Aggregated News

RNL Bio, a Seoul-based biotech firm, plans to open a research center for canine cloning early next year.

By 2013, it will have the ability to produce 1,000 cloned dogs per year, company executives said.

RNL Bio is one of the world's few companies that are attempting to turn dog cloning into a business. Another is San Francisco-based Bio Arts, which is engaged in a patent dispute with RNL Bio over commercial cloning activities.

"Dog cloning is a skill perfected by Korea. Our research center will provide the first step in commercialization," said Ra Jeong-chan, the chief executive of RNL Bio.

The company said it had purchased 16,500 square meters of land in Gyeonggi Province to build the center, which will focus on cloning pets, working dogs and also endangered species, including wolves.

It has particularly high hopes for working dogs, such as bomb and drug sniffing retrievers and also a new breed of dogs known for their talent at detecting cancer cells.

RNL Bio also said it will provide a total service for dog cloning, which includes a stem...