LISTED Perth companies Phylogica and Neptune Marine Services have been awarded Federal Government grants totalling more than $4 million. Phylogica has been offered a $2.27 million Commercial Ready grant to accelerate the development of its phylomer drug candidates for rheumatoid arthritis. Its phylomer technology (stable fragments of naturally occurring proteins) is seen as a cost effective alternative to current antibody-based therapies. Chief executive Stuart Washer said the grant “validates the company’s drug discovery science and accelerates our path to commercialisation”. Phylogica was founded in 2001 to commercialise drug discovery technologies developed at the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research. Neptune has been awarded $2 million for ongoing research and development and commercialisation of its patented dry underwater welding system. Neptune director Clive Langley said the grant represented a significant milestone for the company. The grant provides funding for salaries, contract expenditure, plant and prototype development and other expenditure related to the development of the technology. Key assessment criteria for the grant included management capability, commercial potential of the technology, technical strength of the R&D program and the extent to which the technology can provide national benefits.