The Supreme Court today rejected a request to ban the research of US-funded human embryonic stem cells (hESCs). The decision ends a long legal battle that has cast a shadow on hESC research for more than 3 years.
Two scientists studying adult stem cells have filed their complaint, Sherley v. Sebelius , in August 09. They argued that the new National Institutes of Health (NIH) guidelines restrictions on research lines on lifting hESC violated a law banning federal funding for research that destroys embryos. A year later, the plaintiffs won a preliminary injunction that briefly shut down the research NIH-funded hESC until an appeals court suspended the injunction. The court of appeal and a trial court later ruled in favor of the government.
In October, the plaintiffs appealed to the Supreme Court. But today, the court "refused certiorari," which means that it rejected their request.
Amy Comstock Rick, president of the Coalition for the Advancement of Medical Research in Washington, DC, which supports research on hESCs, called the decision "a victory for scientists, patients, and the whole community of biomedical research. Science can now continue to move forward, knowing the threat of promising research and funding has been eliminated. "
* Correction 1:15 p.m., January 7 :. A change states that the prosecution argued against the new NIH guidelines that lifted restrictions on hESC research
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