Cloning is the production of a population of genetically identical cells or of organisms asexually produced by a single cell or organism. Cloning is fundamental to most living things, since the body cells of plants and animals are clones that come from a single fertilized egg. More narrowly, the term refers to an individual organism grown from a single body cell of its parent that is genetically identical to the parent. Cloning has been commonplace in horticulture since ancient times — many varieties of plants are cloned simply by obtaining cuttings of their leaves, stems, or roots and replanting them. The body cells of adult humans and other animals are routinely cultured as clones in the laboratory. British researchers achieved the first success in cloning an adult mammal in 1996. They produced a lamb, which they named Dolly, using DNA from an adult sheep.
Noun the clone of an adult female sheep the car is a clone under a different brand name—it's even manufactured in the same plant as its cousin Verb Do you think scientists should clone humans? a plant produced by cloning
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The clone is dispatched by Shelly, who then stands up for Stan, while Cartman’s pig finally gives birth to something resembling Mr. Garrison, who awards the boys’ project first prize. Chris Norris, SPIN, 13 Aug. 2022 The video ends with the real M.I.A. shooting her potential replacement with a water gun, essentially killing the clone. Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 12 Aug. 2022 When the Apollo mission was developed, scientists at NASA created a digital twin of the mission Apollo and conducted experiments on the clone before the mission started. Kiran Palla, Forbes, 3 Aug. 2022 The clone spreads over 106 acres, consisting of over 40,000 individual trees, according to the USDA Forest Service. Katie Hunt, CNN, 1 June 2022 Gorbachev waited in the wings as Konstantin Chernenko, a Brezhnev clone and Andropov’s successor, was anointed the new leader. David A. Andelman, CNN, 31 Aug. 2022 Players can also use pre-game menus in TMNT Tournament Fighters, the series' Street Fighter clone, to unlock bosses as playable fighters in all three versions of the game. Sam Machkovech, Ars Technica, 29 Aug. 2022 But a review of his social media accounts show Shiffer was most active recently on Truth Social, the Twitter clone Trump created after most social networks blocked him in the aftermath of the U.S. Capitol riots on Jan. 6, 2021. Meryl Kornfield, Washington Post, 12 Aug. 2022 But without her innocent approach, White Stripes could’ve easily ended up a Zep clone. Matt Wake | Mwake@al.com, al, 8 Aug. 2022
Verb
Where credit card fraudsters might clone your card, the same antics can occur in the biometrics world—only the replicas would be of your physical attributes, says Diehm. Ali Francis, Bon Appétit, 11 Aug. 2022 Successful attempts have been made by companies like Sooam Biotech Research and ViaGen Pets to clone dogs and kittens for wealthy pet owners. Bill Frist, Forbes, 2 Aug. 2022 The fact that her relatively difficult life was cut short — plus, tests showing that none of her illnesses were genetic — was what prompted Anderson to clone her.Washington Post, 11 Apr. 2022 Genies Avatars are NFTs, so no one is able to clone you and rob a bank. Charlie Fink, Forbes, 14 Apr. 2022 On Tuesday, a team led by Teruhiko Wakayama, now at the University of Yamanashi in Japan, showed that somatic cells — not sperm or eggs — can be used to clone healthy mice, even after being freeze-dried and stored for up to nine months. Megan Molteni, STAT, 8 July 2022 That’s unless there were strict scientific controls to make sure that only true friends of the species were allowed to clone themselves. Joe Queenan, WSJ, 16 June 2022 The plant is able to clone itself by creating genetically identical offshoots. Scott Gleeson, USA TODAY, 1 June 2022 Scientists used a bacterium to clone each piece of the genome, and then studied them in smaller groups. Manasee Wagh, Popular Mechanics, 1 Apr. 2022 See More
Word History
Etymology
Noun
Greek klōn twig, slip; akin to Greek klan to break — more at clast