Part 1 here, via Mass Device:

It came as a welcome relief when on April 29 the U.S. Court of Appeals vacated a lower court’s injunction against federal funding of human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research. For those of us working on research projects involving hESCs, whether funded through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) or other federal agencies, it meant that we are once again free to continue our work … for now.

The “for now” part relates to the fact that the recent ruling is but one chapter in the ongoing story of hESC research funding. The desultory nature of federal funding for hESC research has been a constant source of uncertainty for scientists and the general public alike, and to understand the full story, we need to look back to the mid 1990s, before the derivation of the first hESC lines.

Part 2 here, via Children’s Hospital Boston:

(While you are there, check out the site’s post on citizen science and crowd-sourcing.)

The case is far from over and the future of hESC research funding remains unclear. The April 29 ruling pertains only to the injunction itself, not the underlying suit by Sherley and Deisher. In fact, to date no court has yet ruled on the full merits of the case. Though there are indications for its future: An important aspect of April 29 ruling states that Sherley and Deisher are “unlikely to prevail.” Regardless of the outcome once the case returns to District Court, it seems likely that the losing side will appeal.