Indian scientists clone buffalo: report

June 7, 2009

Cloned buffalo calf 'Garima,' seen here at an undisclosed location in India. Scientists in the Indian state of Haryana have reportedly cloned a buffalo using foetal tissue in order to boost the species' population.

Scientists in the Indian state of Haryana have cloned a buffalo using foetal tissue, according to a report.

The female calf named Garima weighed 43 kilograms (95 pounds) and was born at the National Dairy Research Institute in the city of Karnal in northern India, according to the Hindu newspaper.

"Garima is absolutely healthy and we are fully optimistic about her survival," institute director A.K. Srivastava was quoted as saying.

India cloned the world's first buffalo in February, but it died of pneumonia within a week of its birth after being created from the ear tissue of a female buffalo.

Scientists cloned Garima using tissue from a foetus as part of a "hand-guided cloning technique" which allows the sex of the calf to be chosen.

Srivastava said India has the largest population of buffaloes in the world and that cloning would increase the percentage of elite animals in the species.

(c) 2009 AFP

• LuckyBrandon - Jun 07, 2009
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  seems to me it should be a large source of food....if youve got the largest population in the world, then there is no need to clone superior buffalo...youre just asking for overpopulation then.
  
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• Scire - Jun 07, 2009
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  Surely just breeding them is cheaper if we're talking food production; just genetically engineer them and then breed selectively.
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• pseudophonist - Jun 07, 2009
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  Lol, selective breeding is genetic engineering. But yes, cloning isn't going to solve word food shortages by making more of an animal. It'll work by making them more meaty. Eventually we'll be growing giant balls of meat in a paddock. Grotesque!
  
  Seriously though, I think this is more a precursor to human cloning rather than an attempt to address food issues.
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• an_indian - Jun 23, 2009
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  seems to me it should be a large source of food....if youve got the largest population in the world, then there is no need to clone superior buffalo...youre just asking for overpopulation then.
  
  

  
  The idea is not to clone them for meat but clones the ones with high milk yeald. A very small percentage of Indians eat beef/buffalo meat.
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• LuckyBrandon - Jun 24, 2009
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  an_indian-well hell, being part native american and all, now i know where to go get new tribal supplies if ever needed!! :D
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