ITW Packaging Solutions' Pillar Technologies and DNA-based security and product authentication solutions provider Applied DNA Sciences form new partnership for marking and authenticating original products and packaging with SigNature DNA

Elyse Blye

STONY BROOK, New York , May 30, 2014 (press release) – Applied DNA Sciences, Inc. (OTCQB: APDN), (Twitter: @APDN), a provider of DNA-based security and product authentication solutions, is pleased to announce that it has signed an agreement with Pillar Technologies for a new business partnership for marking and authenticating original products and packaging with SigNature® DNA. Pillar Technologies is a business unit of giant ITW, and is a provider of induction cap sealers and technologically advanced surface treatment technologies.

The relationship will benefit both companies: Pillar will offer its customers the ability to prove the authenticity of its products with APDN's SigNature DNA, while APDN will be able to tightly bind its SigNature DNA in new ways to existing and new physical substrates.

As part of this collaboration, Applied DNA Sciences and Pillar Technologies will target key customers and markets for joint commercial development, with a focus on value-added solutions. Combined, the technological solutions offered by both companies give customers an immediate competitive and sustainable advantage – DNA marked on any product surface will be securely bound by plasma treatment, a technology that chemically activates the surface to allow bonding to the SigNature DNA. Customers who are concerned about the quality, integrity and authenticity of their products will benefit from these new DNA marking and authentication solutions.

Stated Rory Wolf, CEO of Pillar Technologies, "The benefits our customers already enjoy from our surface treatment and induction cap sealing technologies will be further enhanced by a fully forensic, traceable and easily-adapted DNA tracer. We are excited to be able to jointly offer solutions that we believe will benefit our customers who need to know that their products are genuine."

OEMs and end-users in the industries of plastic film extrusion, coating, laminating, and printing have relied on Pillar's surface treatment equipment to provide long-term, high-quality surface treatment results of increased wettability, long-term adhesion, and/or specialty surface modifications onto most polymer films, nonwovens, textiles, foils and papers. Pillar Technologies is also recognized as a global manufacturer of induction cap sealing systems.

The packaging industry has relied on Pillar's technologically advanced induction sealers to provide tamper evidence, leak protection, discourage pilferage, and extend the shelf life of certain products. Markets most familiar with induction sealing include pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, food, beverage, automotive chemicals, agricultural chemicals, health and beauty, and all liquid, powder, tablet and capsule filling applications.

"We are very pleased to be working with Pillar Technologies on a unique binding system for our SigNature DNA platform. The customers of both companies will enjoy enormous benefit, and we will be able to offer SigNature DNA to a much more diversified range of physical substrates," stated Dr. James A. Hayward, President and CEO, Applied DNA Sciences.

He continued: "Plasma treatment will also benefit our existing industry verticals in military supply chains and in textiles."

About Pillar Technologies

Founded in 1966, Pillar Technologies leads the industry in new product development for the packaging, converting and plastic film-printing marketplace. As a division of ITW (NYSE: ITW), Pillar Technologies has access to literally hundreds of products manufactured by over 600 business units within the ITW family. ITW is a multibillion dollar company with more than 90 years of history. Today, ITW designs and manufacturers fasteners and components, equipment and consumable systems and a variety of specialty products and equipment for customers around the world. The company's vast array of business units are small, decentralized and focused on their customers. By actively practicing teamwork with customers and suppliers, the men and women of ITW are creating competitively superior products, solutions and even work environments.

About Applied DNA Sciences

APDN is a provider of botanical-DNA based security and authentication solutions and services that can help protect products, brands, entire supply chains, and intellectual property of companies, governments and consumers from theft, counterfeiting, fraud and diversion. SigNature® DNA describes the uncopyable marker that is at the heart of all of our security and authentication solutions. SigNature DNA is at the core of a family of products such as DNAnet®, our anti-theft product, SigNature® T, targeted toward textiles, and digitalDNA®, providing powerful track and trace. All provide a forensic chain of evidence and can be used to prosecute perpetrators.

The statements made by APDN may be forward-looking in nature. Forward-looking statements describe APDN's future plans, projections, strategies and expectations, and are based on assumptions and involve a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the control of APDN. Actual results could differ materially from those projected due to our short operating history, limited financial resources, limited market acceptance, market competition and various other factors detailed from time to time in APDN's SEC reports and filings, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on December 20, 2013 (amended on May 1, 2014) and our subsequent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q/A (for the quarterly period ended December 31, 2013) and Form 10-Q (for the quarterly period ended March 31, 2014). APDN undertakes no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements to reflect new information, events or circumstances after the date hereof to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

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