Compugen Announces Additional Grants from Israel Office of Chief Scientist for Validation Studies of Therapeutic Candidates

Additional $400,000 to support two programs covering selected novel proteins and
peptides
TEL AVIV, Israel--(Business Wire)--
Compugen Ltd. (NASDAQ:CGEN) announced today that it has been notified by the
Office of the Chief Scientist of Israel (the "OCS") that it will receive grants
totaling approximately $400,000 to support the Company`s FPRL1 and TP programs
during 2009. These grants are in addition to the $500,000 grant announced
earlier this month for support of certain other on-going programs.

This new funding will support the testing of the therapeutic potential of
selected novel peptides and proteins discovered through the use of four of the
Company`s ten discovery platforms. The therapeutic potential of these molecules
will be evaluated through in vitro and in vivo animal models in the fields of
cancer, cardiovascular, and inflammatory disorders.

Dikla Czaczkes Axselbrad, CFO of Compugen stated, "We very much appreciate the
long-term and continuing support of the Israel OCS. We anticipate that the two
programs to be supported with these latest grants will result in several new
product candidates for development and licensing in these major therapeutic
areas."

The FPRL 1 Program

The activation of the FPRL1 G protein-coupled receptor promotes resolution of
inflammation leading to prominent anti-inflammatory activity. The OCS funding
will be used to test the therapeutic potential of CGEN-855 A and B, two Compugen
discovered agonistic peptides for the FPRL1 receptor. These two peptides are
under an evaluation and option for licensing agreement with Merck-Serono.
Experimental data for CGEN-855 are the subject of a recent article published in
the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics:
http://jpet.aspetjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/jpet.108.145821v1).

The TP Program

The goal of this program is to test the therapeutic potential of several novel
peptides and proteins predicted and selected through the use of various Compugen
discovery platforms. The proteins and peptides to be evaluated have been
prioritized based on in silico predictions and initial in vitro testing.

About Compugen

Compugen is a leading drug and diagnostic product candidate discovery company.
Unlike traditional high throughput trial and error experimental based discovery,
Compugen`s discovery efforts are based on in-silico (by computer) prediction and
selection utilizing a growing number of field focused proprietary discovery
platforms accurately modeling biological processes at the molecular level. The
resulting product candidates are then validated through in vitro and in vivo
experimental studies and out-licensed for further development and
commercialization under various forms of revenue sharing agreements. Compugen`s
current collaborations include Biosite, Medarex, Inc., Merck & Co., Inc., Merck
Serono, Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics (a Johnson & Johnson company), Roche, Siemens
Healthcare Diagnostics, Inc., and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries. In 2002,
Compugen established an affiliate, Evogene Ltd. www.evogene.com (TASE: EVGN.TA),
to utilize certain of the Company`s in-silico predictive discovery capabilities
in agricultural biotechnology. For additional information, please visit
Compugen's corporate Web site at www.cgen.com.

This press release may contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning
of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements
include words such as "may", "expects", "anticipates", "believes", and
"intends", and describe opinions about future events. These forward-looking
statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause the
actual results, performance or achievements of Compugen to be materially
different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or
implied by such forward-looking statements. Some of these risks are: changes in
relationships with collaborators; the impact of competitive products and
technological changes; risks relating to the development of new products; and
the ability to implement technological improvements. These and other factors are
identified and more fully explained under the heading "Risk Factors" in
Compugen's annual reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Compugen Ltd.
Marjie Hadad, +972-54-536-5220
Global Media Liaison
marjie@cgen.com

Copyright Business Wire 2009