Zurich, Switzerland and Carlsbad CA, USA, September 16, 2004 – Tecan, a leading player in the health care supply industry, and Invitrogen, a provider of essential life science technologies for disease research and drug discovery, today announced an agreement to promote the use of Invitrogen’s research kits on Tecan’s instruments for a wide variety of key biological science and drug discovery applications. Under the non-exclusive open collaboration agreement, Tecan and Invitrogen will collaborate in the development of applications that combine the use of Invitrogen’s products with Tecan’s Freedom EVO series of automated platforms, multimode detection devices and microarray systems for a range of life science applications, including nucleic acid sample preparation, microarray applications and cell-based assays. Invitrogen and Tecan will work together to develop solutions for each application. Both companies will promote the solutions arising from the collaboration. Financial details were not disclosed.

Invitrogen provides solutions across the continuum of drug discovery, development and production, including gene expression analysis and high-throughput screening. These products allow scientists to perform experiments faster, easier and more reliably. Tecan is a leading provider of powerful modular platforms for liquid handling and robotics. The Freedom EVO series of automated platforms offers state-of-the-art liquid handling capabilities as well as compliance with the very latest regulatory requirements.

Jan Timmers, Executive Vice President Marketing at Tecan, remarked “We are extremely pleased to join forces with a leading manufacturer of products and services for life science research. In collaboration with Invitrogen, we will develop a whole series of solutions allowing the implementation of important technologies on Tecan’s automated platforms.” Dr. Achim Wehren, Product Group Manager Biopharma added: “The combination of Tecan’s flexible modular platforms with the powerful genomic and drug discovery solutions from Invitrogen will bring significant benefits to customers worldwide in terms of reliability, reproducibility, process safety, and throughput.”

Ben Bulkley, Senior Vice President, Global Commercial Operations with Invitrogen, commented: “Through our collaboration with Tecan, we are able to further our role as the pre-eminent partner in drug discovery research. By combining our comprehensive portfolio of research technologies with a flexible automated platform, we can deliver a more effective system for drug discovery, development and production.”  He added: “This alliance is the latest step to deliver a complete solution for drug discovery and accelerate research across the industry.”

About Invitrogen

Invitrogen Corporation (Nasdaq: IVGN) provides products and services that support academic and government research institutions, and pharmaceutical and biotech companies worldwide in their efforts to improve the human condition. The Company provides essential life science technologies for disease research, drug discovery, and commercial bio-production. Invitrogen's own research and development efforts are focused on breakthrough innovation in all major areas of biological discovery including functional genomics, proteomics, bio-informatics and cell biology -- placing Invitrogen's products in nearly every major laboratory in the world.  Founded in 1987, Invitrogen is headquartered in Carlsbad, California and conducts business in more than 70 countries around the world. The Company globally employs approximately 4,000 scientists and other professionals.

About Tecan

Tecan is a leading player in the health care supply industry that specializes in the development, production, and distribution of solutions enabling the discovery of pharmaceutical substances, as well as for genomics, proteomics, and diagnostics. Tecan clients are leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, university research departments and diagnostic laboratories. Founded in Switzerland in 1980, the company has manufacturing, research and development sites in both North America and Europe and maintains a sales and service network in 52 countries. In 2003, Tecan achieved sales of CHF 311.6 million (USD 230.8 million; EUR 205.0 million).  Registered shares of Tecan Group are traded on the SWX Swiss Exchange (TK: TECN / Reuters: TECZn.S / Valor : 1210019).

Safe Harbor Statement

Certain statements contained in this press release are considered "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and it is Invitrogen's intent that such statements be protected by the safe harbor created thereby. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to statements that: 1) Tecan and Invitrogen will work together to develop solutions for each application ; 2) Both companies will promote solutions arising from the collaboration.  Such forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Potential risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the risks that: a) Solutions may be developed separately for each application ; b) Invitrogen may shift its promotion strategy to other areas of its business., as well as other risks and uncertainties detailed from time to time in Invitrogen's Securities and Exchange Commission filings.

For more information, please contact :

Tecan Group Ltd

Cornelia Kegele
Manager Marketing Communications and Branding
Tel.: +41 (0)44 922 81 11
Fax: +41 (0)44 922 82 81
e-Mail: cornelia.kegele@tecan.com
Internet:www.tecan.com

Invitrogen Corporation

Greg Geissman
CommunicationsPublic Relations Manager
Tel: +1 (760) 476-7032
Fax: +1 (760) 476-6878
e-mail: Gregory.Geissman@invitrogen.com
Internet: www.invitrogen.com