How does the neonatal mortality rate of animal clones compare to other animals?
Any animal conceived through any assisted reproductive technique — AI, embryo transfer, etc. — has a slightly higher risk of neonatal death. In the hands of skilled scientists, the neonatal death rate of cloned animals approaches that of animals produced by in vitro fertilization. Within hours or days of birth, there are no health differences between clones and non-clones, according to an NAS review panel. A common misconception is that clones suffer a higher deformity rate than other animals. Only the placentas of clones show any difference from animals born conventionally. In fact, these placental problems occur at similar rates in other assisted breeding techniques, such as in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer. Scientists are working to reduce the impact of placental effects on embryo implantation for a successful pregnancy.
