QIAGEN and British Veterinary Laboratories Agency Expand Partnership in Veterinary Testing

New Agreement Covers Widespread Bacterial Infections in Horses
VENLO, Netherlands--(Business Wire)--
QIAGEN (NASDAQ:QGEN) (FWB:QIA) today announced an expansion of its strategic
partnership with the United Kingdom`s Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA), one
of the world`s leading research institutions in veterinary science. Under the
terms of the agreement, QIAGEN has received the exclusive rights to
commercialize three new PCR-based tests for the detection of widespread
bacterial diseases in horses. Financial details have not been disclosed.

The new tests developed with and validated by the VLA target three different
common bacterial infections: Streptococcus equi, Klebsiella pneumoniae and
Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

The first target Streptococcus equi is the primary cause of strangles, a
respiratory based infection leading to weight loss, swellings, and abscesses,
with mortality rates of up to 10 percent. It is one of the most widespread
diseases in horses and can persist for several months, thereby leading to severe
negative economic impacts incurring from treatment costs and limited activity
levels. Klebsiella pneumoniae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa cause Equine metritis
(EM), an infection of the genital tract of mares usually passed on through
sexual contact. The disease is highly contagious and is detrimental to
fertility. This poses a major problem for thoroughbred breeders who are required
to have their mares bred by live cover.

Reliable and fast screening of horses for EM agents before breeding, and rapid
diagnosis of both Strangles and EM are imperative to prevent transmission,
contain outbreaks and enable early antibiotic treatments. "Molecular
technologies are already the first choice in veterinary testing for many costly
viral diseases such as bovine viral diarrhea or bluetongue. We now also are
experiencing a growing demand for modern molecular technologies enabling the
fast and reliable detection of bacterial infections", said Simone Gauch,
QIAGEN`s Senior Global Marketing Director Applied Testing. "Our extended
agreement with the VLA will help to further strengthen our offering in this
segment and enable us to provide those advanced technologies to our customers
worldwide."

The new assays will complement QIAGEN`s existing cador product line of molecular
tests for animal diseases, which are more sensitive than traditional testing
methods such as bacterial cultures or immunodiagnostics. QIAGEN`s existing
portfolio outside the US already includes a PCR-based test for Taylorella
equigenitalis which is the cause of Contagious equine metritis. Under the new
agreement, QIAGEN plans to adapt this test to cover additional bacteria causing
infertility, including Klebsiella pneumoniae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa. This
technology is compatible with QIAGEN`s real-time PCR detection platform
Rotor-Gene Q and can potentially replace bacteriological cultures currently
needed for unequivocal diagnosis of Equine metritis.

"QIAGEN has proven to be a reliable and valuable partner with strong sales
channels and a global marketing reach", said Andrew Soldan, Commercial Programme
Manager at the VLA. "We`re looking forward to expanding our collaboration in
order to help provide international veterinary testing laboratories access to
these advanced technologies and therewith effectively fight some of the most
dangerous and costly animal diseases."

QIAGEN and the VLA established their strategic partnership in 2006. Since then,
QIAGEN has launched various PCR-based assays for infectious livestock diseases;
including a test for the bovine viral diarrhea virus which played an important
role in the corresponding national eradication program in Switzerland. In 2007,
QIAGEN received the "Best Licensing Deal of the Year" award from the renowned
Animal Pharm magazine.

QIAGEN is the global market leader in Sample and Assay Technologies for
molecular veterinary testing. The global veterinary testing market is estimated
to exceed US$ 1.5 billion in 2009, with molecular sample and assay technologies
accounting for approximately US$ 300 million and growing at an average rate of
20%.

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations estimates the
worldwide horse population to exceed 58 million in 2007.

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 biomolecules 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 more than 3,200 people in over 30 locations worldwide. Further
information about QIAGEN can be found at http://www.qiagen.com/.

About VLA
VLA is an Executive Agency of the Department for Environment Food and Rural
Affairs (Defra) and is a regional network of 16 laboratories. The Agency is one
of the largest research and diagnostic testing facilities of its kind in the
world. Its aim is to safeguard public and animal health through world class
research and surveillance of farmed livestock. VLA is one of the world's most
renowned reference laboratories for a wide range of diseases in farm animals.
More information on VLA can be found at http://www.vla.gov.uk/.

SAFE HARBOR STATEMENT
Statements contained in this release that are not historical facts are
forward-looking statements, including statements about our products, markets,
strategy and operating results. Such statements are based on current
expectations that involve risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to,
those associated with: management of growth and international operations
(including currency fluctuations and logistics), variability of our operating
results, commercial development of our markets (including applied testing,
clinical and academic research, proteomics, women's health/HPV testing,
molecular diagnostics, personalized healthcare and companion diagnostics), our
relationships with customers, suppliers and strategic partners, competition,
changes in technology, fluctuations in demand, regulatory requirements,
identifying, developing and producing integrated products differentiated from
our competitors' products, market acceptance of our products, and integration of
acquired technologies and businesses. For further information, refer to our
filings with the SEC, including our latest Form 20-F. Information in this
release is as of the date of the release, and we undertake no duty to update
this information unless required by law.

QIAGEN N.V.
Public Relations
Dr. Thomas Theuringer
Associate Director Public Relations
+49-2103-29-11826
pr@qiagen.com
or
Investor Relations
Dr. Solveigh Maehler
Director Investor Relations
+490-2103-29-11710
or
Albert F. Fleury
Investor Relations North America
+1-301-944-7028
ir@qiagen.com

Copyright Business Wire 2009