Applied Biosystems Inc serves the life science industry and research community by developing and marketing instrument-based systems, consumables, software, and services. The Company focuses on basic research, commercial research (pharmaceutical and biotechnology) and standardized testing, including forensic human identification, paternity testing and food testing. Applied Biosystems Inc has an installed base of approximately 180,000 instrument systems in nearly 100 countries. Basic research includes work at university, government and other non-profit institutions that focus on uncovering the basic laws of nature and understanding human disease. Pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies use Applied Biosystems Inc products to discover and develop new drugs more effectively. Standardized testing customers require systems that produce precise results from a high volume of automated tests.