Cloning

**Cloning** (クローニング , *Kurōningu*?) is the process of creating a genetically identical copy, a **clone** (クローン, *Kurōn*?), of a source organism.

## Etymology

The term 'clone' was derived from Ancient Greek *κλών/klōn* (meaning "twig"), referencing to the process where a new plant can be created from a twig of an existing one.

## Principles

Cloning is the process of using the genetic material (DNA) of a source organism to produce a genetically identical organism, known as a clone.

The method generally used when artificially cloning an animal organism is a process known as somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT). The process requires a viable somatic cell from the organism to be cloned and an unfertilized egg cells, with its cell nucleus (containing DNA) removed. The cell nucleus is removed from the somatic cell and inserted into the egg cell. Stimulation may be provided to get the cell division going. Once it is ready, it is either implanted into the womb of a surrogate mother or (as in the case of the Sisters), grown within a special cultivation tank filled with a culture fluid.

Given the ramifications of human cloning, ethical and otherwise, it is illegal under international law. Academy City supposedly abides by these laws, though the city has actually pursued and carried out human cloning in secret, as shown with the Sisters.

An ancient variation of cloning used in horticulture for artificially propagating plants (from which the term derives its name), involves taking a viable cutting from a plant (often a piece of the stem or root, but sometimes a piece of leaf) and placing into a suitable medium, like moist soil, with the cutting growing into a new plant if the conditions are right.

### Sisters

*Main article: Sisters*
The most prominent examples of human cloning are the Sisters, mass-produced clones of Level 5 esper Misaka Mikoto, secretly devised and created as part of the Radio Noise and the Level 6 Shift Projects.

Using Misaka Mikoto's DNA map and somatic cells from a sample of her hair, acquired by researchers under the pretext of applications for treating muscular dystrophy and added to the Bank, fertilized egg cells were created via SCNT-based methods and grown within cultivation chambers. While in the culture fluid, the clones were exposed to a number of drugs, including Zid-02, Riz-13 and Hel-03, in order to stimulate rapid biological development, growing from a zygote to the body of a 14 year old teenager in 14 days. Released from the containers with the mentality of a newborn infant, Testaments were used to install information into their brains.

The treatment for stimulating rapid growth and additional adjustments drastically reduced the clones' already shortened lifespan, such that they would have only had around 1 or 2 years left without further adjustments to eliminate the hormone imbalances resulting from the stimulation and correct the rate of cell division, with a good portion of life span recoverable in this way.

While the Sisters are Electromasters like Misaka Mikoto, they are only Level 2-Level 3 as opposed to Level 5, with the prediction of them only having a tiny fraction of the original's power resulting in the suspension of the original Radio Noise Project, which aimed to mass-produce Level 5 clones for military purposes, with the subsequent repurposing as fodder for Accelerator's development in the Level 6 Shift Project (itself a cover). The brainwave network between the Sisters, the Misaka Network, played a key role in Aleister's Plan, with Last Order (#20001) acting as the control tower. Before the mass-production of the Sisters, a prototype clone (#0), Dolly, was created as part of a pair to test the cloning technology and the shared network, with Full Tuning (#00000) prior to Misaka 1. At least one older next-generation clone, Misaka Worst, was created for the Third Season prior to its suspension.