Curis News Hedgehog/Nerve Update

[Guest guest]

(For those new to the group, we have been following Curis'

Hedgehog Protein and its potential to help nerves for about 2 years now.

For previous posts, you can search our archives, or visit our files for

my general article on Hh, but this piece does explain things nicely. ~

Gretchen)

http://www.curis.com/news_091103_compound.html

Curis Compound Stimulates Replication of Brain Progenitor Cells

Findings suggest strategy for regeneration of tissues in damaged brains

CAMBRIDGE, MA, September 11, 2003 - Curis, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRIS) today

announced that the current issue of the scientific journal Neuron

contains a report demonstrating that the Hedgehog signaling pathway is

required for the formation and maintenance of brain progenitor cells.

These progenitor cells are the precursors of the nerve cells and support

cells that populate the brain. This report also shows that orally

administered small molecule agonists developed by Curis can activate the

Hedgehog pathway and induce new progenitor cell formation in the brain

and, as result, may stimulate normal regenerative processes and promote

brain recovery from injury.

The report, entitled " Sonic Hedgehog is Required for Progenitor Cell

Maintenance in Telencephalic Stem Cell Niches, " was published online

yesterday in the journal Neuron. The research was performed by

laboratories at the New York University Medical Center, Harvard

University, Goteborg University, and Curis, Inc. The authors conclude

that use of Hedgehog agonists may constitute a new therapeutic approach

to the repair of brain damage and that " this strategy may allow the

body's own developmental pathways and resident progenitor cells to be

utilized for regenerative therapies. "

Dr. Lee Rubin, Curis' Chief Scientific Officer, said, " The ability of

Curis' Hedgehog agonists to promote the development of new nerve cells

represents an important advance in our understanding of the potential

mechanisms by which these drug candidates exert their

reparative/regenerative effects. We have already observed that

stimulation of the Hedgehog pathway by agonists can minimize tissue

damage in response to injury, such as stroke. These new data and our own

internal research suggest a broader, perhaps more fundamental, role in

promoting tissue regeneration by stimulating the formation of new nerve

cells within the brain itself. "

Passeri, Curis' President and Chief Executive Officer stated,

" This new report adds to the increasingly large body of evidence that

validates the Hedgehog pathway as a significant target for the

development of new drug candidates for neurological disorders.

Recently, we have seen that Curis' Hedgehog agonist drug development

candidates have shown efficacy in models of Parkinson's disease,

diabetic neuropathy, and stroke. The potential of being able to use

these Hedgehog agonists to induce the brain to form new

nerve cells opens the door to many new therapeutic opportunities. "