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KNOXVILLE,
TN (September 19, 2001) – In the midst of a time of national
sorrow and reflection on the terrorist attacks launched against
New York and Washington, researchers with the University of Tennessee
Agricultural Experiment Station have a little good news to announce.
Another clone of an adult Jersey cow is thriving. Both Emma and Millie were produced using standard cell-culturing techniques as compared to the method most commonly used in cloning research and which was made famous by the sheep clone Dolly. Dr. Lannett
Edwards, the lead scientist for the UT Cloning Project, says that
Emma was cloned to research the genetic basis of mastitis resistance
among dairy cattle. “Emma” is an acronym that stands
for UT’s efforts at experimental manipulation for mastitis
abatement. “We are attempting to establish the genetic relationship of mastitis susceptibility,” said Edwards. “Emma is the genetic equal of a cow that is known to be susceptible to mastitis. The idea is to see if she performs in the same manner as her genetic twin.” A grant from the UT Food Safety Center of Excellence will allow the researchers to use cloning technology developed by Edwards to expand the population of genetically identical animals for use in subsequent studies. This novel approach will provide the research team with cows that are resistant or susceptible to mastitis and should prove invaluable for determining genes and other factors responsible for disease resistance. Plans are to introduce Emma into the experiment station’s heifer herd on the same schedule followed by other calves. The researchers are already gathering data to characterize Emma’s genetic performance, and they will begin assessing that performance in terms of her susceptibility to mastitis after she has produced her first calf – in about two years. In addition, Dr. Gina Pighetti, assistant professor in the Department of Animal Science, will conduct studies on cloned calves to determine how differences in immune function contribute to disease resistance. The researchers are also comparing Emma to UT’s first bovine clone, Millie. Despite her untimely death in June, Millie expanded the world’s knowledge regarding cloning and reproduction efficiency. Said Edwards, “Our research is also intended as a tool to help understand early embryonic development. The more we know about how embryos grow and develop, the more we can improve fertility.” Infertility is a major concern of farm animal managers. Dr. Neal Schrick, an expert in cattle fertility and member of the research team, says infertility can seriously impact the profitability and therefore the future of any livestock operation. Schrick performed the ultrasonography that tracked Emma’s progress before her birth. Funding for the ultrasonography came from a grant from the USDA. Dr. Jack Britt, UT vice president for agriculture endorses the UT animal cloning research as a way to expand scientific knowledge in a manner that will improve the quality of life for consumers and producers. “Cloned cattle have the potential to improve the quality of beef and dairy products as well as the potential to enhance profitability for the world's farmers,” he said. “A possible future benefit of this research will be the ability to replicate animals that carry genes resistant to mastitis. That has implications for reducing the incidence of other diseases as well.” Emma was delivered by a Cesarean section by a team of UT veterinarians including Drs. Fred Hopkins, Matt Welborn, Sarel Van Amstel and Paul Plummer. ### Contact: Patricia Clark McDaniels
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