Applied Biosystems Funds Newman Scholarship at Conway Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research.

FOSTER CITY, Calif. & DUBLIN, Ireland -- Expands Collaborative Research Programs in Protein Profiling and Biomarker Discovery 

Applied Biosystems (NYSE:ABI), an Applera Corporation business, and the Conway Institute for Biomolecular and Biomedical Research, today announced the creation of the Applied Biosystems Newman Scholarship to fund a post-doctoral research fellow based in the institute's new Proteome Research Centre. The Newman Scholar will employ an integrated science approach to systems biology research problems by integrating both gene and protein expression information to study the underlying mechanisms of disease and cell function, and towards the development of advanced proteomics techniques utilizing Applied Biosystems instruments and chemistries. The scholarship will be celebrated today at a reception at the Conway Institute in Dublin, Ireland.

As part of the fellowship, the Newman Scholar will undertake two research projects. The objective of the first project is to discover and validate putative biomarkers in early stage prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is the leading malignancy in men, accounting for over 28,000 deaths per year in the United States, and is second only to lung cancer as a cause of cancer death in men(1). Additionally, one in six Irish men will develop prostate cancer, with one in 20 dying from the disease. Approximately 1,500 new cases are diagnosed per year, and over 540 deaths occur annually in Ireland. The Applied Biosystems 4700 Proteomics Discovery System and iTRAQ(TM) reagents will be used to identify and quantify proteins in samples obtained through the National Prostate Cancer Consortium. By identifying biomarkers associated with prostate cancer, scientists at the Conway Institute hope to develop diagnostic tests for improved prognostic testing and patient monitoring, and to eventually develop these markers as targets for potential therapeutics.

Another project will investigate cell cycle regulation by calcium signaling at the mRNA and protein level, with the goal of integrating data across different platforms to support functional validation of discovered genes and proteins. ICAT(R) and iTRAQ(TM) reagents will be used to quantify and validate gene expression data.

"The Newman Scholarships were created to promote interactions with industry and the development of individuals of extremely high caliber and superb career potential. Our collaboration with Applied Biosystems is truly in this spirit," said Dr. Stephen Pennington, Professor of Proteomics at the Conway Institute. "By standardizing and streamlining proteomics workflows we will enable investigators, in a variety of settings, to engage more in the biology of the project rather than choosing and managing workflows."

"The Applied Biosystems Newman Scholarship reflects our ongoing commitment to develop the tools and instruments that drive life science research," said David A. Hicks, Senior Director of the Proteomics Business Group for Applied Biosystems. "Applied Biosystems is proud to be sponsoring this prestigious award, which once again, allows us to partner with our customers to provide the tools that they need to advance science."

The Newman Scholar under Professor Pennington and The Prostate Cancer Consortium will employ the Applied Biosystems Integrated Science Management System (iSMS) to aid in patient sample curation and annotation, experimental workflow design, data management, data analysis, and data distribution among consortium members. Central components of iSMS include the recently released LS*LIMS(TM) Software, and the iScience(TM) Data Warehouse. LS*LIMS Software is a modern laboratory information management system for sample curation and tracking that has at its core a workflow design engine that allows users to design and modify experimental workflows without need for coding or IT services. The iScience Data Warehouse provides access to integrated genomics data, including annotated information from the Celera Discovery System(TM) Online Platform. These tools will allow researchers at the Conway Institute and the Prostate Cancer Consortium to evaluate their experimental data in the context of the wealth of genomics knowledge accumulated by Celera Genomics bioinformatics pipelines.

The Newman Scholarship was established in 1989, and named in honor of the University College Dublin's founder, Cardinal John Henry Newman. To date, 83 Newman Scholars have been named in the sciences and humanities.

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/.

For research use only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures.

Copyright(C) 2004. Applera Corporation. All rights reserved. Applied Biosystems and Celera are registered trademarks and Applera, Celera, Celera Diagnostics, Celera Genomics, iScience, and iTRAQ are trademarks of Applera Corporation or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and/or certain other countries.

ICAT is a registered trademark of the University of Washington and is exclusively licensed to the Applied Biosystems Group of Applera Corporation.

(1)For more information, visit the American Cancer Society Web site at http://www.cancer.org/docroot/STT/stt_0.asp.