QIAGEN Supplies Point-of-need Molecular Testing Devices For Animal Disease Surveillance in Emerging Countries (mit Bild)

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- QIAGEN selected by UN Food and Agriculture Organization and
International Atomic Energy Agency to initially supply up to 50
molecular testing devices for use in 35 emerging countries
- Lightweight portable devices will enable ultra-fast testing of
DNA and RNA to pinpoint livestock infections at source
- Pilot project targets three common diseases that disrupt food
supplies, with potential for expansion to additional diseases
and more countries

QIAGEN (NASDAQ: QGEN; Frankfurt, Prime Standard: QIA) has been
selected to contribute to the fight against infectious diseases in
animals in emerging countries by supplying an international pilot
project associated with the United Nations with portable devices to
perform ultra-fast molecular testing in the field.

The QIAGEN instruments, called ESE-Quant Tube Scanners, weigh just
two pounds and are about the size of a desktop telephone. In
conjunction with assays developed at the Joint FAO/IAEA Division, an
effort of the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO)
and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), these QIAGEN
point-of-need detection systems can analyze DNA or RNA from viruses
or bacteria even in remote settings, which eliminates the need for
time-consuming sample shipments to central laboratories for testing.
Getting immediate results will enable rapid reaction to contain
outbreaks at the source.

QIAGEN will initially supply up to 50 of these instruments to
national health authorities in 35 emerging countries in Africa, Asia
and South America. The three-year pilot project will evaluate a
testing system for detecting Avian Flu (H5N1) in poultry, Peste des
Petits Ruminants (PPR) in sheep and goats, and Contagious Bovine
Pleuro-Pneumonia (CBPP), also known as lung plague, in cattle. These
livestock diseases cause serious economic damage and threaten the
food supplies of millions of people.

QIAGEN began supplying the detection platforms in the second half
of November 2010 as part of the commercial agreement. Depending on
outcomes, the initiative allows for future expansion of the
veterinary diagnostic portfolio to a total of 10 livestock diseases.
Subsequent implementation in other geographic regions would then be
possible.

QIAGEN is expanding its technology leadership by developing novel
point-of-need platforms for healthcare and applied testing
(veterinary, food, environmental and biodefense). This device is an
application of technologies from the January 2010 acquisition of ESE
GmbH, which has pioneered the development and manufacturing of
portable devices for molecular testing. These types of technologies
are expected to play an increasingly important role in human
healthcare, as growing use of molecular diagnostics is creating a
need for rapid turnaround and portable solutions in emergency rooms,
critical care, hospitals and field settings.

"As the global leader in sample and assay technologies, QIAGEN is
on the forefront of applying advanced portable devices for gene-based
testing. Particularly in less developed countries, point-of-need
testing can play a crucial role since these devices can be adapted to
local healthcare and agricultural needs, allowing the benefits of
modern technology to contribute to improving social and economic
conditions. Initiatives such as the Joint FAO/IAEA Programme in
veterinary diseases and QIAGEN's previously launched careHPV
initiative to fight cervical cancer among women in developing
countries have great potential for saving lives and expanding
access," said Dr. Konrad Faulstich, Director of Strategic Alliances
at QIAGEN. "The scanner system we are supplying in the FAO/IAEA
initiative advances our strategy to expand QIAGEN's leadership in
point-of-need systems. We are very pleased that our applied testing
technologies are assisting the international drive against infectious
diseases in livestock."

"We see molecular veterinary diagnostics as increasingly important
to early detection of highly contagious diseases in animals," said
Dr. Hermann Unger, project manager for the Joint FAO/IAEA Programme
in Vienna. "To implement an effective containment strategy, we must
have affordable, portable, quality assured and easy to use testing
procedures. By enhancing our ability to obtain information about
possible outbreaks, we hope to enable Member States to rapidly
implement control measures. We appreciate QIAGEN's cooperation,
technological expertise and logistical competence in developing this
high-performance platform to our specific needs as part of the effort
to contain these devastating animal diseases."

The spread of so-called transboundary animal diseases causes
widespread hardship, especially in the developing world. Avian Flu
(H5N1) outbreaks, for example, have led to threats of human infection
in addition to the destruction of millions of domestic fowl in Asia,
Africa and Europe. In 1995, an epidemic of CBPP in Botswana caused
economic damage of $500 million. Around the world, more than one
billion sheep and goats, or approximately 60% of all small ruminants,
are currently at risk of PPR. The FAO/IAEA initiative aims to use
advanced QIAGEN technologies to help rapidly quell these types of
outbreaks.

QIAGEN's innovative ESE-Quant Tube Scanner can be deployed in
almost any setting. Activated with a single button, the easy-to-use
test is based on isothermal nucleic acid amplification, which allows
DNA or RNA from viruses in sample materials to be multiplied and
visualized without need for laboratory conditions. The instrument
continuously takes extremely sensitive measurements, while also
providing quality control of the results. The portable devices can
process up to eight samples simultaneously within approximately 30
minutes, and results can be forwarded directly to a personal computer
or notebook.

About QIAGEN

QIAGEN N.V., a Netherlands holding company, is the leading global
provider of sample and assay technologies. Sample technologies are
used to isolate and process DNA, RNA and proteins from biological
samples such as blood or tissue. Assay technologies are used to make
such isolated bio-molecules visible. QIAGEN has developed and markets
more than 500 sample and assay products as well as automated
solutions for such consumables. The company provides its products to
molecular diagnostics laboratories, academic researchers,
pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, and applied testing
customers for purposes such as forensics, animal or food testing and
pharmaceutical process control. QIAGEN's assay technologies include
one of the broadest panels of molecular diagnostic tests available
worldwide. This panel includes the digene HPV Test, which is regarded
as a "gold standard" in testing for high-risk types of human
papillomavirus (HPV), the primary cause of cervical cancer, as well
as a broad suite of solutions for infectious disease testing and
companion diagnostics. QIAGEN employs nearly 3,600 people in over 30
locations worldwide. Further information about QIAGEN can be found at
http://www.qiagen.com/.

About Joint FAO / IAEA Programme

The Joint FAO/IAEA Programme assists Member Countries of FAO and
IAEA to use nuclear techniques and related biotechnologies for
developing improved strategies for sustainable food security.

Certain of the statements contained in this news release may be
considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section
27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E
of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. To the
extent that any of the statements contained herein relating to
QIAGEN's products, markets, strategy or operating results are
forward-looking, such statements are based on current expectations
that involve a number of uncertainties and risks. Such uncertainties
and risks include, but are not limited to, risks associated with
management of growth and international operations (including the
effects of currency fluctuations and risks of dependency on
logistics), variability of operating results, the commercial
development of the applied testing markets, clinical research markets
and proteomics markets, nucleic acid-based molecular diagnostics
market, and genetic vaccination and gene therapy markets,
competition, rapid or unexpected changes in technologies,
fluctuations in demand for QIAGEN's products (including fluctuations
due to the level and timing of customers' funding, budgets, and other
factors), our ability to obtain regulatory approval of our infectious
disease panels, difficulties in successfully adapting QIAGEN's
products to integrated solutions and producing such products, the
ability of QIAGEN to identify and develop new products and to
differentiate its products from competitors' products, market
acceptance of QIAGEN's new products and the integration of acquired
technologies and businesses. For further information, refer to the
discussions in reports that QIAGEN has filed with, or furnished to,
the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Originaltext: Qiagen
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Contacts:
Investor Relations
Dr. Solveigh Mähler +49 2103 29 11710
Albert F. Fleury +1 301 944 7028
e-mail: ir@qiagen.com

Public Relations
Dr. Thomas Theuringer +49 2103 29 11826
e-mail: pr@qiagen.com