The awards are being held at the upcoming SynBioBeta SF 2015 Conference that will be hosted at the Mission Bay Conference Center, in San Francisco, California.

SynBioBeta invites the synthetic biology industry for an evening of appreciation as they reward individuals that are making great strides to shape the industry landscape. Special guest NASA Astronaut Catherine Coleman and Founder of SynBioBeta John Cumbers will be hosting the event and presenting the awards.

SynBioBeta is honored to announce this year's award recipients will be:

Dr. Alicia Jackson, former Deputy Director of the Biological Technologies Office at DARPA, will be receiving the award for “Best U.S. Industry Enabler”. Dr. Jackson led the establishment of the Biological Technologies Office at DARPA, and funded numerous ground breaking projects.

Dr. Christina Smolke, Associate Professor at Stanford University and CEO of biopharma company Antheia, will be receiving the award for “Most Promising Startup”. Dr. Smolke has pioneered the design and application of a broad class of easy-to-engineer RNA molecules. Her new company Antheia, was founded from the steadfast work she has done on engineering yeast to make plant-based medicinal compounds.

The Rt Hon David Willetts, Chair of the British Science Association and former British Minister for Universities and Science, will be receiving the award for “Best U.K. Industry Enabler”. Mr Willetts, who is also former Co-Chair of the Synthetic Biology Leadership Council, has worked tirelessly to promote synthetic biology as one of the great 8 technologies that the UK government has invested in.

“As the synthetic biology industry matures and moves towards applications, these awards recognize the spirit of the field and the passion that its practitioners and enables have for making biology easier to engineer”, said John Cumbers, Founder of SynBioBeta. “We’re excited to bring the community together and have a chance to honor these outstanding individuals for their pioneering efforts in the industry."

For more information on the awards ceremony or on how to obtain a press pass, please contact Brittney Norris, Director of Marketing for SynBioBeta by phone at +1 412-671-1715, or email at brittney.norris@synbiobeta.com or you can reach out to Synbiobeta through their website at www.synbiobeta.com.

About SynBioBeta

SynBioBeta is the leading community of entrepreneurs, investors, policy makers and enthusiasts devoted to the responsible growth of the synthetic biology field. They host international synthetic biology conferences and events that bring the entire community together several times each year, giving anyone the opportunity to meet with the bright minds building and shaping the bio economy.

SynBioBeta also offers a highly specialised weekly industry e-digest, news blog and educational courses in addition to providing companies in the industry with opportunities for advertising, exhibition and sponsorships for promotion.