The discussion centers on whether clones inherit aging symptoms from their donor, particularly in the context of cloning an individual at an advanced age. Participants explore the implications of genetics, lifestyle, and cellular biology on aging in clones.
Participants express differing views on the inheritance of aging symptoms in clones, with no consensus reached on whether clones will exhibit similar deterioration as their donors. The discussion remains unresolved regarding the impact of telomere length and environmental factors on aging in clones.
There are limitations regarding assumptions about the relationship between telomere length and aging, as well as the potential influence of environmental factors on genetic expression in clones. The discussion also highlights the complexity of cloning biology and its implications for aging.
Jarfi said:If I were to clone myself at the age of 70, would the child even though physically in the stages of childhood, have similar deterioration and symptoms of aging as me?
Monique said:Depending on the tissue that is taken, there could be a risk of mutations that have been introduced (such as skin exposed to the sun), but a cloned young animal wouldn't have similar signs of aging as the old donor.
Borek said:I thought Dolly had problems because of short telomeres? Or was it just a media hype?
Was Dolly Already 'Old' at Birth?
The first wave of increased press coverage occurred when, at one year old, tests revealed that Dolly's telomeres were shorter than those expected for sheep of that age.
Telomeres are sections of DNA found at the end of each chromosome. When the chromosomes are replicated during cell division a small portion of the telomeres are lost. They get shorter and shorter as more cell divisions occur and as animals age. This led to speculation in the press that animals cloned from cells obtained from an adult animal would age prematurely and die early. This was later shown to be untrue and in fact the telomere length is restored during the cloning process.
Although Dolly's telomeres appeared shorter than other sheep of a similar age they certainly were not of an old animal. Extensive health screens carried out at the time failed to identify any abnormality with Dolly that would suggest premature aging.
source: http://www.roslin.ed.ac.uk/public-interest/dolly-the-sheep/a-life-of-dolly/