Press Release

Protein Discovery Inc. Celebrates Opening of New Downtown Knoxville Lab and Office Facility

Knoxville, Tennessee, February 7, 2006—Protein Discovery, Inc., a privately held life sciences company, held a ribbon-cutting ceremony this morning to celebrate the opening of its new downtown Knoxville laboratory and office. Located on the second floor of Knoxville's historic Phoenix Building at 418 South Gay Street, the new facility provides needed space for the company's imaging mass spectrometry operations, research and development labs, and administrative offices.

Protein Discovery chief executive officer Chuck Witkowski, Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam and Knoxville Area Chamber Partnership CEO Mike Edwards hosted the event, which was also attended by University of Tennessee president John Peterson and a number of Protein Discovery's board members, investors, and employees.

Speaking on behalf of the City of Knoxville, Mayor Haslam said, "Protein Discovery is among the cornerstone companies for Tennessee's Innovation Valley initiative in the life sciences. The company is a product of local ideas, investment, and entrepreneurship that has attracted talent from California's Silicon Valley."
"Protein Discovery is a great fit for our dynamic downtown, and I’m pleased that the City was able to assist the company with the build out of its state-of-the-art biotech laboratory in a historic building," continued Mayor Haslam. "Protein Discovery’s commitment to downtown confirms that Knoxville is a great place to locate and grow a business."

In his remarks at the event, Protein Discovery's chief executive officer Chuck Witkowski said, "The fundamental technologies upon which Protein Discovery was founded were developed in Tennessee's Innovation Valley, from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory to Vanderbilt University. We're excited to be moving ahead with our product and commercial development right here in Knoxville, and we're proud of the contribution we're making to the growth and vitality of the downtown area."
Protein Discovery's new Knoxville location is ideally situated to support and strengthen the company's partnerships with the University of Tennessee, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Vanderbilt University. Funds to secure certain of the company’s laboratory equipment were provided by Technology 2020’s Center for Entrepreneurship.

About Protein Discovery
Protein Discovery, Inc. is a privately held life sciences company developing solutions for molecular research, drug development, and medical diagnostics using high throughput mass spectrometry. The company’s imaging mass spectrometry (IMS) service allows pharmaceutical and biotech customers to gain important insights into disease progression, drug treatment and metabolic response. The company is also developing a powerful suite of sample preparation products specifically designed to meet the data quality and throughput demands of customers using mass spectrometry in the life sciences industry. The ability to reproducibly identify and quantify suites of clinically significant biomarkers with spatial resolution will enhance patient health by improving the diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment of disease. For additional information, please visit www.proteindiscovery.com.

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