Lupton M L
School of Law, University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg.
Med Law. 1999;18(1):107-23.
The cloning of Dolly the lamb from adult cells by scientists at the Roslin Laboratories near Edinburgh in February 1997 has startled the world because it now opens the way to clone adult human beings. The reaction to Ian Wilmut's breakthrough has been instant and largely negative. Bills were rushed into both the US Senate and House of Representatives aimed at banning the cloning of human beings. Human cloning is premature at this stage, but there are many positive spin-offs of cloning in the field of genetic engineering, such as the production of human proteins such as blood clotting factors which aid in healing wounds. Progress by means of cloning can also be made into devising a cure for Parkinson's Disease amongst others. No lesser ethicist than John C. Fletcher of the University of Virginia foresees circumstances in which human cloning is acceptable e.g. to enable a couple to replace a dying child, to enable a couple, one of whom is infertile, to clone a child from either partner. Extensive regulation of cloning by the law is inevitable but, in doing so, the legislation should be careful not to outlaw research in this area which could be beneficial to mankind.
1997年2月，爱丁堡附近罗斯林研究所的科学家利用成年细胞克隆出多利羊，这一成果震惊了世界，因为它为克隆成年人类开辟了道路。对伊恩·威尔穆特这一突破的反应迅速且大多是否定的。美国参议院和众议院迅速通过法案，旨在禁止克隆人类。现阶段克隆人类还为时过早，但在基因工程领域，克隆有许多积极的附带成果，比如生产人类蛋白质，如有助于伤口愈合的凝血因子。通过克隆手段还能在开发治疗帕金森病等疾病的方法上取得进展。弗吉尼亚大学的约翰·C·弗莱彻这位重要的伦理学家预见了克隆人类可被接受的情况，比如使一对夫妇能够替代垂死的孩子，使一方不育的夫妇能够从另一方克隆孩子。法律对克隆进行广泛监管不可避免，但在这样做时，立法应谨慎行事，以免将这一可能造福人类的领域的研究定为非法。
