Curis Reports Pre-Clinical Study of Its Hedgehog Signaling Pathway
Tuesday November 5, 8:01 am ET
Compounds Demonstrate Significant Potential for Treating Parkinson's Disease and Other Neurological Disorders
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 5, 2002--Curis, Inc (NASDAQ:CRIS - News) scientists presented studies at the recent 32nd Annual Society for Neurosciences meeting which demonstrated the potential of Curis' research work on small molecule Hedgehog nerve stimulants (Hh agonists) to treat a broad array of neurological disorders, including Parkinson's Disease, Huntington's Disease and stroke. These findings extend previous positive results with Hedgehog proteins and identify additional beneficial effects. In animal tests, mice treated with Curis Hedgehog agonists showed significant improvement both in biochemical measures of brain recovery and in multiple assays of behavioral recovery. These proprietary Hh agonists were effective when given to animals either as a pre- or post-treatment for Parkinson's or a pre-treatment for Huntington's. They also demonstrated the ability to reduce damage to the brain in specific types of stroke, when given either before or after the initiation of the stroke event. Additionally, Hh agonists were found to potentially activate the production of new brain cells in the areas of the adult brain containing neurostem cells.
"These exciting findings demonstrate the therapeutic potential of Hedgehog agonists for Parkinson's Disease and other disorders," said Daniel R. Passeri, President and Chief Executive Officer of Curis. We believe the strong positive results from these new studies confirm the value of Curis' approach and further support our intention to bring our small-molecule candidates to the next stage of drug development."
Complete copies of the material provided by Curis at the 32nd Annual Society for Neurosciences meeting are available on request to the Company and can be seen online at jbiol.com.
On July 18, 2001, Curis announced that it had formed a business venture with Elan Corporation, Plc (Elan) committed to the research and development of molecules that stimulate the Hedgehog signaling pathway. The business venture is focused upon the development of therapeutics targeting a number of neurological disorders, including Parkinson's Disease.
About Curis, Inc.
Curis, Inc. is generating therapies that regulate the pathways used by the body to maintain and restore health. The company focuses on signaling pathways that govern the proliferation and differentiation of cells. These same pathways control maintenance, repair, and regeneration of tissues and organs from infancy through old age. This approach has created an approved product for bone regeneration and enables Curis to build a portfolio of product candidates in neurology, kidney disease, and cancer. For more information, please visit the Curis web site at www.curis.com.
This press release contains forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements concerning Curis' or management's intentions, plans, expectations or predictions of future events are forward-looking statements. Such statements may contain the words "believes", "expects", "anticipates", "plans", "estimates" or similar expressions. Forward looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results to be materially different from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. Actual results can be affected by, among other things, uncertainties relating to product development, clinical trials, regulatory actions or delays, the ability to obtain or maintain patent or other proprietary intellectual property protection, changes in or an inability to execute Curis' realigned business strategy and other risk factors identified in Curis' most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Curis disclaims any intention or obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this press release.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Contact:
Curis, Inc.
Henry W. McCusker, 617/503-6641
or
Christopher U. Missling, PhD, 617/503-6587
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source: Curis, Inc. |
