Genomatica, Inc., a leading in silico systems biology company, announced today it has received a Phase II Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) under their Genomics: GtL Program. The two year award for approximately $750,000 will be used to enhance core components of SimPheny, the company's flagship software platform. These enhancements will expand SimPheny's ability to support collaborative research efforts at leading academic and commercial institutions focused on metabolic research. "We are very pleased that the DOE has recognized SimPheny as a valuable part of the computational infrastructure for systems biology and has elected to continue its funding for this effort," commented Christophe H. Schilling, Ph.D., President and Chief Scientific Officer at Genomatica and Principal Investigator on the grant. "This program will continue to demonstrate the ability of how computer models of biological systems can rapidly accelerate discovery in the life sciences. SimPheny is a key part of Genomatica's new model-driven research paradigm. It can deliver a new range of efficiency to commercial biotechnology by generating improved biological knowledge and derived products and by reducing discovery and development timelines and costs." SimPheny, a revolutionary enterprise-level software platform, is a client-server application that enables the development of predictive computer models of organisms, from bacteria to humans. With cellular metabolism at its core, SimPheny can build virtual cells from their basic molecular components, and can simulate the activity of the cell's complete reaction network. With an expanding user base SimPheny is currently deployed at a number of commercial sites as well as at select universities and research institutions. In the Phase I effort, Genomatica successfully installed SimPheny in collaboration with participating academic laboratories engaged in computational systems biology research, including Professor Derek Lovley's lab at The University of Massachusetts, Professor Costas Maranas' lab at Penn State University and Professor Jeremy Edwards' lab at the University of Delaware. In Phase II, enhanced functionality will be developed for SimPheny based on the requirements gathered in Phase I and ongoing customer feedback to provide a more robust software platform that meets the needs of all its users from biologists to modeling scientists. Background Genomatica is a leading innovator of biological modeling and simulation technologies transforming biological research and the way microorganisms are engineered and drugs are discovered. Using validated technology, Genomatica delivers industry-leading solutions for the modeling and simulation of metabolism. These solutions drive a powerful new paradigm called Model-Driven Research, wherein computer models are used to accelerate biological research and discovery across the life sciences. Genomatica is advancing the frontiers of biological discovery and the development of innovative products in medical and industrial biotechnology, while streamlining existing product development and enhancing the overall business efficiency of its clients. Genomatica is currently pursuing commercial relationships with major bioprocessing, pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies seeking to leverage the power of model-driven systems biology for rapid biological discovery. For more information, please visit us on our website at www.genomatica.com.