The last shreds of authenticity clinging to claims by a bizarre cult that it created the world's first human clone were stripped away yesterday when the scientist who was to oversee the DNA testing of the baby cried hoax.
The change of heart by Michael Guillen, a freelance journalist and physicist who has tracked the cult's scientific experiments for years, leaves Clonaid, the Bahamas-based cloning company which claims the breakthrough, with virtually no supporters beyond members of the Raelian cult which owns the firm.
The scientific establishment has been scathing of the cloning claims by Clonaid's chief executive, Brigitte Boisselier. They say that Clonaid has no history of such research and failed to follow the customary procedures used to verify scientific work, such as publication in journals or review by a panel of experts.
Mr Guillen, whose own reputation has come under attack amid reports that he tried to sell the story of the clone to various US media outlets for substantial sums, said yesterday he could not attest to the veracity of the cult's claims that the baby known as Eve was a clone.
"It's entirely possible [that] Clonaid's announcement is part of an elaborate hoax to bring publicity to the Raelian movement," he said.
Mr Guillen said he had been prepared to oversee DNA testing that would test the claim. However, he halted his efforts when Clonaid would not give him access to the child and her family.
"This morning, I suspended the independent review process designed to determine whether or not a cloned baby has been born," he said in a statement. "The team of scientists has had no access to the family and therefore cannot verify the claim."
Mr Guillen had been among the last in the US scientific community prepared to view the Clonaid claim with an open mind. Indeed, US news reports had accused him of hitching his own fortunes to Clonaid by attempting to sell exclusive coverage of the cloning to TV channels and the New York Times.
His defection is unlikely to have much impact on the Raelians' position on cloning. Members of the cult believe that humans on earth were originally cloned by aliens, and that cloning will one day again prove the dominant form of human reproduction.
The Raelians say the baby Eve was the first of a trio of human clones - the youngest born last Saturday to a Dutch lesbian - and that three more are due to be born next month.
However, the Clonaid saga is likely to spur efforts in the US Congress for a ban on human cloning - much to the anxiety of the more traditional biotechnology community, who say the backlash could set back their own efforts and further restrict stem cell research. The Republicans are expected to reintroduce measures to ban cloning in the coming months.