CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Curis, Inc. (NASDAQ: CRIS), a therapeutic drug development company focusing on cancer, neurological and dermatological disease indications, today announced that it has been issued U.S. patent 7,115,653, entitled “Small Organic Molecule Regulators of Cell Proliferation.” The claims of this patent cover specific small molecule compounds that are activators, or agonists, of the Hedgehog signaling pathway, as well as pharmaceutical compositions and preparations containing specific Hedgehog agonist compounds. Curis believes that the claims of this patent provide additional depth to its existing intellectual property position surrounding Hedgehog agonist compounds. The company previously received three patents, including: i) U.S. patent 6,683,192, issued in January 2004 with claims covering specific Hedgehog agonist compounds; ii) U.S. patent 6,613,798, issued in September 2003 with claims covering pharmaceutical compositions containing specific Hedgehog agonist compounds; and iii) U.S. patent 6,683,108, issued in January 2004 with claims covering methods of agonizing the Hedgehog pathway using specific Hedgehog agonist compounds.
