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Taiwan's scientists clone pigs which carry human DNA

Taiwanese scientists have cloned pigs that carry genetic material from both human and pig cells, a breakthrough that might lead to new treatments for hemophilia and other diseases, scientists said Thursday.

The three female pigs, between two weeks and two months old, were delivered by Caesarean section and were in excellent health, the government-funded Animal Technology Institute said.

To create the clones, scientists first had to transfer genetic material from both human and pig cells into a 3-year-old pig, said Wu Shinn-chih (吳信志), a lead researcher at the institute.

Scientists then took cells from the pig's ear and injected them into the egg cells of other pigs to create the clones, Wu said.

Clones can be created when the genetic material from a single cell is injected into an egg cell that has had its own genes removed.

Wong Chung-nan (翁仲男), the director of the institute, said that five foreign organizations have successfully cloned pigs, but that Taiwan is the first to clone them from two cells, instead of a single cell.

After the cloned pigs grow to maturity, their milk is expected to contain a human clotting factor that can be used to heal people with hemophilia, Wong said. The milk will also contain a pig protein that could prevent baby pigs from contracting diarrhea, he said.

The Taiwanese institute is undertaking a four-year research project to clone more pigs and produce clotting and other medicines, he said.

It also plans to work with foreign scientific research organizations to advance the cloning technology so that it can be used to clone pigs whose organs can be transplanted into human beings without being rejected, Wong said.

Pigs are ideal for transplant because they can reproduce quickly and their organs are of sizes similar to those of human beings, he said.

Taiwan's government has encouraged biotechnology research and hopes Taiwan will became a leader in the field just as it did in the electronics industry.
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