Canadian dentist hoping to clone John Lennon from tooth

RED DEER, Alberta, Aug. 22 (UPI) -- An Alberta dentist said he is hoping to use a tooth he purchased for about $30,000 last year to create a clone of rock 'n' roll icon John Lennon.

Michael Zuk of Red Deer said he sent the tooth, which he purchased at an auction last November, to Penn State University in University Park, Pa., and "scientists are considering ways to extract the genetic code from the fragile specimen," the Globe and Mail reported Thursday.

"I am nervous and excited at the possibility that we will be able to fully sequence John Lennon's DNA, very soon I hope," Zuk said. "With researchers working on ways to clone mammoths, the same technology certainly could make human cloning a reality."

The tooth was from the collection of record executive Alan McGee, who is reputed to have obtained the tooth from former Lennon housekeeper Dorothy Jarlett. Jarlett is said to have received the tooth from Lennon as a gift after he had it pulled.