Three Ames companies became recipients of Iowa Department of Economic Development grants Thursday, paving the way for the creation of hundreds of high-paying jobs in Ames and scientific advances that could affect the entire world.

The Iowa Values Fund awarded $6 million to NewLink Genetics Corp., 2901 S. Loop Drive and $3.5 million to Phytodyne Inc., 2711 S. Loop Drive. Phytodyne received an additional $1.5 million from the Physical Infrastructure Assistance Program for a total of $5 million in state assistance.

The grants are part of a $503 million growth plan the state introduced last year, said Tina Hoffman, communications director for the Iowa Department of Economic Development. The plan’s stated goal is to bring 50,000 high-paying jobs to Iowa in the areas of life sciences, advanced industrial manufacturing and information solutions and financial services over the next seven years. Twenty-eight companies across Iowa received funding totaling $19 million this year from the Iowa Values Fund.

“The governor has talked repeatedly about Iowa’s niche in life science research, both in terms of raw materials and biotechnology research,” Hoffman said.

NewLink Genetics is a biopharmaceuticals company focusing on the production of cancer-fighting drugs, said Nicholas Vahanian, chief medical and operations officer.

The company recently received Food and Drug Administration approval for clinical testing of a lung cancer drug and for clinical and patient testing of a breast cancer drug, a move that could require vast upgrades to its facilities.

If the drugs pass through the FDA tests and the drug goes on the market — which could happen within 3 to 5 years — the demand could rise high above what NewLink’s current staff of 33 can produce, Vahanian said.

“One hundred fifty thousand people died last year of the lung cancer our drug can fight,” he said. “If we’re approved, we need to expand our capacity.”

To meet this demand, NewLink plans a $186 million expansion, which could bring 315 jobs paying an average of $24.95 an hour.

The state’s $6 million will go toward that expansion, Vahanian said. The rest will come from venture capitalists around the country.

This expansion means good things for Iowa State and its students, Vahanian said. More than half of NewLink’s work force is ISU graduates, and that is not likely to change in the future.

Phytodyne has created a technology improving scientists’ ability to reorganize the structure of plant genes, a development that could dramatically affect agriculture from farmers through consumers, said the company’s president, Jon Leafstedt.

The technology allows scientists to accurately delete genes within a plant, causing undesirable effects to be left out and more desirable ones to be added, Leafstedt said.

“We can utilize this technology to modify corn to create a specific type with high starch to improve production of ethanol,” he said. “Think of the implications that has for Iowa.”

Phytodyne will use its $5 million from the state to expand its infrastructure, adding molecular biology lab space and greenhouses as well as equipment such as computers and scientific instruments, according to a statement from the company.

Magnalynx Inc., 1606 Golden Aspen Drive, will receive $75,000 from the Entrepreneurial Ventures Assistance Program, a state fund for startup companies in high growth fields. The company, which produces semiconductors and integrated circuits for computers, will use the money to protect intellectual property such as trademarks and patents, said Scott Irwin, president and chief executive officer.