Curis, Inc. (CRIS) Receives US Patent for Anti-tumor Compound

Curis recently received a US patent (US Patent Number 8,324,240) entitled ‘Fused Amino Pyridine as HSP90 Inhibitors.’ It covers a genus of compounds that includes Debio 0932, an orally-administered Heat Shock Protein 90, or HSP90, inhibitor, which is being developed by Curis’s licensee Debiopharm:

• HSP90 is a chaperone protein that controls the folding and processing of certain client proteins. HSP90 clients include many proteins that drive tumor development and progression, such as EGFR, HER2, c-MET, AKT, KIT, FLT3, and VEGFR. Inhibition of HSP90 leads to degradation of client proteins targeting multiple oncogenic signaling pathways.

• Debio 0932 is an oral second-generation HSP90 inhibitor, which has shown extended tumor retention, blood-brain-barrier penetration, and promising anti-tumor activity both as monotherapy and in combination against a broad range of tumors in preclinical models. Debiopharm presented data from the dose escalation portion of an ongoing Phase I clinical trial study. Debio 0932 was generally well tolerated in this study and showed promising signs of anti-tumor activity in patients with advanced solid tumors, especially lung cancer.

“We believe that this patent issuance recognizes the novelty of Debio 0932, a molecule that was invented internally by Curis scientists,” stated Dan Passeri, Curis’ president and CEO.

“We have been pleased with Debiopharm’s development efforts and the clinical data generated to-date. We look forward to additional data from this promising molecule, as Debiopharm is currently testing Debio 0932 in a Phase I/II clinical trial in combination with chemotherapy in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) as well as in a Phase Ib clinical study in patients with solid tumors, including NSCLC. Debiopharm also intends to initiate a separate Phase I/II clinical trial with Debio 0932 in combination with Everolimus in patients with renal cell carcinoma in the second half of 2013.”

In preclinical testing Debio 0932 demonstrated potent anti-proliferative activity against a broad range of cancer cell lines, including many NSCLC cell lines which are resistant to SOC agents. Debio 0932 potently inhibits tumor growth in subcutaneous xenograft models of a number of solid and hematological malignancies, including models of NSCLC which harbor mutations conferring acquired or primary erlotinib resistance.

Curis is a drug development company committed to leveraging its innovative signaling pathway drug technologies to develop new targeted small molecule drug candidates for cancer. Curis is building upon its current portfolio and targeting signaling pathways, including in the Hedgehog pathway, to develop proprietary targeted cancer programs.

For more information, visit www.curis.com

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