = free }}</ref> In current research, human pluripotent stem cells have been promised as a reliable source for generating human neurons, showing the potential for regenerative medicine in brain and neural injuries.<ref name="pmid24171168">{{cite journal |vauthors=Jongkamonwiwat N, Noisa P | title = Biomedical and clinical promises of human pluripotent stem cells for neurological disorders | journal = Biomed Res Int | volume = 2013 |date= 2013 | article-number = 656531 | pmid = 24171168 | pmc = 3793324 | doi = 10.1155/2013/656531 | doi-access = free }}</ref>

==Ethical implications==
{{Main|Ethics of cloning}}

In [[bioethics]], the ethics of cloning refers to a variety of ethical positions regarding the practice and possibilities of [[cloning]], especially human cloning. While many of these views are religious in origin, for instance relating to Christian views of procreation and personhood,<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Häyry|first=Matti|year=2018|title=Ethics and cloning|journal=British Medical Bulletin|volume=128|issue=1|pages=15–21|doi=10.1093/bmb/ldy031|pmid=30203088|doi-access=free}}</ref> the questions raised by cloning engage secular perspectives as well, particularly the concept of identity.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Magney|first=Alix|year=2003|title=Cloning Me, Cloning You: Reflections on the Ethics of Cloning for Individuals, Families and Society|journal=Social Alternatives|volume=22|issue=4|pages=19–27|url=https://search.informit.org/doi/abs/10.3316/ielapa.200305128|access-date=21 November 2022|archive-date=24 September 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230924122357/https://search.informit.org/doi/abs/10.3316/ielapa.200305128|url-status=live}}</ref>

Advocates support development of therapeutic cloning in order to generate tissues and whole organs to treat patients who otherwise cannot obtain transplants,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/elsi/cloning.shtml#organsQ |title=Cloning Fact Sheet |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130502125744/http://www.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/elsi/cloning.shtml |publisher=U.S. Department of Energy Genome Program |date=11 May 2009 |archive-date=2 May 2013}}</ref> to avoid the need for [[immunosuppressive drugs]],<ref>{{cite journal | author = Kfoury C | title = Therapeutic cloning: Promises and issues | journal = [[McGill Journal of Medicine]] | volume = 10 | issue = 2 | pages = 112–20 |date= 2007 | pmid = 18523539 | pmc = 2323472 }}</ref> and to stave off the effects of aging.<ref name=EndingAging>{{cite book |last1=de Grey |first1=Aubrey |last2=Rae |first2=Michael |date=2007 |title=Ending Aging: The Rejuvenation Breakthroughs that Could Reverse Human Aging in Our Lifetime |location=New York, NY |publisher=St. Martin's Press |isbn=978-0-312-36706-0 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/endingagingrejuv00degr }}</ref>  Advocates for reproductive cloning believe that parents who cannot otherwise procreate should have access to the technology.<ref>{{cite news| work= [[Times Higher Education]]| date= 10 August 2001| url= http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/164313.article| title= In the news: Antinori and Zavos| access-date= 15 December 2013| archive-date= 12 February 2015| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150212200758/http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/164313.article| url-status= live}}</ref>

Opposition to therapeutic cloning mainly centers around the status of [[embryonic stem cells]], which has connections with the [[abortion debate]].<ref>{{cite journal |last=Kfoury |first=C. |date= 2007 | title = Therapeutic cloning: promises and issues | journal = Mcgill J Med. | volume = 10 | issue = 2| pages = 112–20 | pmid = 18523539 | pmc=2323472}}</ref> The moral argument put forward is based on the notion that embryos deserve protection from the moment of their conception because it is at this precise moment that a new human entity emerges, already a unique individual.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=George |first1=Robert P |last2=Lee |first2=Patrick |date=April 2009 |title=Embryonic human persons. Talking Point on morality and human embryo research |journal=EMBO Reports |volume=10 |issue=4 |pages=301–306 |doi=10.1038/embor.2009.42 |issn=1469-221X |pmc=2672893 |pmid=19337298}}</ref> Since it is deemed unacceptable to sacrifice human lives for any purpose, the argument asserts that the destruction of embryos for research purposes is no longer justifiable.<ref>{{Cite web |last=l'Organisation des Nations Unies pour l'éducation, la science et la culture |title=Le Clonage humain: questions éthiques |url=https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000135928_fre |website=la Bibliothèque Numérique de l'UNESCO}}</ref>

Some opponents of reproductive cloning have concerns that technology is not yet developed enough to be safe – for example, the position of the [[American Association for the Advancement of Science]] {{As of|2014|lc=y|post=,}}<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.aaas.org/page/american-association-advancement-science-statement-human-cloning| title = AAAS Statement on Human Cloning| access-date = 21 April 2014| archive-date = 9 March 2016| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160309225244/http://www.aaas.org/page/american-association-advancement-science-statement-human-cloning| url-status = live}}</ref> while others emphasize that reproductive cloning could be prone to abuse (leading to the generation of humans whose organs and tissues would be harvested),<ref name="McGee">{{cite web |last=McGee |first=G. |title=Primer on Ethics and Human Cloning |date=October 2011 |publisher=American Institute of Biological Sciences |url=http://www.actionbioscience.org/biotech/mcgee.html |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130223142719/http://www.actionbioscience.org/biotech/mcgee.html |archive-date=23 February 2013 |access-date=15 December 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |publisher=UNESCO |date=11 November 1997 |url=http://portal.unesco.org/en/ev.php-URL_ID%3D13177%26URL_DO%3DDO_TOPIC%26URL_SECTION%3D201.html |title=Universal Declaration on the Human Genome and Human Rights |access-date=27 February 2008 |archive-date=9 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190909061222/http://portal.unesco.org/en/ev.php-URL_ID%3D13177%26URL_DO%3DDO_TOPIC%26URL_SECTION%3D201.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and have concerns about how cloned individuals could integrate with families and with society at large.<ref>{{cite book |last=McGee |first=Glenn |year=2000 |title=The Perfect Baby: Parenthood in the New World of Cloning and Genetics |location=Lanham |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |edition=2nd |isbn=978-0-8476-9758-8 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/perfectbabyparen0000mcge }}</ref><ref name="Human Cloning Ethics">{{cite journal |last1=Havstad |first1=Joyce C. |title=Human Reproductive Cloning: A Conflict of Liberties |journal=Bioethics |date=February 2010 |volume=24 |issue=2 |pages=71–77 |doi=10.1111/j.1467-8519.2008.00692.x |pmid=19076121 |s2cid=40051820 |url=https://philarchive.org/rec/HAVHRC }}</ref>

Members of religious groups are divided. Some Christian theologians perceive the technology as usurping God's role in creation and, to the extent embryos are used, destroying a human life;<ref name=":0" /> others see no inconsistency between Christian tenets and cloning's positive and potentially life-saving benefits.<ref>{{cite web| first= Bob| last= Sullivan| publisher= MSNBC| date= 26 November 2003| url= http://www.nbcnews.com/id/3076930/| title= Religions reveal little consensus on cloning| access-date= 15 September 2016| archive-date= 4 March 2016| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160304041349/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/3076930/}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Sims Bainbridge|first=William|date=October 2003|title=Religious Opposition to Cloning|url=http://jetpress.org/volume13/bainbridge.html|journal=Journal of Evolution and Technology|volume=13|access-date=21 November 2019|archive-date=1 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190801205816/https://www.jetpress.org/volume13/bainbridge.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Legal status of human therapeutic cloning maps==

[[File:World map of human cloning laws.svg|thumb|center|upright=2|Human cloning laws
{{legend|#4575b4|Illegal}}
{{legend|#ffffbf|Some forms legal}}
{{legend|#d73027|Legal}}
{{legend|#c0c0c0|No data}}]]

[[File:US therapeutic cloning.svg|936px|thumb|center|upright=2|Human therapeutic cloning laws by [[U.S. state]]
{{legend|#80ff80ff|Legal}}
{{legend|#ffaaaaff|Illegal}}
{{legend|#c0c0c0ff|No data, not specified or unclear}}]]

==Legal status of human cloning by jurisdiction==
{{Expand section|date=April 2024}}
{| class="wikitable sortable"
! width=120|Jurisdiction !! width=120|Reproductive cloning !! width=120|Therapeutic cloning !! class="unsortable" | Notes
|-
| {{flag|Argentina}} 
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="AR"/><ref name="index">{{cite web |author1=Kathryn Wheat and Kirstin Matthews |title=World Human Cloning Policies |url=https://www.ruf.rice.edu/~neal/temp/ST%20Policy/index/SCBooklet/World.pdf |website=ruf.rice.edu |publisher=[[Rice University]] |access-date=7 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240226091531/https://www.ruf.rice.edu/~neal/temp/ST%20Policy/index/SCBooklet/World.pdf |archive-date=26 Feb 2024 |language=English}}</ref>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
| Human cloning is banned by the Presidential Decree 200/97 of 7 March 1997.<ref name="AR">{{cite web |url=http://servicios.infoleg.gob.ar/infolegInternet/verNorma.do?id=42213 |title=Decree 200/97 |publisher=InfoLEG |access-date=15 October 2017 |language=es |archive-date=16 October 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171016070448/http://servicios.infoleg.gob.ar/infolegInternet/verNorma.do?id=42213 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Australia}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name= drze/><ref name="index"/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref>{{cite web |title=Embryo research licensing: key terms |url=https://www.nhmrc.gov.au/about-us/publications/embryo-research-licensing-key-terms |website=nhmrc.gov.au |publisher=NHMRC |access-date=6 April 2024 |archive-date=6 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240406151026/https://www.nhmrc.gov.au/about-us/publications/embryo-research-licensing-key-terms |url-status=live }}</ref>}}
| Australia has prohibited human cloning,<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.nhmrc.gov.au/publications/synopses/prohibitsyn.htm| title= Prohibition of Human Cloning for Reproduction Act 2002| location= Australia| website= NHMRC.gov.au| publisher= National Health and Medical Research Council| date= 12 June 2007| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090607085815/http://www.nhmrc.gov.au/publications/synopses/prohibitsyn.htm| archive-date= 7 June 2009}}</ref> though {{As of|2006|12|lc=y}}, a bill legalizing therapeutic cloning and the creation of human embryos for stem cell research passed the [[Australian House of Representatives|House of Representatives]]. Within certain regulatory limits, and subject to the effect of state legislation, therapeutic cloning is now legal in some parts of Australia.<ref name= drze>{{cite web| date= April 2014| url= http://www.drze.de/in-focus/research-cloning/legal-aspects?set_language=en| title= Research cloning – Legal Aspects| work= Deutsches Referenzzentrum fur Ethik in den Biowissenschaften| language= en| access-date= 19 April 2014| archive-date= 20 April 2014| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140420052032/http://www.drze.de/in-focus/research-cloning/legal-aspects?set_language=en}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Austria}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Belgium}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name= drze/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="OpenMind"/><ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Brazil}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
| {{flag|Canada}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="CA"/><ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="CA"/><ref name="index"/>}}
| Canadian law prohibits the following: cloning humans, cloning stem cells, growing human embryos for research purposes, and buying or selling of embryos, sperm, eggs or other human reproductive material.<ref name="CA">{{cite news | title=Canada Closes Door on Cloning | magazine=Wired | last=Philipkoski | first=Kristen | url=http://archive.wired.com/medtech/health/news/2004/03/62695 | date=17 March 2004 | access-date=20 April 2014 | archive-date=21 April 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140421105301/http://archive.wired.com/medtech/health/news/2004/03/62695 | url-status=live }}</ref> It also bans making changes to human DNA that would pass from one generation to the next,<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Kleiderman|first1=Erika|last2=Stedman|first2=Ian Norris Kellner|date=April 2020|title=Human germline genome editing is illegal in Canada, but could it be desirable for some members of the rare disease community?|journal=Journal of Community Genetics|language=en|volume=11|issue=2|pages=129–138|doi=10.1007/s12687-019-00430-x|issn=1868-310X|pmc=7062950|pmid=31420817}}</ref> including use of animal DNA in humans. Surrogate mothers are legally allowed, as is donation of sperm or eggs for reproductive purposes. Human embryos and stem cells are also permitted to be donated for research.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Government of Canada|first=Interagency Advisory Panel on Research Ethics|date=1 April 2019|title=Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans – TCPS 2 (2018) – Chapter 12: Human Biological Materials Including Materials Related to Human Reproduction|url=https://ethics.gc.ca/eng/tcps2-eptc2_2018_chapter12-chapitre12.html|access-date=9 June 2020|website=ethics.gc.ca|archive-date=15 May 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200515160123/https://ethics.gc.ca/eng/tcps2-eptc2_2018_chapter12-chapitre12.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

There have been consistent calls in Canada to ban human reproductive cloning since the 1993 Report of the Royal Commission on New Reproductive Technologies. Polls have indicated that an overwhelming majority of Canadians oppose human reproductive cloning, though the regulation of human cloning continues to be a significant national and international policy issue.  The notion of "human dignity" is commonly used to justify cloning laws. The basis for this justification is that reproductive human cloning necessarily infringes notions of human dignity.<ref>{{cite web| title= Overview of World Human Cloning Policies| work= Connexions| access-date= 15 September 2016| url= http://cnx.org/content/m14834/latest/| first= Kristin| last= Matthews| publisher= [[Rice University]]| archive-date= 17 December 2013| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131217231719/http://cnx.org/content/m14834/latest/| url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal| title= Canada Bans Human Cloning| journal= The Hastings Center Report| access-date= 7 December 2011| first= Francoise| last= Baylis | year= 2004| volume= 34| issue= 3| page= 5| pmid= 15281719| url= https://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst?do}}{{dead link|date=July 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |first= Kristen |last= Philipkoski |date= 17 March 2004 |title= Canada Closes Door on Cloning |url= http://wired.com/ |access-date= 15 September 2016 |archive-date= 14 June 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20220614233844/https://www.wired.com/ |url-status= live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web| title= Regulating and treating conception problems| publisher= Canadian Broadcasting Corporation| date= 21 December 2010| access-date= 7 December 2011| url= https://www.cbc.ca/news/science/regulating-and-treating-conception-problems-1.799668| archive-date= 27 February 2012| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120227183627/http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/story/2009/02/05/f-reprotech.html| url-status= live}}</ref>
|-
|{{flag|Chile}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{Flag|China}} 
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="CN"/><ref name="index"/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="OpenMind"/><ref name="index"/>}}
| The government "does not approve, does not allow, does not support, does not accept" any reproductive human cloning experiments, but does not oppose therapeutic cloning.<ref name="CN">{{cite news |title=中国支持尽早制定《禁止生殖性克隆人国际公约》 |language=zh-cn |publisher=人民网 |url=http://www.people.com.cn/GB/shizheng/16/20020227/675390.html |access-date=2017-10-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180416110933/http://www.people.com.cn/GB/shizheng/16/20020227/675390.html |archive-date=2018-04-16 |url-status=live}}</ref>
In the Eleventh Amendment to the Criminal Law, which came into effect on March 1, 2021, an additional provision was added to Article 336, which stipulates that "implanting gene-edited or cloned human embryos into human or animal bodies, or implanting gene-edited, cloned Implantation of cloned animal embryos into human bodies, if the circumstances are serious, shall be sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment of not more than three years or criminal detention and a fine; if the circumstances are especially serious, the sentence shall be fixed-term imprisonment of not less than three years but not more than seven years and a fine."<ref>{{Cite web |title=中华人民共和国刑法修正案（十一）--中国人大新闻--人民网 |url=http://npc.people.com.cn/n1/2020/1227/c14576-31980014.html |access-date=2023-07-06 |website=npc.people.com.cn |archive-date=26 October 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211026120908/http://npc.people.com.cn/n1/2020/1227/c14576-31980014.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Colombia}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="CO"/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="index"/>}}
| Human cloning is prohibited in Article 133 of the Colombian Penal Code.<ref name="CO">{{cite web| title= Ley 599 de 2000 (Julio 24) Por la cual se expide el Código Penal| language= es| trans-title= Law 599 of 2000 (July 24) which issued the Penal Code| date= 24 July 2000| url= http://www.alcaldiabogota.gov.co/sisjur/normas/Norma1.jsp?i=6388| website= alcaldiabogota.gov.co| publisher= Bogota Mayoral Office| location= Bogota, Colombia| access-date= 15 September 2016| archive-date= 18 October 2020| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201018191410/https://www.alcaldiabogota.gov.co/sisjur/normas/Norma1.jsp?i=6388| url-status= live}}</ref>
|-
|{{flag|Costa Rica}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
| {{flag|Council of Europe}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="CoE"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not specified<ref name="CoE"/>}}
| The [[Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Dignity of the Human Being with regard to the Application of Biology and Medicine|European Convention on Human Rights and Biomedicine]], a.k.a. the [[Oviedo Convention]], prohibits human cloning in one of its additional protocols;<ref name="CoE">{{Cite web|title=Details of Treaty No.168|url=https://www.coe.int/en/web/conventions/full-list?module=treaty-detail&treatynum=168|access-date=29 March 2023|website=Treaty Office|language=en-GB|archive-date=1 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230401221407/https://www.coe.int/en/web/conventions/full-list?module=treaty-detail&treatynum=168|url-status=live}}</ref> this protocol has been ratified by the following states:<ref name="CoE"/><ref name="CoE1">{{cite web |title=Chart of signatures and ratifications of Treaty 164 |url=https://www.coe.int/en/web/conventions/full-list?module=signatures-by-treaty&treatynum=164 |website=coe.int |publisher=Council of Europe |access-date=6 April 2024 |archive-date=20 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240420220642/https://www.coe.int/en/web/conventions/full-list?module=signatures-by-treaty&treatynum=164 |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[Albania]], [[Andorra]], [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]], [[Bulgaria]], [[Croatia]], [[Cyprus]], [[Czech Republic]], [[Denmark]], [[Estonia]], [[Finland]], [[France]], [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]], [[Greece]], [[Hungary]], [[Iceland]], [[Latvia]], [[Liechtenstein]], [[Lithuania]], [[Moldova]], [[Montenegro]], [[North Macedonia]], [[Norway]], [[Portugal]], [[Romania]], [[San Marino]], [[Serbia]], [[Slovakia]], [[Slovenia]], [[Spain]], [[Switzerland]], [[Turkey]]
|-
|{{flag|Czech Republic}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Denmark}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Ecuador}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Egypt}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Estonia}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
| {{flag|European Union}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="EU">{{cite web |title=CHARTER OF FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION |url=https://www.europarl.europa.eu/charter/pdf/text_en.pdf |website=europarl.europa.eu |publisher=European Union |access-date=6 April 2024 |archive-date=15 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180915053802/http://www.europarl.europa.eu/charter/pdf/text_en.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>}}
|{{unknown|Not specified<ref name="EU"/>}}
| The [[Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union]] explicitly prohibits reproductive human cloning. The charter is legally binding for the institutions of the [[European Union]] under the [[Treaty of Lisbon]] and for some member countries of the Union implementing EU regulations.{{efn|In some countries (e.g., the Italian Republic) international treaties never override the national Constitution or the other constitutional laws. Poland [[Opt-outs in the European Union|opted-out]] and is not part of the said Charter.}}<ref>Treaty of Lisbon (2007/C 306/01) Article 6 (1)</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=EU Charter of Fundamental Rights|url=http://ec.europa.eu/justice/fundamental-rights/charter/index_en.htm|publisher=Europa (web portal)|access-date=7 May 2015|archive-date=15 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171015162833/http://ec.europa.eu/justice/fundamental-rights/charter/index_en.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
|{{flag|Finland}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="CoE"/><ref name="CoE1"/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
| {{flag|France}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="FR"/><ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="FR"/><ref name="index"/>}}
| The [[Napoleonic Code|Code Civil]] in its article 16-4 prohibits all forms of cloning. All forms of cloning including therapeutic cloning has been specifically prohibited by 6 August 2004 bioethics law<ref name="FR">Loi du 6 Août 2004 relative à la bioéthique, online via https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/jorf/id/JORFTEXT000000441469 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230429134612/https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/jorf/id/JORFTEXT000000441469 |date=29 April 2023 }}</ref>
|-
|{{flag|Georgia}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
| {{flag|Germany}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}<ref name="DE">{{cite web |title=German Federal Parliament: Decision on the Importation of Embryonic Stem Cells |url=https://www.drze.de/en/research-publications/in-focus/research-cloning/modules/decision-on-the-importation-of-embryonic-stem-cells |website=drze.de |publisher=[[University of Bonn]] |access-date=6 April 2024 |archive-date=6 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240406142524/https://www.drze.de/en/research-publications/in-focus/research-cloning/modules/decision-on-the-importation-of-embryonic-stem-cells }}</ref><ref name="DE1">{{cite web |title=Germany maintains ban on all forms of cloning |url=https://www.progress.org.uk/germany-maintains-ban-on-all-forms-of-cloning/ |website=progress.org.uk |date=16 September 2004 |publisher=PET |access-date=6 April 2024}}</ref>
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}<ref name="DE"/><ref name="DE1"/>
|
|-
|{{flag|Greece}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
| {{flag|Hungary}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="HU"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not specified<ref name="index"/>}}
| The [[Constitution of Hungary]] (Section ''Freedom and Responsibility'', Article 3 (3)) prohibits human cloning.<ref name="HU">{{cite web|title=Magyarország Alaptörvénye|url=https://net.jogtar.hu/jogszabaly?docid=a1100425.atv|access-date=12 March 2024|archive-date=28 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181228035646/https://net.jogtar.hu/jogszabaly?docid=A1100425.ATV|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
|{{flag|Iceland}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
| {{flag|India}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="IN"/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="OpenMind">{{cite web |title=Therapeutic and Reproductive Cloning of Human Beings |url=https://www.bbvaopenmind.com/en/science/scientific-insights/therapeutic-and-reproductive-cloning-of-human-beings/ |website=bbvaopenmind.com |date=30 November 2023 |publisher=OpenMind |access-date=6 April 2024 |archive-date=6 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240406151026/https://www.bbvaopenmind.com/en/science/scientific-insights/therapeutic-and-reproductive-cloning-of-human-beings/ |url-status=live }}</ref>}}
| India does not have specific laws regarding cloning but has guidelines prohibiting whole human cloning or reproductive cloning. India allows therapeutic cloning and the use of embryonic stem cells for research purposes. There are legal implications in this case.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://m.ndtv.com/article/sci-tech/should-india-ban-human-cloning-5015|title=Should India ban human cloning?|first=Pallava|last=Bagla|date=24 June 2009|access-date=18 April 2014|publisher=NDTV|place=New Delhi|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140419235811/http://m.ndtv.com/article/sci-tech/should-india-ban-human-cloning-5015|archive-date=19 April 2014}}</ref><ref name="IN">{{cite web|url=http://www.dnapolicy.org/policy.international.php?action=detail&laws_id=26|title=Cloning Ethical Policies on the Human Genome, Genetic Research and Services [India]|work=Genetics & Public Policy Center|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140420050704/http://www.dnapolicy.org/policy.international.php?action=detail&laws_id=26|archive-date=20 April 2014}}</ref>
India has already succeeded in mammalian cloning.<ref>{{cite news |date=20 September 2020 |title=NDRI Uses Clone Technology To Develop Buffalo Calf 'Tejas' For High Milk Yield |work=[[Businessworld]] |url=http://www.businessworld.in/article/NDRI-uses-clone-technology-to-develop-buffalo-calf-Tejas-for-high-milk-yield/20-09-2020-322611/ |url-status=live |access-date=29 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201104004619/http://www.businessworld.in/article/NDRI-uses-clone-technology-to-develop-buffalo-calf-Tejas-for-high-milk-yield/20-09-2020-322611/ |archive-date=4 November 2020}}</ref>
|-
|{{flag|Iran}}
|{{unknown|No data}}
|{{unknown|Not specified<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Ireland}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
| {{flag|Israel}}
|{{no|Illegal}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Israel: Law Prohibiting Human Cloning Amended |url=https://www.loc.gov/item/global-legal-monitor/2016-06-07/israel-law-prohibiting-human-cloning-amended/ |website=loc.gov |publisher=Library of Congress |access-date=6 April 2024 |archive-date=6 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240406094306/https://www.loc.gov/item/global-legal-monitor/2016-06-07/israel-law-prohibiting-human-cloning-amended/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="index"/><ref name="OpenMind"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Italy}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
| {{flag|Japan}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref>{{cite web |title=The Japanese Approach to the Regulation of Human Cloning |url=https://www.zjapanr.de/index.php/zjapanr/article/view/655/679 |website=www.zjapanr.de |publisher=20 Biotechnology Law Report 700 |access-date=6 April 2024}}</ref>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="index"/><ref name="OpenMind"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Latvia}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Lithuania}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
| {{flag|Morocco}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="MO"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="MO"/>}}
|
In Morocco, all research on human embryos or fetuses is forbidden, as is the conception of human embryos or fetuses for research or experimental purposes, in accordance with article 7 of Dahir no. 1–19–50.<ref name="MO">{{Cite web |date=2019 |title=-Dahir n° 1-19-50 du 11 mars 2019 portant promulgation de la loi 47-14 relative à l'assistance médicale à la procréation |url=https://www.sante.gov.ma/Reglementation/REGLEMENTATIONDESPRATIQUESMEDICALES/Forms/DispForm.aspx?ID=36 |website=ministère de la santé }}{{Dead link|date=November 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
|-
|{{flag|Netherlands}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|New Zealand}}
|{{unknown|No data}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Norway}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
| {{flag|Pakistan}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="PK"/>}}
|{{yes-no|Legal within the limits of [[Islam]]<ref name="PK"/>}}
| Pakistan's [[Council of Islamic Ideology]] has declared human cloning as an un-Islamic act. According to Pakistan's [[Council of Islamic Ideology]], research and thinking are not banned in Islam; new innovations are allowed, but within the limits of the religion.<ref name="PK">{{cite news|title=CII declares human cloning, gender change un-Islamic|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1054305|work=Dawn|location=Islamabad|date=5 November 2013|access-date=7 July 2020|archive-date=7 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200707102227/https://www.dawn.com/news/1054305|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
|{{flag|Panama}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Peru}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
| {{flag|Poland}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="PL"/><ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
| Human cloning forbidden by article 87 of Act of 25 June 2015.<ref name="PL">{{Cite web |url=http://prawo.sejm.gov.pl/isap.nsf/DocDetails.xsp?id=WDU20150001087 |title=Dz.U. 2015 poz. 1087 |access-date=21 March 2019 |archive-date=2 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190502121941/http://prawo.sejm.gov.pl/isap.nsf/DocDetails.xsp?id=WDU20150001087 }}</ref>
|-
|{{flag|Portugal}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|-
|{{flag|Republic of China}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|-
| {{flag|Russia}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/><ref name="RU"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
| The Federal Assembly of Russia introduced the Federal Law N 54-FZ "On the temporary ban on human cloning" on 19 April 2002. On 20 May 2002, President Vladimir Putin signed this moratorium on the implementation of human cloning. On 29 March 2010, The Federal Assembly introduced second revision of this law without time limit.<ref name="RU">{{Cite web|title=ГАРАНТ|url=http://ivo.garant.ru/|access-date=29 March 2023|website=ivo.garant.ru|archive-date=9 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220209183918/http://ivo.garant.ru/|url-status=live}}</ref>

|-
| {{flag|Serbia}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="RS"/>}}
|{{unknown|No data}}
| Human cloning is explicitly prohibited in Article 24, "Right to Life" of the 2006 [[Constitution of Serbia]].<ref name="RS">{{cite web|url=http://www.srbija.gov.rs/cinjenice_o_srbiji/ustav_odredbe.php?id=218|title=Constitution of the Republic of Serbia, II Human and Minority Rights and Freedoms|publisher=[[Government of Serbia]]|access-date=15 May 2013|archive-date=25 December 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225124021/https://www.srbija.gov.rs/cinjenice_o_srbiji/ustav_odredbe.php?id=218%0A%20|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|Singapore}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="SG"/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="OpenMind"/><ref name="index"/>}}
| Section 5 of the Human Cloning and Other Prohibited Practices Act 2004 prohibits the placing of a human embryo clone in the body of a human or animal.<ref name="SG">{{Singapore legislation|title=Human Cloning and Other Prohibited Practices Act|cap=131B}}, section 5</ref>
|-
|{{flag|Slovakia}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Slovenia}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
| {{flag|South Africa}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="ZA"/><ref name="ZA1"/><ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="ZA"/><ref name="ZA1"/><ref name="index"/>}}
| In terms of section 39A of the Human Tissue Act 65 of 1983,<ref name="ZA">{{cite web |title=Human tissue act 65 of 1983 |url=https://www.kznhealth.gov.za/humantissueact.pdf |access-date=5 July 2024 |archive-date=17 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230817192240/http://www.kznhealth.gov.za/humantissueact.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> genetic manipulation of gametes or zygotes outside the human body is absolutely prohibited. A zygote is the cell resulting from the fusion of two gametes; thus the fertilised ovum. Section 39A thus prohibits human cloning.<ref name="ZA1">{{Cite journal|last=Sithole|first=Sandra|date=15 December 2011|title=Stem cell research – the regulatory framework in South Africa|url=http://www.sajbl.org.za/index.php/sajbl/article/view/171|journal=South African Journal of Bioethics and Law|language=en|volume=4|issue=2|page=55|doi=10.7196/SAJBL.171|issn=1999-7639|doi-broken-date=12 July 2025|access-date=18 November 2019|archive-date=18 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191118232242/http://www.sajbl.org.za/index.php/sajbl/article/view/171|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|South Korea}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref>{{cite web |title=South Korea's Bioethics and Biosafety Act (2005) |url=https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/south-koreas-bioethics-and-biosafety-act-2005 |website=embryo.asu.edu |publisher=Arizona State University |access-date=6 April 2024 |archive-date=6 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240406202927/https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/south-koreas-bioethics-and-biosafety-act-2005 |url-status=live }}</ref>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="OpenMind"/><ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Spain}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Sweden}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref>{{cite web |title=Therapeutic cloning legal in Sweden |url=https://www.progress.org.uk/therapeutic-cloning-legal-in-sweden/ |website=progress.org.uk |date=4 April 2005 |publisher=Progress Educational Trust |access-date=6 April 2024}}</ref>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="index"/><ref name="OpenMind"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Switzerland}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name= drze/><ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name= drze/><ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Thailand}}
|{{unknown|No data}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Trinidad and Tobago}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Tunisia}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Turkey}}
|{{unknown|No data}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|{{flag|Ukraine}}
|{{unknown|No data}}
|{{unknown|Not specified<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
| {{flag|United Kingdom}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name= drze/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="OpenMind"/><ref name="index"/>}}
| On 14 January 2001, the [[Government of the United Kingdom|British government]] passed The Human Fertilisation and Embryology (Research Purposes) Regulations 2001<ref>{{UK-LEG|title=Human Fertilisation and Embryology (Research Purposes) Regulations 2001 (No. 188)|path=uksi/2001/188/contents/made|asmade=yes}}</ref> to amend the [[Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990]] by extending allowable reasons for embryo research to permit research around stem cells and cell nuclear replacement, thus allowing [[Somatic cell nuclear transfer|therapeutic cloning]]. However, on 15 November 2001, a [[Pro-life movement|pro-life]] group won a [[High Court of Justice|High Court]] legal challenge, which struck down the regulation and effectively left all forms of cloning unregulated in the UK. Their hope was that Parliament would fill this gap by passing prohibitive legislation.<ref>{{citation |title=Medical Law and Ethics |author=SD Pattinson |year=2006 |publisher=Sweet & Maxwell |isbn=978-0-421-88950-7}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/1657707.stm |title=Campaigners win cloning challenge |work=BBC News |date=15 November 2001 |access-date=6 September 2008 |location=London |archive-date=2 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170802214453/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/1657707.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> Parliament was quick to pass the [[Human Reproductive Cloning Act 2001]] which explicitly prohibited reproductive cloning. The remaining gap with regard to therapeutic cloning was closed when the appeals courts reversed the previous decision of the High Court.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/2846265.stm|title=Lords uphold cloning law|work=[[BBC News]]|date=13 March 2003|location=London|access-date=9 December 2009|archive-date=25 March 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100325130152/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/2846265.stm|url-status=live}}</ref>

The first license was granted on 11 August 2004, to researchers at the [[Newcastle University|University of Newcastle]] to allow them to investigate treatments for [[Diabetes mellitus|diabetes]], [[Parkinson's disease]] and [[Alzheimer's disease]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hfea.gov.uk/en/1048.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071009024233/http://www.hfea.gov.uk/en/1048.html |archive-date=9 October 2007 |publisher=[[Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority|HFEA]] |title=HFEA grants the first therapeutic cloning licence for research |date=11 August 2004 |access-date=6 September 2008 }}</ref> The [[Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 2008]], a major review of fertility legislation, repealed the 2001 Cloning Act by making amendments of similar effect to the 1990 Act. The 2008 Act also allows experiments on hybrid human-animal embryos.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/7682722.stm|title=MPs support embryology proposals|work=[[BBC News]]|date=23 October 2008|location=London|access-date=9 December 2009|archive-date=9 October 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091009093230/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/politics/7682722.stm|url-status=live}}</ref>

|-
| {{flag|United Nations}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="UN"/> ([[soft law]], i.e. not binding on member states)}}
|{{unknown|Not specified<ref name="UN">{{cite web |title=Ad Hoc Committee on an International Convention against the Reproductive Cloning of Human Beings |url=https://legal.un.org/committees/cloning/ |website=legal.un.org |publisher=United Nations |access-date=6 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231001215154/https://legal.un.org/committees/cloning/ |archive-date=1 Oct 2023}}</ref>}}
| On 13 December 2001, the [[United Nations General Assembly]] began elaborating an international convention against the reproductive cloning of humans. A broad coalition of states, including Spain, Italy, the [[Philippines]], the United States, [[Costa Rica]], and the [[Holy See]] sought to extend the debate to ban all forms of human cloning, noting that, in their view, therapeutic human cloning violates human dignity. Costa Rica proposed the adoption of an international convention to ban all forms of human cloning. Unable to reach a consensus on a binding convention, in March 2005 a non-binding [[United Nations Declaration on Human Cloning]], calling for the ban of all forms of human cloning contrary to human dignity, was adopted.<ref>[http://www.bioeticaweb.com/content/view/1267/765/lang,es/ "United Nations Declaration on Human Cloning"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131215040939/http://www.bioeticaweb.com/content/view/1267/765/lang,es/ |date=15 December 2013 }}. Bio Etica Web. 16 March 2005.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.un.org/law/cloning/|title=Ad Hoc Committee on an International Convention against the Reproductive Cloning of Human Beings|access-date=28 January 2007|date=18 May 2005|publisher=United Nations|archive-date=6 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220306035614/https://www.un.org/law/cloning/|url-status=live}}</ref>
|-
| {{flag|United States}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated at the<br />federal level, depends on<br />[[#Legal status of human cloning by U.S. state|state legislation]]}}<ref name="US">{{cite web |title=Part Four: Cloning Policy in the United States |url=https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/part-four-cloning-policy-in-the-united-states |website=thenewatlantis.com |publisher=The New Atlantis |access-date=6 April 2024 |archive-date=6 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240406143758/https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/part-four-cloning-policy-in-the-united-states |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name= drze/>
|{{unknown|Not legislated at the<br />federal level, depends on<br />[[#Legal status of human cloning by U.S. state|state legislation]]<ref name= drze/><ref name="US"/><ref name="index"/>}}
| As of 2024, there are no federal laws in the United States which ban cloning completely.<ref name= drze/><ref name="US"/>

In 1998, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2007 and 2009, the United States Congress voted whether to ban all human cloning, both reproductive and therapeutic ([[Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act]]).<ref>"President Clinton in 1993 lifts the ban on taxpayer-funded fetal tissue research. Throughout the following years in February 1997 Dolly was cloned; Clinton launches review of US policy and In May 1997 Federal funding for human cloning [was] banned". {{Cite journal|last=Malakoff|first=D.|date=22 December 2000|title=SCIENCE POLICY: Clinton's Science Legacy: Ending on a High Note|journal=Science|volume=290|issue=5500|pages=2234–2236|doi=10.1126/science.290.5500.2234|pmid=11188713|s2cid=9581221}}</ref> Divisions in the [[United States Senate|Senate]], or an eventual veto from the sitting President ([[George W. Bush]] in 2005 and 2007), over therapeutic cloning prevented either competing proposal (a ban on both forms or on reproductive cloning only) from being passed into law. On 10 March 2010, a bill (HR 4808) was introduced with a section banning federal funding for human cloning.<ref>{{cite web|title=H.R.4808 – Stem Cell Research Advancement Act of 2009|url=https://www.congress.gov/bill/111th-congress/house-bill/4808|website=congress.gov|date=10 March 2010|access-date=21 February 2017|archive-date=22 February 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170222112103/https://www.congress.gov/bill/111th-congress/house-bill/4808|url-status=live}}</ref> Such a law, if passed, would not have prevented research from occurring in private institutions (such as universities) that have both private and federal funding. However, the 2010 law was not passed.

Ten states, California, Connecticut, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Montana, New Jersey and Rhode Island, have "clone and kill" laws that prevent cloned embryo implantation for childbirth, but allow embryos to be destroyed.<ref name="clone and kill">{{Cite web|last1=Pai|first1=Knobbe Martens-Raj D.|last2=PhD|last3=Jardine|first3=Jason J.|date=11 June 2018|title=The Law and Human Cloning|url=https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=81132fd8-f391-48a7-ad0b-7f96eda2caf8|access-date=29 March 2023|website=Lexology|language=en|archive-date=22 March 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322122235/https://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=81132fd8-f391-48a7-ad0b-7f96eda2caf8|url-status=live}}</ref>

The Patients First Act of 2017 (HR 2918, 115th Congress) aims to promote stem cell research, using cells that are "ethically obtained", that could contribute to a better understanding of diseases and therapies, as well as promote the "derivation of pluripotent stem cell lines without the creation of human embryos".<ref>{{cite web
| title= Patients First Act of 2017 (HR 2918, 115th Congress)
| date= 19 October 2017
| url= http://scipol.duke.edu/content/patients-first-act-2017-hr-2918-115th-congress
| access-date= 4 December 2017
| archive-date= 19 December 2017
| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171219013022/http://scipol.duke.edu/content/patients-first-act-2017-hr-2918-115th-congress
}}</ref>
|-
|{{flag|Uruguay}}
|{{unknown|No data}}
|{{unknown|Not specified<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|-
|{{flag|Vietnam}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="index"/>}}
|
|-
|}

===Legal status of human cloning by [[U.S. state]]===
{|class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders"
|-
!rowspan="2" | State
!colspan="2" | Legal status
!rowspan="2" | Notes
|-
!Reproductive cloning
!Therapeutic cloning
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Alabama}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix">{{cite web |title=Appendix: State Laws on Human Cloning |url=https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/appendix-state-laws-on-human-cloning |website=thenewatlantis.com |publisher=The New Atlantis |access-date=8 April 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240406143805/https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/appendix-state-laws-on-human-cloning |archive-date=6 Apr 2024 |language=English}}</ref>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Alaska}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Arizona}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|Prohibition on the use of public funds for human cloning.<ref name="states"/>
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Arkansas}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="states">{{cite web | title= Embryonic and fetal research laws | publisher= National Conference of State Legislatures | date= 1 January 2016 | url= http://www.ncsl.org/research/health/embryonic-and-fetal-research-laws.aspx | access-date= 4 December 2017 | archive-date= 4 December 2017 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20171204220325/http://www.ncsl.org/research/health/embryonic-and-fetal-research-laws.aspx | url-status= live }}</ref><ref name=May14>{{Cite web|url=https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metacrs5176/m1/1/high_res_d/RS21517_2003May14.pdf|title=State Laws on Human Cloning|access-date=12 December 2019|archive-date=28 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128072433/https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metacrs5176/m1/1/high_res_d/RS21517_2003May14.pdf}}</ref><ref name=arksb>2003 Ark. SB 185</ref>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name=May14/><ref name=arksb>2003 Ark. SB 185</ref>}}
|Criminal and civil penalties.<ref name=May14/><ref name=arksb/>
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|California}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="states"/><ref name=May14/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="clone and kill"/>}}
|Civil penalties.<ref name=May14/>
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Colorado}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Connecticut}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="states"/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="clone and kill"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Delaware}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Florida}}
|{{unknown|Unclear<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="states"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Georgia (U.S. state)|name=Georgia}}
|{{unknown|Unclear<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="states"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Hawaii}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Idaho}}
|{{unknown|Not prohibited<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not prohibited<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Illinois}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="clone and kill"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Indiana}}
|{{no|Illegal (indirectly)<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="states"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal (indirectly)<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|Prohibition on the use of public funds for human cloning.<ref name="Appendix"/>
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Iowa}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="states"/><ref name=May14/><ref name=iowacode>Iowa Code § 707B.1–4</ref>}}
|{{unknown|Unclear<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="clone and kill"/><ref name=May14/><ref name=iowacode/>}}
|Criminal and civil penalties.<ref name=May14/><ref name=iowacode>Iowa Code § 707B.1–4</ref>
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Kansas}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Kentucky}}{{efn-ua|name=statenomenclature|Uses the [[nomenclature|term]] ''[[Commonwealth (U.S. state)|commonwealth]]'' rather than ''state'' in its full official name}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Louisiana}}
|{{unknown|Law prohibiting expired<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name=May14/><ref name="LA">La. R.S. 40:1299.36-36.6</ref>}}
|{{unknown|Law allowing expired<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|Criminal and civil penalties.<ref name=May14/><ref name="LA"/> Prohibition on the use of public funds for human cloning.<ref name="Appendix"/>
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Maine}}
|{{no|Illegal (indirectly)<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal (indirectly)<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Maryland}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="states"/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="clone and kill"/>}}
|Prohibition on the use of public funds for human cloning.<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="states"/>
|-
!scope="row"|{{nowrap|{{flaglist|Massachusetts}}{{efn-ua|name=statenomenclature}}}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="states"/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="clone and kill"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Michigan}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="states"/><ref name=May14/><ref name=mcls>MCLS §§ 333.16274-16275, 333.20197, 333.26401-26406, 750.430a</ref>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name=May14/><ref name=mcls/>}}
|Criminal and civil penalties.<ref name=May14/><ref name=mcls/>
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Minnesota}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal (indirectly)<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Mississippi}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Missouri}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="clone and kill"/>}}
|Prohibition on the use of public funds for human cloning.<ref name="states"/>
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Montana}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="clone and kill"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Nebraska}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|Prohibition on the use of public funds for human cloning.<ref name="Appendix"/>
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Nevada}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|New Hampshire}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|New Jersey}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="states"/>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="clone and kill"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|New Mexico}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|New York}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|North Carolina}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|North Dakota}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name=May14/><ref name="states"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name=May14/>}}
|Criminal and civil penalties.<ref name=May14/>
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Ohio}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Oklahoma}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Oregon}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Pennsylvania}}{{efn-ua|name=statenomenclature}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Rhode Island}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name=May14/><ref name="states"/><ref name="RI">R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 23-16.4-1-4</ref>}}
|{{yes|Legal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="clone and kill"/>}}
| Criminal and civil penalties.<ref name=May14/><ref name="RI"/>
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|South Carolina}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|South Dakota}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name="states"/>}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Tennessee}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Texas}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Utah}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Vermont}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Virginia}}{{efn-ua|name=statenomenclature}}
|{{no|Illegal<ref name="states"/><ref name=May14/><ref name=vacode>Va. Code Ann. §§ 32.1–162.21–22</ref>}}
|{{unknown|Unclear<ref name="Appendix"/><ref name=May14/>}}
|Civil penalties.<ref name=May14/><ref name=vacode/>
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Washington}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|West Virginia}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Wisconsin}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|-
!scope="row"|{{flaglist|Wyoming}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|{{unknown|Not legislated<ref name="Appendix"/>}}
|
|}

==In popular culture==
{{Further|Cloning#In popular culture}}

Science fiction has used cloning, most commonly and specifically human cloning, due to the fact that it brings up controversial questions of identity.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Hopkins|first=Patrick|title=How Popular media represent cloning as an ethical problem|journal=The Hastings Center Report|jstor=3527566|publisher=The Hastings Center|volume=28|issue=2|pages=6–13|date=1998|doi=10.2307/3527566|pmid=9589288}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.csustan.edu/honors/documents/journals/thresholds/Delacruz.pdf |first=Yvonne A. |last=De La Cruz |title=Science Fiction Storytelling and Identity: Seeing the Human Through Android Eyes |website=CSUStan.edu |publisher=California State University, Stanislaus |access-date=19 August 2012 |archive-date=28 September 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928163727/http://www.csustan.edu/honors/documents/journals/thresholds/Delacruz.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> Humorous fiction, such as ''[[Multiplicity (film)|Multiplicity]]'' (1996)<ref>{{cite web| first= Roger| last= Ebert| url= http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/multiplicity-1996| website= RogerEbert.com| title= Multiplicity| access-date= 15 September 2016| archive-date= 22 January 2017| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170122153343/http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/multiplicity-1996| url-status= live}}</ref> and the Maxwell Smart feature ''[[The Nude Bomb]]'' (1980), have featured human cloning.<ref>{{cite web| title= The Nude Bomb| website= DVDTalk.com| url= http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/33911/nude-bomb-the/| first= Todd Jr.| last= Douglass| date= 12 July 2008| access-date= 15 September 2016| archive-date= 29 October 2016| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20161029114651/http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/33911/nude-bomb-the/| url-status= live}}</ref> A recurring sub-theme of cloning fiction is the use of clones as a supply of [[Organ (anatomy)|organs]] for [[Organ transplants|transplantation]]. Robin Cook's 1997 novel ''[[Chromosome 6 (novel)|Chromosome 6]]'', Michael Bay's ''[[The Island (2005 film)|The Island]]'', and Nancy Farmer's 2002 novel ''House of the Scorpion''<ref>{{Citation |last=Farmer |first=Nancy |title=The house of the scorpion |isbn=978-1-4676-6586-5 |oclc=869241449 }}</ref> are examples of this; ''Chromosome 6'' also features [[genetic manipulation]] and [[xenotransplantation]].<ref>{{cite web| url= http://www.mouthshut.com/review/Chromosome-6-Robin-Cook-review-qpuotlmpt| title= A Chiller Thriller| author= tech-writer| date= 30 September 2005| access-date= 15 September 2016| archive-date= 16 September 2016| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20160916041728/http://www.mouthshut.com/review/Chromosome-6-Robin-Cook-review-qpuotlmpt| url-status= live}}</ref> The ''[[Star Wars]]'' saga makes use of millions of human clones to form the [[Clone Trooper|Grand Army of the Republic]] that participated in the [[Clone Wars (Star Wars)|Clone Wars]]. The series ''[[Orphan Black]]'' follows human clones' stories and experiences as they deal with issues and react to being the property of a chain of scientific institutions.<ref>{{cite news | url= https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2014/04/18/orphan-black-everything-you-forgot-from-season-1-that-you-need-to-remember/?noredirect=on | title= 'Orphan Black': Everything you forgot from Season 1 that you need to remember | author= Emily Yahr | newspaper= [[The Washington Post]] | date= 18 April 2014 | access-date= 11 July 2019 | archive-date= 27 January 2021 | archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210127202223/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/wp/2014/04/18/orphan-black-everything-you-forgot-from-season-1-that-you-need-to-remember/?noredirect=on | url-status= live }}</ref> In the 2019 horror film ''[[Us (2019 film)|Us]]'', the entirety of the United States' population is secretly cloned. Years later, these clones (known as The Tethered) reveal themselves to the world by successfully pulling off a mass genocide of their counterparts.<ref>{{cite web| url= https://www.denofgeek.com/us/movies/us/280039/us-the-tethered-explained| title= Us: Who Are the Tethered?| author= Daniel Kurland| date= 23 May 2019| access-date= 11 July 2019| archive-date= 1 July 2019| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20190701160201/https://www.denofgeek.com/us/movies/us/280039/us-the-tethered-explained| url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url = https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/us-ending-explained-could-be-a-sequel-1196643| title = 'Us' Ending Explained: Could There Be A Sequel?| author = Jason Spiegel| website = [[The Hollywood Reporter]]| date = 23 March 2019| access-date = 11 July 2019| archive-date = 11 July 2019| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190711060622/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/us-ending-explained-could-be-a-sequel-1196643| url-status = live}}</ref> 

In the 2005 novel ''[[Never Let Me Go (novel)|Never Let Me Go]]'', [[Kazuo Ishiguro]] crafts a subtle exploration into the ethical complications of cloning humans for medical advancement and longevity.  

==See also==
* [[Homunculus]]
* [[Hwang affair]]

==Notes and references==
===Notes===
{{notelist}}
{{reflist|group=upper-alpha}}
{{notelist-ua}}

===References===
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
* [[Robert Araujo (Jurist)|Araujo, Robert John]], "The UN Declaration on Human Cloning: a survey and assessment of the debate," 7 The National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly 129 – 149 (2007).
* [[Oregon Health & Science University]]. "Human skin cells converted into embryonic stem cells: First time human stem cells have been produced via nuclear transfer." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 15 May 2013. [https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/05/130515125030.htm Human skin cells converted into embryonic stem cells: First time human stem cells have been produced via nuclear transfer].
* [[Seyyed Hassan Eslami Ardakani]], ''Human Cloning in Catholic and Islamic Perspectives'', [[University of Religions and Denominations]], 2007

==External links==
{{Wikibooks|Genes, Technology and Policy}}
* [http://www.biomedcentral.com/1472-6939/5/9 "Variations and voids: the regulation of human cloning around the world"] academic article by S. Pattinson & T. Caulfield
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20130502125744/http://www.ornl.gov/sci/techresources/Human_Genome/elsi/cloning.shtml Cloning Fact Sheet]
* [https://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2005/ga10333.doc.htm General Assembly Adopts United Nations Declaration on Human Cloning By Vote of 84-34-37]
* [http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/genetic/human-cloning1.htm How Human Cloning Will Work]
* [https://www.theatlantic.com/unbound/flashbks/cloning/watson.htm Moving Toward the Clonal Man]
* [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/jacob-m-appel/should-we-really-fear-rep_b_183308.html Should We Really Fear Reproductive Human Cloning]
* [http://www.jura.uni-augsburg.de/forschung/medizinrecht/medienverzeichnis/pdf_datein_fuer_downloads/uno_klonkonvention.pdf United Nation declares law against cloning.]{{dead link|date=November 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Human Cloning}}
[[Category:Biotechnology]]
[[Category:Cloning|*]]