Clone wars
The only two companies in the business of cloning dogs -- one in South Korea, one in California -- are at odds, both claiming they are the sole legally authorized dog cloners worldwide.
We got our first taste of the dispute when we published an entry about the impending birth of the South Korean company's first commercially cloned dog -- a pit bull terrier named Booger, created using cells from the ear tissue of the donor dog.
To update you on that report, there are now three live fetuses -- little Boogers, if you will -- growing in two surrogate mother dogs, both of which are expected to give birth in late July, according to the South Korean company, RNL Bio.
RNL Bio, has cloned previous dogs (see here), but this was its first -- and the first ever, it claimed -- cloned for an individual customer.
When we reported that, the California company -- BioArts International, which has, through a collaboration with a different South Korean company, produced three clones of Missy, the pet of a BioArts' executive -- took issue.
"We ask that you make the following corrections to the blog," wrote Kiley Russell, the media representative for BioArts International. "1) The first commercial pet dog clones have already been delivered by BioArts: the 3 clones of Missy; and 2) That RNL has no legal right to clone dogs, whereas BioArts does, so it is inaccurate to describe the two companies as comparable competitors.
"BioArts has been granted the sole, worldwide license for the cloning of dogs, cats and endangered species," she wrote. "The license was granted by Start Licensing, Inc. and applies to the somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) cloning patents developed at the Roslin Institute for the cloning of Dolly the sheep."
We declined to make the "corrections." For one thing, Missy was the company owner's dog, and was cloned at his behest, which in my view is not exactly a commercial cloning.
For another, RNL Bio, the South Korean company, says that it has the exclusive license for worldwide dog cloning.
Was the exclusive license cloned? Nothing that exotic. The explanation is somewhat simpler. It's two different licenses, from two different entities, for two different types of cloning.
In a press release sent to Mutts by RNL Bio, the company says it was granted the exclusive license for dog cloning from Seoul National University. The licensing agreement signed early this month, between the two organizations, granted RNL the worldwide rights to clone dogs.
The firm says it plans to pursue "available legal action" against BioArts International and its South Korea affiliate, Sooam Biotech Research Foundation, for patent infringement relating to its plan to conduct an online auction for cloned dogs scheduled for July, 2008.
BioArts’ patented technology is related to sheep cloning and has never been successfully used to clone a dog, RNL Bio says.
The dog that was cloned by BioArts was cloned in conjunction with Dr. Woo-suk Hwang who, while at Seoul National University, was one of the inventors of the world first cloned dog, Snuppy.
Hwang was later relieved of duty for faslifying data, and now works with Sooam Biotech Research, a BioArts affiliate. RNL Bio says he has no right to use the proprietary dog cloning technology from Seoul National University.
No one ever said science was simple.
(Photo: Four pups born in May, that were produced from the cells of a famous cancer-sniffing dog named Marine. Courtesy of RNL Bio)
Comments
Mutts: Lou Hawthorne, BioArt's CEO, paid 6-figures to have his dog cloned with Sooam. That's a commercial order. The fact that the license was obtained and the Best Friends Again program was started was initiated by this successful completion of the Missyplicity project, which has been going on for years, and finally came to completion with the delivery of Mira, Hawthorne's new dog (Missy's 1st clone).
RNL and SNU have yet to disclose what governing body gave them "exclusive rights" to any patents. So far as I've been able to see, SNU doesn't own any patents to this technology.
Interesting timing of RNL and SNU "signing" and agreement - early this month, when BioArts has already set into motion a dog cloning auction. It'll be interesting to see where the price falls.
RNL claimed to clone Booger for $150K, but there's no way they cn make money on that. All the work is being done through SNU, paid for by the Korean public.
Posted by: CF | June 27, 2008 4:04 PM
Oh my God, they are soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo cute. I want one of them. Are they too young to open their eyes?
Posted by: spearman | July 31, 2008 11:40 AM