PRESS RELEASE

Date: 21 August 2002

Subject: Fluorotechnics receives $250,000 Commonwealth Government Grant

Details:

Fluorotechnics was awarded yesterday the maximum possible grant of $250,000 under round 3 of the Australian Federal Government's BIOTECHNOLOGY INNOVATION FUND (BIF).

The grant was awarded for production and scale-up of Beljian Red - a new family of fluorescent labels with wide applications in biotechnology.

Fluorophores in the Beljian Red family have many desirable and novel features that make them ideal for labeling nucleic acid or antibodies labeling or fluorescent staining. These fluorescent labels will find applications in a wide range of diagnostics.

The first product from the Beljian Red family is Lightning Fast, a new fluorescent protein gel stain.

The Biotechnology Innovation Fund (BIF) is a key initiative arising for the Commonwealth Government National Biotechnology Strategy that outlines its vision and support for the Biotechnology Sector.

The grant will greatly assist the company in achieving its aims of generating export sales of Lightning Fast and to have the necessary facilities in place to meet the expected demand.

Contact: Professor Duncan Veal, CEO
Email: dveal@fluorotechnics.com