The National Institutes of Health has enforced three distinct federal funding policies for human embryonic stem-cell research through the administrations of Presidents Clinton, Bush and Obama. In 2001, George W. Bush placed restrictions on the use of federal funds for human embryonic stem-cell research, leading some state governments to fund the research themselves. California established…
Yesterday, the Supreme Court rejected a request to hear a case regarding the legality of federal funding for research on human embryonic stem cells. The case, Sherley v. Sebelius, was first filed in 2009 and has made its way through several appeals courts. The courts never ruled in favor of those looking to ban hESC…
On Friday morning, another chapter was closed in the longstanding dispute over the legality of federally funded human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research. A three-judge federal appeals court unanimously upheld the ruling of a lower court that allowed the NIH to continue to fund research on hESCs. The case, first filed in 2009, revolves around…
Today, District of Columbia District Court Judge Royce Lamberth overturned his own ruling in the case of Sherley v. Sebelius that had banned use of funds from the National Institutes of Health for human embryonic stem cell research. The ruling is the latest, though by no means final, turn in this saga that has seen…
The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology this week called for passage of federal legislation to establish a uniform regulatory landscape for the derivation and use of human embryonic stem cells. Calling existing legislation “ambiguous” and citing and “the constant specter of judicial challenges” that researchers face, the society representing thousands of biomedical researchers…
Late last week, Rep. Diana DeGette, D-Colo., and Rep. Charlie Dent, R.-Penn., introduced the Stem Cell Research Advancement Act, the latest congressional attempt to update federal policy governing human embryonic stem cell research. The bill would, according to a press release from Rep. DeGette, “codify the NIH’s guidelines for carrying out all human stem cell…
A paper released today in Cell studies the growth of the field of induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell research and how it has been affected by both political and judicial interventions. Researchers at Stanford analyzed papers published on both human iPS and embryonic stem (hES) cells to see if the advent of iPS cells “had…
In a long-awaited decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals has ruled 2-1 in favor of allowing the National Institutes of Health to continue to fund human embryonic stem cell research. The decision invalidates the preliminary injunction, issued back in August 2010 in the case of Sherley v. Sebelius, which barred the use of federal funds…
On Friday, ASBMB joined with more than 100 other organizations in co-signing a letter sent to congressional leaders, urging them to pass pending legislation that would “authorize and continue Federal support for human embryonic stem cell research.” The letter calls on Congress “to help ensure the potential of [stem cell] research is translated into treatments…
A series of recent court decisions have begun to clarify the legal situation surrounding the future of human embryonic stem cell (hESC) research, following the Aug. 23 ruling that barred the use of federal funds for research involving hESCs.