Applied Biosystems Announces First Licensee Under Expanded PCR Licensing Program; Key Patents Covering Real-Time PCR Now Included in Program.

FOSTER CITY, Calif. -- Applied Biosystems Group (NYSE:ABI), an Applera Corporation business, today announced it has granted a license to Invitrogen Corp. (Nasdaq:IVGN) under the expanded Applied Biosystems PCR (polymerase chain reaction) licensing program. The expanded program includes patents for real-time PCR and other important PCR-related technology not licensed under the previous PCR licensing program. Financial terms of the license were not disclosed.

PCR, an enabling technology for life science and other research, is a process in which a segment of a nucleic acid (DNA or RNA) is copied or "amplified" so that the nucleic acid can be more readily analyzed. In real-time PCR, the amplified DNA is detected during, rather than at the end of, the PCR process, a feature that facilitates greater accuracy in important applications, including gene expression quantitation and genotyping.

"This first license agreement under our new program sets an important precedent," said Paul D. Grossman, Ph.D., Esq., Vice President, Strategic Planning, Business Development and Intellectual Property at Applied Biosystems. "Invitrogen has been our largest PCR licensee, and we are pleased that they have joined the expanded PCR licensing program. Applied Biosystems intends to negotiate similar licenses with other interested parties."

"Our continued and expanded license agreement with Applied Biosystems enables our customers to practice their quantitative PCR experiments with confidence and security," said Stuart Hepburn, Vice President of Corporate Development for Invitrogen. "This agreement exemplifies our commitment to strong patent protection across our industry to help drive innovation."

Although the foundational patent covering the PCR process expired in the United States in March 2005 and will expire elsewhere in March 2006, numerous other patents related to PCR remain in force. These surviving patents cover, for example, enzyme compositions, kits, and methods such as reverse transcription and DNA sequencing. Applied Biosystems will continue to offer licenses to these patents.

The expanded program includes licenses to the two leading real-time PCR techniques known as the TaqMan(R) assay and the Dye-Intercalation Assay method. It also includes patents covering an improved form of the Taq polymerase enzyme (AmpliTaq Gold(R) technology) used to initiate PCR and referred to as Hot-Start. Separate from this agreement, Applied Biosystems plans to offer licenses to manufacture probes for the TaqMan method and service licenses for these new technologies.

The expanded program follows an agreement signed in May between Applera and Hoffmann-La Roche for Applied Biosystems to be the sole licensor of Roche patents covering reagents and methods for practicing PCR and real-time PCR in the life science research and applied fields.

About Applera Corporation and Applied Biosystems

Applera Corporation consists of two operating groups. The Applied Biosystems Group serves the life science industry and research community by developing and marketing instrument-based systems, consumables, software, and services. Customers use these tools to analyze nucleic acids (DNA and RNA), small molecules, and proteins to make scientific discoveries, develop new pharmaceuticals, and conduct standardized testing. Applied Biosystems is headquartered in Foster City, CA, and reported sales of $1.7 billion during fiscal 2004. The Celera Genomics Group (NYSE:CRA) is engaged principally in the discovery and development of targeted therapeutics for cancer, autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Celera Genomics is leveraging its proteomic, bioinformatic, and genomic capabilities to identify and validate drug targets, and to discover and develop small molecule therapeutics. It is also seeking to advance therapeutic antibody and selected small molecule drug programs in collaboration with global technology and market leaders. Celera Diagnostics, a 50/50 joint venture between Applied Biosystems and Celera Genomics, is focused on discovery, development, and commercialization of diagnostic products. Information about Applera Corporation, including reports and other information filed by the company with the Securities and Exchange Commission, is available at http://www.applera.com, or by telephoning 800-762-6923. Information about Applied Biosystems is available at http://www.appliedbiosystems.com/.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking. These may be identified by the use of forward-looking words or phrases such as "believe," "expect," "should," "anticipate," and "planned," among others. These forward-looking statements are based on Applera Corporation's current expectations. The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a "safe harbor" for such forward-looking statements. In order to comply with the terms of the safe harbor, Applera Corporation notes that a variety of factors could cause actual results and experience to differ materially from the anticipated results or other expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements. These factors include but are not limited to: (1) rapidly changing technology could adversely affect demand for Applied Biosystems' products, and its business is dependent on development of new products; (2) risks associated with lawsuits, arbitrations, investigations, and other legal actions with private parties and governmental entities, particularly involving claims for infringement of patents and other intellectual property rights; and (3) other factors that might be described from time to time in Applera Corporation's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All information in this press release is as of the date of the release, and Applera does not undertake any duty to update this information, including any forward-looking statements, unless required by law.

Copyright 2005. Applera Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Applied Biosystems, Celera, and AB (Design) are registered trademarks, and Applera, Celera Diagnostics, and Celera Genomics are trademarks of Applera Corporation or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and/or certain other countries.