Patrick pushes $1B biotech investment

re: from Ken Maguire, Associated Press: "BOSTON -- Gov. Deval Patrick proposed Tuesday that Massachusetts invest $1 billion in the biotechnology industry and challenge California as a hub for stem-cell research. /Patrick's 10-year plan was revealed in a speech at a biotechnology convention in Boston. Money would be spent on research grants to scientists and improving public college facilities, Patrick said...[snip]...The initiative calls for the creation of a stem-cell bank, a centralized repository of stem-cell lines for public and private research, overseen by the University of Massachusetts. /Patrick said the bank would be the world's largest catalog of stem-cell lines, with UMass, Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and hospitals including Massachusetts General Hospital contributing their lines. /The research aims to use stem cells, which are created in the first days after conception and can give rise to all the organs and tissues in the body, to replace diseased tissue in hopes of treating a variety of diseases. /Many social conservatives, including President Bush, oppose the work because embryos are destroyed in the process. /Patrick said his timeline would have the bulk of the investment begin in July 2008..."...