FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
FY04-51
August 19, 2004
Dr. Lannett Edwards, Researcher for the UT Cloning Project, to Speak Tuesday Evening at Pollard
OAK RIDGE , Tenn. —Think you’re seeing double? For Dr. Lannett Edwards, researcher for the UT Cloning Project, it’s an everyday occurrence.
As part of the Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU) Summer Science Series, Edwards will discuss the methodology of cloning, its benefits, and its unknowns Tuesday, August 24, at 6 p.m. at Pollard Technology Conference Center , which is located at 210 Badger Avenue.
One of the world’s premier reproductive biologists, Edwards is the lead scientist who helped produce the famous cloned cows Millie and Emma at the UT Institute of Agriculture. She works alongside her husband, Dr. Neal Schrick, also a UT professor, to advance cloning research in the agricultural arena, currently caring for 13 cloned cows born in 2002 and 2003.
The aim of the UT cloning project is to understand early embryonic development, animal fertility, and the genetic links associated with animal diseases. Researchers, such as Edwards, use cloning technology as a tool to address real world problems facing animal agriculture.
After receiving her doctorate from the University of Florida , Edwards began her postdoctoral work in the Gene Evaluation and Mapping Laboratory at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). While at the USDA, her research interests led her to work in the laboratory of Dr. Ian Wilmut, known worldwide for his cloning of Dolly the Sheep.
More information about the UT Cloning Project is available on the group’s Web site at http://animalscience.ag.utk.edu/utcloneproject/
default.html.
The Summer Science Series will continue on Tuesday, September 7, with Dr. Hap McSween from UT’s Geological Sciences Department (http://geoweb.gg.utk.edu/geology2003/index.html). McSween currently works with NASA on the Mars Rover exploration projects and will present “Discoveries of the Mars Exploration Rovers.”
As always, all lectures in the Summer Science Series are free of charge and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served.
Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU) is a university consortium leveraging the scientific strength of 91 major research institutions to advance science and education by partnering with national laboratories, government agencies, and private industry. ORAU manages the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education for the U.S. Department of Energy.
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