Divergence Receives $500,000 Phase IIB NSF SBIR Grant

St. Louis (January 10, 2006) -

Divergence, Inc. announced that it has been awarded $500,000 in a Phase IIB Small Business Innovation Research ("SBIR") grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF). This grant funds the continuation of a project entitled "Nematode Intestinal Proteins as Anthelmintic Targets". Michelle Coutu Hresko, Ph.D., Senior Director of Discovery Research at Divergence is the Principal Investigator.

"This award from NSF will support Divergence's continuing efforts to develop methods of inhibiting proteins encoded by essential intestinal genes of parasitic nematodes," said James P. McCarter, M.D., Ph.D., Divergence's President and Chief Scientific Officer. "This project provides Divergence important opportunities in the prevention and control of parasitic infections with a variety of market applications, including the development of plants with resistance to soybean cyst nematode, the largest disease of U.S. soybeans."

The Phase IIB Grant Program, offered by NSF, allows companies with ongoing projects funded by Phase II grants to leverage funding received from third parties, such as corporate partners or licensees. This is Divergence's first Phase IIB grant, and it matches funding received by Divergence as part of its ongoing collaboration with Monsanto Company on transgenic control of parasitic nematodes in soybeans.

To date, Divergence has been awarded more than $2.5 million in SBIR grants. Divergence has received SBIR grants from National Institutes of Health and United States Department of Agriculture, in addition to NSF.

Divergence is a research and development company dedicated to the discovery of effective and ecologically sound strategies for the control of parasites and other pests. The company's initial focus is on parasitic nematodes, one of the world's major pest groups. Nematodes are roundworms that cause billions of dollars in damage annually to numerous crops, including soybeans, cotton, strawberries, and bananas. Nematodes also cause widespread disease in animals, including infections such as heartworm in dogs and cats and intestinal worms in livestock. Nematode-induced human diseases include elephantiasis and African river blindness.

For more information on Divergence, visit www.divergence.com.