Applied Biosystems Introduces Arabidopsis and Drosophila TaqMan Genomic Assays for Real-Time Gene Expression Analysis; More Than 130,000 New Pre-Designed Assays Now Available Online.

FOSTER CITY, Calif. -- Applied Biosystems Group (NYSE:ABI), an Applera Corporation business, today announced the expansion of its TaqMan(R) Genomic Assays for Real-Time PCR gene expression analysis to include model organisms Arabidopsis and Drosophila. The new assays, consisting of ready-to-use probe and primer sets, are now available through the Applied Biosystems e-commerce Web site at http://store.appliedbiosystems.com.

The Arabidopsis TaqMan(R) Gene Expression Assays include 95,000 assays for approximately 26,000 genes, while the Drosophila TaqMan(R) Gene Expression Assays include 38,000 assays for approximately 13,000 genes. The initial release is designed around the well-characterized transcripts in the NCBI Reference Sequence Project (RefSeq) database for these genes. The assays run on Applied Biosystems Real-Time PCR systems, including the 7300, 7500, and 7900HT Systems.

Arabidopsis is the standard model genome used in plant science and agriculture studies. Drosophila, or fruit fly, is a model organism for studying developmental biology with numerous implications for human disease research.

"Our Arabidopsis and Drosophila assays represent the first ready-to-use assays based on highly sensitive Real-Time PCR technology for these standard model organisms," said William V. Murray, Division President of Molecular Biology for Applied Biosystems. "The new assays complement our extensive collection of more than 500,000 gene expression assays, including those for human, mouse, and rat, all of which are designed to make gene expression analysis using TaqMan reagent-based chemistry and Real-Time PCR easier and more affordable."

Online Ordering

The TaqMan Genomic Assays can be ordered through the Applied Biosystems e-commerce Web site at http://store.appliedbiosystems.com. The Web interface offers a choice of powerful search options enabling researchers to quickly identify the assays relevant to their research. Search options include key words, such as gene symbols, public accession numbers, classification by molecular function, and a batch identification function, allowing scientists to import a file of many targets to search simultaneously. Customers are provided with NCBI and assay identification numbers, as well as other pertinent biological information. Interested parties may browse the online catalog free of charge.

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 www.appliedbiosystems.com.

Applied Biosystems 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 "should," 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 and dependence on the development and customer acceptance of new products; (2) sales dependent on customers' capital spending policies and government-sponsored research; (3) Applied Biosystems' dependence on the operation of computer hardware, software, and Internet applications and related technology; (4) unproven use of genomics information to develop or commercialize products; and (5) 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.

For Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures.

The PCR process and the 5' nuclease process are covered by patents owned by Roche Molecular Systems, Inc. and F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd.

Copyright(C) 2005. Applera Corporation. All rights reserved. Applied Biosystems and Celera are registered trademarks and Applera is a trademark of Applera Corporation or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and/or certain other countries. TaqMan is a registered trademark of Roche Molecular systems, Inc.