James Sherley and Theresa Deisher have opted to continue their battle against the use of human embryonic stem cells in US-government-funded research. Lawyers representing the two researchers today filed a notice of appeal seeking to reverse the decision of a district court judge who ruled against them on 27 July (see story). Sherley and Deisher, who work with adult stem cells, were the only two plaintiffs granted standing last year in a lawsuit that would block the National Institutes of Health from conducting and supporting work with human embryonic stem cells. Although the judge ultimately ruled against them, the lawsuit rattled the entire field when it led to a temporary injunction that stopped the funding for 17 days.

An appeal may be a long shot, given that the appeals court already rejected the temporary injunction. If the appeal is successful, however, it would likely put the stem cell battle on a path to the US Supreme Court. You can find more on the background to the case and its impact here.