SCNT is a laboratory technique for creating an ovum with donor nucleus. In it, nucleus containing the organism’s DNA of somatic cell (a body cell other than sperm or egg cell) is removed and rest of cell discarded. The nucleus of somatic cell is then inserted into enucleated egg cell which reprograms somatic cell nucleus by the host cell. The egg, now containing nucleus of somatic cell, is stimulated with a shock and will begin to divide forming blastocyst (an early stage embryo with about 100 cells) with almost identical DNA to original organism. It can be used in embryonic stem cell research, regenerative medicine i.e. “therapeutic cloning.” It can also be used as first step in process of reproductive cloning.
