Senomyx (SNMX)

Salt Enhancer Program

The goal of the salt enhancer program is to identify flavor ingredients that allow a significant reduction of sodium in foods and beverages yet maintain the salty taste desirable to consumers.  During 2008, Senomyx reported a major scientific finding with the discovery of SNMX-29, the protein the Company believes is the primary receptor responsible for human salt taste.  Using new proprietary screening assays based on SNMX-29, Senomyx has identified well over 100 enhancers of both sodium chloride (table salt) and potassium chloride that are active in the assays.  These enhancers, which represent 12 diverse sample classes, are being optimized to increase their solubility, potency, and taste characteristics.  Taste tests to determine their efficacy have been initiated.

Salt Enhancer Program

The goal of
the salt enhancer program is to identify flavor ingredients that allow a
significant reduction of sodium in foods and beverages yet maintain the salty
taste desirable to consumers.  During
2008, Senomyx reported a major scientific finding with the discovery of
SNMX-29, the protein the Company believes is the primary receptor responsible
for human salt taste.  Using new
proprietary screening assays based on SNMX-29, Senomyx has identified well over
100 enhancers of both sodium chloride (table salt) and potassium chloride that
are active in the assays.  These
enhancers, which represent 12 diverse sample classes, are being optimized to
increase their solubility, potency, and taste characteristics.  Taste tests to determine their efficacy have
been initiated.

Salt Enhancer Program

The goal of the salt enhancer program is to identify flavor ingredients that allow a significant reduction of sodium in foods and beverages yet maintain the salty taste desirable to consumers.  Program activities have been focused on discovery of the primary receptor responsible for human salt taste.  Senomyx has identified and evaluated approximately 15,000 proteins found in taste buds and established detailed criteria to determine which of the proteins functions as the receptor that responds to sodium chloride (salt).  The Company believes that one of the proteins, SNMX-29, which met all of our criteria, is the primary receptor responsible for salt taste perception.  Senomyx has begun development of a high-throughput screening assay based on SNMX-29 that will be used to screen our extensive libraries to provide further verification that SNMX-29 is the human salt taste receptor and, importantly, to identify potential enhancers of salt taste.

11

Salt Enhancer Program

The goal of
the salt enhancer program is to identify flavor ingredients that allow a
significant reduction of sodium in foods and beverages yet maintain the salty
taste desirable to consumers.  Program
activities have been focused on discovery of the primary receptor responsible
for human salt taste.  Senomyx has
identified and evaluated approximately 15,000 proteins found in taste buds and
established detailed criteria to determine which of the proteins functions as
the receptor that responds to sodium chloride (salt).  The Company believes that one of the
proteins, SNMX-29, which met all of our criteria, is the primary receptor responsible
for salt taste perception.  Senomyx has
begun development of a high-throughput screening assay based on SNMX-29 that
will be used to screen our extensive libraries to provide further verification
that SNMX-29 is the human salt taste receptor and, importantly, to identify
potential enhancers of salt taste.

11

Salt Enhancer Program

The goal of our salt enhancer program is to identify compounds that enhance the taste of salt and provide a significant reduction in sodium levels in a variety of foods while maintaining or improving the desired salt taste.  During 2006, we began work on the identification of enhancers of the Delta form of the sodium ion channel, ENaC.  It is believed that Delta ENaC may play an important role in mediating salt taste in humans.  Compounds that enhance the in vitro activity of Delta ENaC have been identified, although these did not provide a taste effect.  We are continuing to identify additional enhancers of Delta ENaC to obtain compounds that provide a taste effect.  A complementary effort has been initiated to characterize alternative ion channels and receptors that may play a role in salt taste perception.  From this scientific work, our scientists are generating potential targets for enhancement.

Salt Enhancer Program

The goal of our salt enhancer program is to identify compounds that enhance the taste of salt and provide a significant reduction in sodium levels in a variety of foods while maintaining or improving the desired salt taste. We are continuing to identify enhancers of the ion channel, ENaC, the most potent of which is S4613. In addition, during the fourth quarter of 2005, we completed characterization of a second form of ENaC in taste cells, termed Delta ENaC, which may also play a role in salt taste but has different properties from Alpha ENaC, the form we had been studying previously. Based on our new findings, we have initiated discovery of Delta ENaC enhancers and have isolated a set of active compounds using our proprietary screening methods. We will continue to identify enhancers of Alpha and Delta ENaC and optimize these compounds to improve potency with the goal of identifying a compound that functions in taste tests by the end of the second quarter of 2006. As with the sweet program, our goal is to identify a product candidate and initiate development and safety studies by the end of the third quarter of 2006 in order to achieve the first commercial sale of a product containing one of our salt enhancers in 2007.

Salt Enhancer Program

Using SaltScreenHT, our high-throughput salt receptor-based assay, we have identified hundreds of compounds that enhance the activity of a taste receptor believed to be involved in the taste of salt. The goal of our salt enhancer program is to identify compounds that enhance the taste of salt and provide a significant reduction in sodium levels in a variety of foods while maintaining or improving the desired salt taste.

We tested the most potent of the compounds identified by SaltScreenHT with our electrophysiology-based assay SaltScreenEP. This assay identifies compounds that specifically enhance the activity of ENaC, a taste receptor believed to be involved in the taste of salt. Based on the initial screening results, we selected compound S853 for further optimization.  We synthesized and tested over 1,000 derivatives of S853 in the SaltScreenEP system. The most potent compounds, S112 and S225, are approximately 3,000-fold more potent than the original compound, S853. We will need to synthesize additional compounds specific to human taste ENaC channels to identify a taste proof-of-concept compound.