Fund Description: iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF, formerly iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology Index Fund, is an exchange-traded index fund or Index ETF which is a separate investment portfolio of the iShares Trust, an open-end investment management company. INVESTMENT OBJECTIVE: The iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the NASDAQ Biotechnology Index. INDEX DESCRIPTION: The NASDAQ Biotechnology Index contains securities of NASDAQ listed companies that are classified according to the Industry Classification Benchmark as either biotechnology or pharmaceuticals which also meet other eligibility criteria determined by the Fund's Index Provider, NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc., including minimum market capitalization and liquidity requirements. FUND STRATEGY: A passive or indexing approach is used to try to achieve the Fund's investment objective. Unlike many investment companies, the Fund does not try to beat the Index and does not seek temporary defensive positions when markets decline or appear overvalued. Indexing may eliminate the chance that the Fund will substantially outperform its Index but also may reduce some of the risks of active management, such as poor security selection. Indexing seeks to achieve lower costs and better after-tax performance by keeping portfolio turnover low in comparison to actively managed investment companies. The Fund generally invests at least 90% of its assets in securities of the Index and in depositary receipts representing securities of the Index. The Fund may invest the remainder of its assets in securities not included in the Index, but which is believed will help the Fund track its Index, and in futures contracts, options on futures contracts, options and swaps as well as cash and cash equivalents, including shares of money market funds. Representative sampling is an indexing strategy that is used which involves investing in a representative sample of securities that collectively has an investment profile similar to the Index. The securities selected are expected to have, in the aggregate, investment characteristics (based on factors such as market capitalization and industry weightings), fundamental characteristics (such as return variability and yield) and liquidity measures similar to those of the Index. A Fund may or may not hold all of the securities in the Index. FUND MANAGEMENT: BlackRock Fund Advisors (BFA) serves as the investment advisor to the Fund.