Reproductive cloning of Sumatran tigers is performed using a technique called somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT). First, in the SCNT process, a somatic cell (body) is obtained to clone. A somatic cell from a Sumatran tiger is used to create a genetically identical tiger. To do this, somatic cells are taken from Sumatran tiger tissue to be cloned and maintained in the laboratory in a state that prevents the cells from dividing. The next step in the SCNT process is to remove the nucleus from an unfertilized egg cell. An egg is removed from a female Sumatran tiger species. The nucleus is removed from the egg cell (enucleated). This is done so that only the Sumatran tiger genome to be cloned is in the egg cell. The clone will not have the genome of the Sumatran tiger from which the egg was taken. The next step is to fuse the cells. The enucleated egg is fused with the nucleus of one of the laboratory's somatic cells, taken from the Sumatran tiger to be cloned. These two cells are fused by an electric shock. The egg now contains the Sumatran tiger genome to be cloned, since the genome comes from the somatic cell. The egg cell is then electrically stimulated to begin dividing until it reaches an early embryonic stage. The last step in the SCNT process is embryo implantation. The embryo is implanted into the uterus of a surrogate mother, the Sumatran tiger, where it grows for the normal gestation period. After this time, the baby is born and the result is a Sumatran tiger cub which is a clone of the Sumatran tiger from which the somatic cell was taken. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay There are biological implications that can occur as a result of cloning Sumatran tiger species. The advantage of cloning the Sumatran tiger species is that cloned tigers can be used to increase the number of endangered Sumatran tigers. The Sumatran tiger is an endangered species and it is estimated that only between 400 and 600 Sumatran tigers remain in the wild today. By cloning the Sumatran tiger, it is possible to increase the number of Sumatran tigers, reducing the risk of extinction of the species. Another advantage of cloning the Sumatran tiger species is that individuals can be selected to be cloned. Tigers that are more resistant to disease can be cloned so that the Sumatran tiger population grows and increases with disease-resistant Sumatran tigers. Therefore, if a disease affected the population, the effects would not be as crippling. Once Sumatran tiger numbers are increased through cloning, they could be bred normally to further increase numbers. Saving a species from extinction preserves the diversity of the world's tiger population for the future. Once Sumatran tiger numbers increase and tigers can interbreed normally, this will increase their genetic diversity compared to cloning alone, which reduces genetic diversity. This increased genetic diversity would increase the Sumatran tiger's chances of surviving in the wild in the future. Once tiger numbers have increased sufficiently, tigers could be reintroduced into the wild to repopulate their natural habitats. There would be more opportunities for both local and foreign visitors to see the unique tigers in their natural habitats. The disadvantages of Sumatran tiger cloning are.