Plant and Animal Cloning Flashcards
What is cloning
The process of producing genetically identical cells or organisms from the cells of an existing organism. It can occur naturally in some plants as well as artificially
What is vegetative propagation
The production of plant clones from non reproductive tissues like roots or leaves.
What are rhizomes
Stem like structures that grow horizontally underground away from the parent plant. They have nodes from which new shoots and roots can develop
What are stolons (runners)
Similar to rhizomes except they grow above ground on the surface above soil. New shoots and roots can either develop from nodes or form at the end of the stolon
What are suckers
Suckers are shoots that grow from sucker buds present on the shallow end roots of a parent plant
What are tubers
Tubers are large underground plant structures that act as a food store for the plant and they are covered in ‘eyes’ which can all sprout and form a new plant
What are bulbs
Also underground food stores. New bulbs can develop from original ones and form new individual plants
How to grow plant clone from cutting!
- Use scalpel to take a slanted cutting between nodes from the end of a stem from the parent plant.
- remove leaves from the lower part of the plant, leaving one at the top
- dip lower end into rooting powder that contains a mixture of hormones and nutrients like auxin and sucrose that induces root formation
- plant cutting into a suitable growth medium (compost)
- provide cutting a warm and moist environment by placing a bag over the top.
- once formed enough roots it can be transferred elsewhere
How to clone from tissue culture?
- Tissue samples/cells are taken stem and root tips because they are stem cells. This tissue called explant
- these cells are then sterilised to kill any microorganisms such as bacteria that could compete with the plant cells for nutrients, hindering their growth
- The cells are placed in a culture medium containing plant nutrients and hormones like glucose and auxin
- when the cells form a callus we split it into smaller chunks and transfer the split up callus’s into their own culture mediums, with each of them growing into small plant. They are taken and planted in soil, developing into plants genetically identical to the original one
Arguments for artificial plant cloning
Desirable characteristics always passed on. You know the traits coming
Can produce plants at any season
They develop much more quickly than plants that produce sexually.
Arguments against artificial cloning in plantsn
No genetic variation
Very expensive - requires trained specialists as well as expensive equipment
Can get contaminated - resulting in a complete loss of the plant being cultured
How can animals clone naturally
When the fertilised egg splits during early stages of development - forming twins
How does artificial embryo twinning occur
- an animal like a cow with desirable traits is treated with hormones so that she super ovulates, releasing hella mature ova
- then the ova may be fertilised naturally or artificially in vitro. The eggs are then flushed out
- by day 6, the cells are still totipotent and are split to produce several smaller embryos
- the split embryos are grown in the lab for a few days before being transported back into different surrogate mothers.
- ## the embryos develop into foetuses and are burn normally so a number of identical clones are produced by different mothers.
How does SCNT occur
- Somatic cell taken from one sheep, in which its nucleus is extracted
- ovum taken from another sheep and it’s nucleus removed to become enucleated oocyte
- nucleus from first sheep transferred to enucleated ovum
- blud gets shocked to fuse together and it starts growing into an embryo
- embryo implanted into surrogate mother and a clone of sheep a is made
Why is animal cloning used
For research: can test new drugs
Save endangered or rare species
Increase desirable plants and animals
