Molecular Devices introduces the IMAP Substrate Finder

Sunnyvale, Calif., March 29, 2004 - Molecular Devices Corporation (Nasdaq: MDCC), a leader in innovative solutions for drug discovery and life sciences research, today announced the launch of the latest addition to its IMAP Platform, the IMAP Substrate Finder. The IMAP Platform provides advanced tools for successful assay development and high throughput screening (HTS) of kinases, one of the most important target classes in drug discovery today, as well as for phosphatases and phosphodiesterases.

Assay development is the major roadblock to HTS, and one of the largest barriers to developing an assay for a novel kinase target is finding a suitable substrate. The IMAP Substrate Finder accelerates the difficult task of finding new substrates for these unique or proprietary kinases. The IMAP Substrate Finder provides a quick, sensitive, yet inexpensive method to screen dozens of substrates for new kinases in a couple of hours.

Molecular Devices' IMAP technology is rapidly becoming the established assay format to screen kinase activity because it can be used in all regions of the human kinome. The IMAP Binding Systems and the IMAP Substrate Finder enable the end user to quickly develop assays for uncommon or proprietary enzymes with the same ease of miniaturization and low cost-per-well researchers have come to expect when using IMAP. Molecular Devices also offers twenty-three specific IMAP kits that provide a turnkey solution to evaluate and test the flexibility of the IMAP Platform and smoothly transition into high-throughput screening.

"Phosphatases and kinases are important drug targets that are screened at all major pharmaceutical companies. With the IMAP Substrate Finder, the length of time spent in assay development is reduced dramatically, allowing companies to realize cost-savings and increased productivity in their drug discovery process," stated Stephen J. Oldfield, Ph.D. and Vice President of Worldwide Marketing at Molecular Devices. "And we believe that our proprietary IMAP technology, with its ease of use, stable signal and inherent flexibility, is ideal for the rigorous demands of high-throughput screening."

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