Applied Biosystems Enhances Software Development Community by Adding Application Specific Tools for Genomic Analysis Research

Applied Biosystems Inc. (NYSE:ABI) today announced that it has expanded its Software Development Community to include new software analysis tools that are expected to help drive innovation and speed the development of bioinformatics solutions that will enable researchers to realize the full potential of ultra-high-throughput genomic analysis. These new analysis tools were internally developed by Applied Biosystems bioinformaticians to help researchers analyze the vast amount of data generated by the company’s SOLiD™ System. The Applied Biosystems Software Development Community supports bioinformaticians and life scientists in the development and potential commercialization of informatics applications for next-generation genomic analysis platforms. The community has noted approximately 1,000 downloads of sample data sets and data analysis tools and resources by the hundreds of researchers, independent software vendors, bioinformatics service providers, and SOLiD System users who have visited the site. The new software tools include a whole genome color space alignment and read annotation tool; a tool for converting native SOLiD data into a community-driven standard (Short Read Format) for NCBI submission; a tool for consolidating reference-aligned SOLiD data into a standard format (General Feature Format); and a small RNA SOLiD System analysis pipeline for human whole genome alignment of small RNA sequencing data with tag counting features. Application data sets are also available for download in order to aid researchers’ efforts in developing proprietary software applications. The broad availability of these new tools and software applications are intended to drive the involvement of academic and open source communities to develop software applications for ultra-high-throughput genomic analysis. Dr. Michael Brudno, a computer scientist working in bioinformatics, has developed a SOLiD System short read alignment tool that is currently being utilized by commercial developers and academic researchers. "Commercial developers and the research community as a whole will benefit from the peer reviewed distributions and the transparency of process of open source software,” said Dr. Brudno, a University of Toronto Assistant Professor and Canada Research Chair in Computational Biology. "The end results of this initiative will produce higher quality, higher reliability and more flexible software analytics for genomic analysis.” The Software Development Community represents Applied Biosystems’ commitment to fostering innovation in life science technologies for industry leading genetic analyzers, and real-time PCR sequence detection systems. "We believe the availability of application specific tools and software are critical to helping scientists rapidly develop software applications that are necessary to advancing work in understanding genetic variation,” said Shaf Yousaf, president for Applied Biosystems’ molecular and cell biology genomic analysis division. "By being the first manufacturer of next-generation instrument systems to make software development tools broadly available to the bioinformatics community, and continuously expanding the tools and resources available, we are empowering our customers to further establish new standards for ultra-high-throughput genomic analysis research.” Applied Biosystems is a global leader in the development and commercialization of instrument-based systems, consumables, software, and services for the life-science market and is a recognized market leader in the commercialization of DNA sequencing platforms. The SOLiD System, based on sequencing by oligonucleotide ligation and detection, is Applied Biosystems’ platform for ultra high-throughput genomic analysis. Unlike polymerase sequencing approaches, the SOLiD System utilizes a proprietary technology called stepwise ligation, which generates high quality data for applications including, whole genome sequencing, chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP), microbial and eukaryotic resequencing, digital karyotyping, medical sequencing, genotyping, gene expression, and small RNA discovery, among others. For more information about the SOLiD System or the Software Development Community please visit: http://info.appliedbiosystems.com/solidsoftwarecommunity or http://solidsoftwaretools.com About Applied Biosystems Inc. Applied Biosystems Inc. (formerly known as Applera Corporation) is a global leader in the development and marketing of instrument-based systems, consumables, software, and services for academic research, the life science industry and commercial markets. Driven by its employees' belief in the power of science to improve the human condition, the company commercializes innovative technology solutions for DNA, RNA, protein and small molecule analysis. Customers across the disciplines of academic and clinical research, pharmaceutical research and manufacturing, forensic DNA analysis, and agricultural biotechnology use the company’s tools and services to accelerate scientific discovery, improve processes related to drug discovery and development, detect potentially pathogenic microorganisms, and identify individuals based on DNA sources. Applied Biosystems has a comprehensive service and field applications support team for a global installed base of high-performance genetic and protein analysis solutions. On June 12, 2008, Applera Corporation and Invitrogen Corporation (NASDAQ:IVGN) announced that their Boards of Directors had approved a definitive merger agreement under which Invitrogen will acquire all of the outstanding shares of Applied Biosystems stock. The merger is subject to customary closing conditions and is targeted to close in the fall of 2008. Further information regarding the merger will be provided in a joint proxy statement/prospectus to be mailed to stockholders of the company and Invitrogen. Investors and security holders are urged to read this document when it becomes available because it will contain important information. Applied Biosystems Inc. is headquartered in Norwalk, CT, and reported sales of approximately $2.1 billion during fiscal 2007. Information about Applied Biosystems, including reports and other information filed by the company with the Securities and Exchange Commission, is available at http://www.appliedbiosystems.com. All information in this news release is as of the date of the release, and Applied Biosystems does not undertake any duty to update this information unless required by law. 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, "planned," and "expect," among others. These forward-looking statements are based on our 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, we note 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 customer acceptance of the SOLiD System; (2) the risk of unanticipated difficulties associated with the further development of the SOLiD™ System; and (3) other factors that might be described from time to time in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All information in this press release is as of the date of the release, and we do not undertake any duty to update this information, including any forward-looking statements, unless required by law. ©Copyright 2008. Applied Biosystems Inc. All rights reserved. Applera, Applied Biosystems, and AB (Design) are registered trademarks, and SOLiD is a trademark of Applied Biosystems Inc. or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and/or certain other countries.