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Curis Presents Study Showing Stimulation of Hair Growth by Small Molecule Hedgehog Pathway Agonist Report wins first prize among poster presentations at annual meeting of American Academy of Dermatology CAMBRIDGE , MA , February 22, 2005 – Curis, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRIS), a therapeutic drug development company, today announced that Curis scientists have demonstrated that a small molecule drug compound can induce hair growth in a preclinical model. The data were presented February 19 at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Dermatology that is being held in New Orleans from February 18-22. The report, which was presented by senior author Dr. Rudy Paladini, was awarded the first prize among poster presentations at the meeting. The drug compound in the study is a small molecule agonist of the Hedgehog signaling pathway. In the skin, Hedgehog signaling is required for hair follicle morphogenesis during development and for regulating hair follicle growth and cycling in the adult. In the current study, the small molecule Hedgehog agonist, when topically formulated and applied to the skin, was able to transition the hair follicles from the resting phase of the hair cycle to the growth phase, resulting in pronounced stimulation of hair growth. The authors of the study conclude that the topical application of a Hedgehog agonist may be effective in treating hair disorders, such as male pattern baldness and female pattern hair loss. Daniel Passeri, President and Chief Executive Officer of Curis, said, “We are very pleased with these results and with the progress that has been made in our hair growth program. We are also evaluating the requirements for clinical development in hair growth indications in order to decide on an appropriate strategy for moving this program forward.” The Hedgehog agonist program was exclusively licensed to Wyeth Pharmaceuticals in February 2004. Under the terms of the license agreement, Curis retained the right to develop Hedgehog agonists for topical treatment to stimulate hair growth. The terms of the agreement include Wyeth’s right to approve any compounds that Curis will ultimately develop in this area. In December 2004, Wyeth approved the reversion of a group of Hedgehog agonist compounds for use in our hair program. This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements about Curis’ drug discovery and development programs. Such statements may contain the words “believes”, “expects”, “anticipates”, “plans”, ”seeks”, “estimates” or similar expressions. These forward looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors that may cause Curis’ actual results to be materially different from those indicated by such forward-looking statements. Actual results can be affected by a number of important factors including, among other things: adverse results in Curis’ and its strategic partners’ product development programs; difficulties or delays in obtaining or maintaining required regulatory approvals; Curis’ ability to obtain or maintain the patent and other proprietary intellectual property protection necessary for the development and commercialization of products based on its technologies; changes in or Curis’ inability to execute its realigned business strategy; the risk that Curis does not obtain the additional funding required to conduct research and development of its product candidates and execute on its business plan; unplanned cash requirements and expenditures; risks relating to Curis’ ability to enter into and maintain important strategic partnerships, including its ability to maintain its current collaboration agreements with Genentech, Ortho and Wyeth; the risk that competitors will discover and develop signaling pathway-based therapeutics faster and more successfully that Curis and its collaborators are able to; and other risk factors identified in Curis’ most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Report on 10-Q and any subsequent reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In addition, any forward-looking statements represent the Company’s views only as of today and should not be relied upon as representing its views as of any subsequent date. Curis disclaims any intention or obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this press release whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Contacts: Michael Gray
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