British scientist Ian Wilmut attends the Pauls Church in Frankfurt, central Germany, on March 14, 2005.
Dolly's creation prompted other scientists to clone animals including dogs, cats, horses and bulls. Dolly also spurred questions about the potential cloning of humans and extinct species. In recent years, scientists have proposed bringing back the woolly mammoth by using a mix of gene editing and cloning.
Dolly's creation was part of a broader project by scientists to create genetically modified sheep that could produce therapeutic proteins in their milk. About six years after Dolly's birth, it was euthanizedWilmut, a trained embryologist, later focused on using cloning techniques to make stem cells that could be used in regenerative medicine. His work was critical to research that aims to treat genetic and degenerative diseases by helping the body repair damaged tissue.
"We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Sir Ian Wilmut," Bruce Whitelaw, the institute's director, said in a statement Monday. Whitelaw described Wilmut as a"titan" of science and said his work in Dolly's creation transformed scientific thinking at the time."This breakthrough continues to fuel many of the advances that have been made in the field of regenerative medicine that we see today," he said.said.
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