Transgenic sheep were first cloned in 1996 when scientists used somatic cell nuclear transfer to create Dolly the sheep. This involves removing the nucleus of an egg cell and replacing it with the nucleus of a donor adult cell, usually a fibroblast. The reprogrammed cell is then stimulated to divide and develop into an embryo. While transgenic sheep can be useful models for studying various fields like immunology and hematology, the cloning process has low success rates and cloned animals often display abnormalities. Transgenic sheep are also used commercially to produce recombinant proteins in various tissues like milk.