Curis Receives $5.4 Million Grant from Spinal Muscular Atrophy Foundation.

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Three year study focused on motor neuron assays to identify compounds to treat the most common genetic cause of death among infants

Curis, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRIS), a therapeutic drug development company, today announced that it has received a $5.4 million, three-year grant from the Spinal Muscular Atrophy Foundation to identify therapeutic compounds to treat spinal muscular atrophy, a debilitating neuromuscular disease that is the leading genetic cause of infant and toddler death. The study will utilize proprietary Curis technologies and expertise to develop and refine motor neuron assays and to use those assays to screen for potential drug candidates.

Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a genetic motor neuron disease caused by progressive degeneration of nerve cells in the spinal cord and brainstem, leading to muscle weakness, respiratory complications and premature death. According to the National Institutes of Health, it is the most severe of the common childhood genetic neurological diseases and is the leading genetic cause of infant death. The SMA Foundation estimates that there are currently 25,000 to 55,000 people suffering from SMA in the United States, Europe, and Japan and that the annual market potential for a drug to treat SMA could exceed $500 million.

Loren Eng, Co-Founder and President of the Spinal Muscular Atrophy Foundation, said, "We are optimistic about the potential of applying cutting-edge biotechnology to save the lives of thousands of babies and toddlers. The SMA Foundation is committed to accelerating the development of a treatment or cure for this devastating neurological disease. We believe that this collaboration with Curis will increase the likelihood of finding therapeutic treatments for SMA."

Dr. Lee Rubin, Curis' Senior Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer, said, "SMA is caused by decreased amounts of a specific protein that is necessary for survival of motor neurons. Because of Curis' unique ability to direct the differentiation of uncommitted cells into motor neurons, it has now become possible to screen for drug candidates in exactly the type of cell that is affected in the disease. This was simply not possible in the past. It is this ability, along with Curis' proven track record in establishing screens and identifying active drug-like small molecules, that convinced the SMA Foundation to support this work. We will work closely with the SMA Foundation to discover a small molecule drug that corrects the defect responsible for SMA and to put that drug into the clinic and move it towards commercialization."

Dan Passeri, Curis' President and Chief Executive Officer, said, "We are very pleased to be collaborating with the SMA Foundation with the goal of finding a treatment for this terrible disease. The genesis of this grant is the investment Curis has made into research on signaling pathways and the ways these pathways can be used to direct uncommitted cells to differentiate into particular cell types. We believe that this technological approach has broad applicability and can be used to identify drug candidates for other diseases and disorders."

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 (partnered with Ortho Biotech, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson), cancer (partnered with Genentech), neurological disorders (partnered with Wyeth Pharmaceuticals), alopecia, and cardiovascular disease. For more information, please visit the Curis web site at www.curis.com.

About SMA Foundation

The SMA Foundation is a nonprofit organization founded in 2003 dedicated to finding a treatment and potential cure for Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA). The Foundation provides funding for the full range of research from basic to clinical work conducted in academic laboratories as well as corporate therapeutics development. In addition, the Foundation is committed to raising awareness, education and increased federal funding and support. For more information on the Spinal Muscular Atrophy Foundation, visit www.smafoundation.org or call [phone].

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 Biotech, 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.