Lab successfully clones human embryos

LA JOLLA, Calif., Jan. 17 (UPI) -- A U.S. laboratory said it is the first to create and document a cloned human embryo using somatic cell nuclear transfer.

Stemagen, a private research lab in La Jolla, Calif., said five blastocysts were developed from 25 donated mature oocytes. Three were confirmed to be clones based on DNA fingerprinting demonstrating the presence of the skin cell donor DNA in the blastocyst, while one was further confirmed to be a clone by an additional mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) analysis which revealed the presence of oocyte donor mtDNA without any oocyte donor nuclear DNA.

Cloned blastocysts were successfully created from approximately 10 percent of all mature donated oocytes, an unexpectedly high rate given past research in this field, the company said Thursday in a release.

The research was published in the journal Stem Cells.

Stemagen CEO Dr. Samuel H. Wood, donor of the cells from which the embryos were cloned, called the achievement "a critical milestone in the development of patient-specific embryonic stem cells for human therapeutic use, potentially including developing treatments for Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and other degenerative diseases."