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Science & Technology

Dolly the sheep had no health abnormalities

By T.K. Randall
November 23, 2017 · Comment icon 3 comments

Dolly the Sheep was the world's first cloned mammal. Image Credit: CC BY-SA 2.0 Toni Barros
A new study has indicated that the famous cloned sheep had not suffered from any abnormal health issues.
Born in 1996 after 277 attempts to create a viable clone, Dolly the sheep made headline news around the world and remained in the spotlight for several years before finally passing away in February 2003.

Since then, scientists have been analyzing all available data to identify any potential health issues she may have suffered from, especially any that may have been a direct result of the cloning process.

One of the biggest concerns about her health had been the onset of osteoarthritis in her knee at the age of five, something that scientists feared may have been the result of her unique biology.
Now though, after a re-examination of Dolly's skeleton, researchers at the University of Nottingham have concluded that her condition was actually typical of other animals her age and most likely not a direct result of the fact that she had been cloned.

"We found that the prevalence and distribution of radiographic-osteoarthritis was similar to that observed in naturally conceived sheep, and our healthy aged cloned sheep," said Prof Sandra Corr.

"As a result we conclude that the original concerns that cloning had caused early-onset osteoarthritis in Dolly were unfounded."

Source: BBC News | Comments (3)




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Recent comments on this story
Comment icon #1 Posted by paperdyer 6 years ago
I guess Dolly didn't get enough calcium and vitamin D in her diet.
Comment icon #2 Posted by _KB_ 6 years ago
I't might just be my opinion but sometimes things die, it doesn't necessarily have to have a big reason, it might as well have been badly kept or just been under large stress weakening its health
Comment icon #3 Posted by DieChecker 6 years ago
I've always found the health of Dolly to be interesting, because (at least to me) logically that cell she was cloned from should have had DNA damage commensurate with her age at the time. Meaning she should have been born older, and so died younger. But that wasn't the case it appears. I wonder if they've figured out why? 


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