What is it about?
July 2016 marked the 20th anniversary of the birth of the first animal (Dolly) to be cloned by somatic-cell nuclear transfer (SCNT). Longevity and healthy ageing among SCNT clones have been contentious issues, largely due to the fact that Dolly had been undergoing treatment for osteoarthritis from a comparatively young age prior to her death at 6 years. This represented a significant barrier to public acceptance and the widespread application of SCNT as an advanced reproductive biotechnology. In our manuscript, we report on detailed musculoskeletal assessments, and quantitative measurements of metabolic health and blood pressure in thirteen cloned sheep aged between 7 to 9 years. Four of these animals (aged 8 years) were derived from the cell line that gave rise to Dolly, and so are clones (genomic copies) of Dolly.
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Why is it important?
Our study is the first to report on health parameters of aged cloned sheep. Data were related to contemporary groups of aged sheep, and to published data for other aged, but not cloned, sheep.
Perspectives
Despite their advanced age we find these animals to be remarkably healthy. That is they are euglycaemic (i.e. have relatively normal glucose control), insulin sensitive (i.e. their production of insulin in response to glucose apears relatively normal and in tune with their level of body fat), normotensive (i.e. blood pressure is 'normal' and sensitive to standard challenge to cardiovascular function). The cloned sheep also present with very few clinical signs of degenerative bone disease.
Professor David S Gardner
University of Nottingham
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Healthy ageing of cloned sheep, Nature Communications, July 2016, Nature,
DOI: 10.1038/ncomms12359.
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