Brazil's Supreme Court upheld legislation yesterday (May 28) that allows research on embryonic stem cells, according to the Associated Press.

Six of the 11 court judges voted to maintain a 2005 law legalizing embryonic stem cell research, and turned down a petition arguing that the law was unconstitutional because it violates the right to life. The remaining five judges argued that the 2005 law was constitutional, but that restrictions should be attached, such as preventing the destruction of embryos and requiring ethics approval each time an embryo is used.

The decision opens the way for using embryos from in-vitro fertilization in research. Most embryo research in the country has been on hold since May 2005 when then-Attorney General Cláudio Fonteles filed the petition.

"It is a victory of knowledge over obscurantism," Cezar Britto, president of the Brazilian National Bar Association, said in a statement, calling the court's ruling "historic."