THE scientist who cloned Dolly the sheep has died at the age of 79.

Sir Ian Wilmut was part of the team who carried out the revolutionary feat in 1996.

The scientist led the Roslin Institute team as they created the first mammal to be cloned from an adult stem cell.

His death was announced by the University of Edinburgh, where he worked from 2005 until his retirement in 2012.

Professor Sir Peter Mathieson, principle and vice-chancellor of the university said: "We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Professor Sir Ian Wilmut.

"He was a titan of the scientific world, leading the Roslin Institute team who cloned Dolly the sheep – the first mammal to be cloned from an adult cell – which transformed scientific thinking at the time.

"This breakthrough continue to fuel many of the advances that have been made in the field of regenerative medicine that we see today.

"Our thoughts are with Ian's family at this time."

Sir Ian revealed on World Parkinson's Day in 2018 he was suffering from the disease and had offered to be a guinea pig for medical research.

He backed a programme to see Scotland's first clinical trials aimed at slowing down the disease's progression.

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Sir Ian previously said: "Initiatives of this kind are very effective because they include people with different experience and expertise.

"It was from such a rich seedbed Dolly developed and we can hope for similar benefits in this project."

Dolly the sheep was cloned from a cell taken from the mammary gland of a six-year-old Finn Dorset sheep and an egg cell from a Scottish Blackface sheep.

She was born to a surrogate mother on July 5 1996.

Her birth caused a media frenzy and she spent her life with other sheep at the Roslin Institute.

Dolly birthed six lambs including twins and triplets with a Welsh Mountain ram called David.

In 2000 she became infected with a virus which ultimately caused her to develop lung cancer, and was put to sleep on February 14 2003.

Dolly's body was donated to the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh where she remains one of the museum's most popular exhibits.

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Sir Ian was knighted in the 2008 New Year Honours list for services to science.

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