BMP-7 Reverses Vascular Calcification in a Preclinical Model of Chronic Kidney Disease.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Report at kidney medical conference suggests therapeutic benefit of BMP-7 treatment for dialysis patients

Curis, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRIS), a therapeutic drug development company, today announced that BMP-7, a signaling protein that was discovered by scientists from Curis, can reverse the development of blood vessel calcification in a preclinical model of chronic kidney disease. These new results were presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Nephrology, which is being held in St. Louis, Missouri, from October 27 through November 1, 2004.

BMP-7 is a regulatory compound that controls a signaling pathway used by the body to maintain the normal health of the kidney, the skeleton, and the vascular system. Several years ago, Dr. Keith Hruska and his colleagues in the renal divisions of the Departments of Medicine and Pediatrics at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Missouri, developed a hypothesis that the loss of BMP-7 due to kidney failure may be one of the contributing causes of metabolic bone diseases and the resulting aggressive calcification of blood vessels that are known to occur in kidney failure patients.

In this most recent report from Dr. Hruska and his colleagues, entitled, "Vascular Calcification Stimulated by Chronic Kidney Disease is Reversibly Linked to Stimulation of Skeletal Modeling," they demonstrate that administration of BMP-7 restores normal bone remodeling and thereby reverses the accumulation of calcium in the blood vessels. Calcification of the blood vessels is the leading cause of cardiovascular mortality in kidney dialysis patients. The authors conclude that "BMP-7 may represent a novel therapy for vascular calcification."

The U.S. Renal Data System estimates that approximately 360,000 people in United States suffer from end-stage kidney disease and require dialysis treatments. There are currently no adequate therapies to prevent vascular calcification in the end-stage kidney disease patient population.

About Curis, Inc.

Curis, Inc. is a therapeutic drug development company. The Company's technology focus is on regulatory pathways that control repair and regeneration. Curis' product development involves the use of proteins or small molecules to modulate these pathways. Curis has successfully used this technology and product development approach to produce several promising drug product candidates in the fields of kidney disease, neurological disorders, cancer, alopecia, and cardiovascular disease. For more information, please visit the Curis web site at www.curis.com.

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.