Acusphere is a specialty pharmaceutical company that develops new drugs and improved formulations of existing drugs using its proprietary microsphere technology. We are focused on developing proprietary drugs that can offer significant benefits such as improved safety and efficacy, increased patient compliance, greater ease of use, expanded indications or reduced cost. Our lead product candidate, Imagify(TM) (Perflubutane Polymer Microspheres) for Injectable Suspension, is a cardiovascular drug for the detection of coronary artery disease, the leading cause of death in the United States. Imagify is designed to enable ultrasound to compete more effectively with nuclear stress testing, the leading procedure for detecting coronary artery disease. It is estimated that over 10 million procedures are done each year in the U.S. to detect coronary artery disease, the leading cause of death in the United States. Imagify and the Company's other product candidates were created using proprietary technology that enables Acusphere to control the porosity and size of nanoparticles and microspheres in a versatile manner that allows them to be customized to address the delivery needs of a variety of drugs. For more information about Acusphere visit the Company's web site at www.acusphere.com.

"Acusphere" and "Imagify" are trademarks of Acusphere, Inc.

The above press release contains forward-looking statements, which are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, including statements regarding possible delisting from the NASDAQ Global Market. The Company's actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements based upon a number of factors, including those detailed in the Company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007 and its Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2008. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly release the results of any revisions to these forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect events or circumstances that occur after the date of this press release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

SOURCE: Acusphere, Inc.

Acusphere, Inc.
Lawrence A. Gyenes, 617-648-8800
Chief Financial Officer
or
Investors: 617-925-3444
IR@acusphere.com
or
Media: 617-648-8800

Total annualized cash savings from reductions in staff and senior management salaries are estimated to be approximately $2.1 million. The Company estimates it will take a one-time charge in the third quarter of 2008 of approximately $0.3 million associated with the staff reductions. In addition, notice of termination to certain consultants and contractors will result in estimated annual savings of approximately $2.0 million. When combined with the patent payment deferrals and manufacturing cost reimbursements, the actions announced today bring total cash savings prior to the PDUFA date to approximately $6.4 million.

Sherri C. Oberg, Acusphere's President and Chief Executive Officer, said, "These decisions are extremely difficult but both appropriate and necessary given the current financing environment for life sciences companies, our continued belief that Imagify will be approved, our improved prospects for financing on more favorable terms after the PDUFA date and our progress in manufacturing. We greatly appreciate the dedicated efforts of employees who have enabled us to reach this critical point for Imagify."

Members of senior management have agreed to revisions in their compensation that closely align their interests with those of shareholders. In exchange for reducing salary, which will help Acusphere move closer to its goal of minimizing financing needs prior to the PDUFA date, each senior management member will receive a cash incentive and option grants that will only be paid out or vested if the Company is able to attract meaningful capital post-PDUFA date. The magnitude of the cash incentive and option grant varies with the size of the salary reduction taken.

As of June 30, 2008, Acusphere had unaudited cash and short-term investments of approximately $12 million. With the reductions announced to date, the Company anticipates a quarterly cash spend rate for the third and fourth quarters of 2008 of $8 to $9 million. On that basis, the Company's available funding should carry it well into the fourth quarter of this year. The Company expects to report its financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2008 on August 11, 2008.

Conference Call Information

Acusphere plans to hold a conference call with investors today, Monday, July 28, 2008, commencing at 4:30 PM (Eastern Time) to discuss this development. The conference call will be led by Sherri C. Oberg, President and Chief Executive Officer and Lawrence A. Gyenes, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer. These Acusphere representatives will also be available for investor questions. The conference may be heard live via the investor relations section of the Company's website at www.acusphere.com or by dialing 1-866-770-7129, or internationally 1-617-213-8067, using the confirmation code: 44306568. After the conference call, a replay of the call webcast will be made available via the Company's web site and a telephone replay will be available through August 28, 2008 by dialing 1-888-286-8010, or internationally 1-617-801-6888, using the confirmation code: 37370986.

About Acusphere, Inc.

Acusphere is a specialty pharmaceutical company that develops new drugs and improved formulations of existing drugs using its proprietary microsphere technology. We are focused on developing proprietary drugs that can offer significant benefits such as improved safety and efficacy, increased patient compliance, greater ease of use, expanded indications or reduced cost. Our lead product candidate, Imagify(TM) (Perflubutane Polymer Microspheres) for Injectable Suspension, is a cardiovascular drug for the detection of coronary artery disease, the leading cause of death in the United States. Imagify is designed to enable ultrasound to compete more effectively with nuclear stress testing, the leading procedure for detecting coronary artery disease. It is estimated that over 10 million procedures are done each year in the U.S. to detect coronary artery disease, the leading cause of death in the United States. Imagify and the Company's other product candidates were created using proprietary technology that enables Acusphere to control the porosity and size of nanoparticles and microspheres in a versatile manner that allows them to be customized to address the delivery needs of a variety of drugs. For more information about Acusphere visit the Company's web site at www.acusphere.com.

"Acusphere" and "Imagify" are trademarks of Acusphere, Inc.

The above press release contains forward-looking statements, which are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, including statements regarding the commercial opportunity for Imagify. There can be no assurance that Imagify will be approved for the indication the Company is seeking, or at all. The Company's actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements based upon a number of factors, including anticipated operating losses and existing capital obligations, uncertainties associated with research, development, testing and related regulatory approvals, including uncertainties regarding regulatory evaluation of the Company's statistical analysis plan and clinical trial results and uncertainties regarding the potential effects of not achieving clinical endpoints, uncertainties regarding the cost, timing and ultimate success of the qualification of the Company's commercial manufacturing facility in accordance with applicable regulatory requirements, complex manufacturing, high quality requirements, lack of commercial manufacturing experience, dependence on third-party manufacturers, suppliers and collaborators, uncertainties associated with intellectual property, competition, loss of key personnel, uncertainties associated with market acceptance and adequacy of reimbursement, technological change and government regulation, and other risks and challenges detailed in the Company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007 and its Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2008. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly release the results of any revisions to these forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect events or circumstances that occur after the date of this press release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

SOURCE: Acusphere, Inc.

Acusphere, Inc.
Investors:
Lawrence A. Gyenes, 617-925-3444
SVP & CFO
IR@acusphere.com
or
Media: 617-648-8800

The expected target action date for Imagify (Perflubutane Polymer Microspheres) for Injectable Suspension, under the Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) is February 28, 2009.

Mr. Slater has served as Senior Vice President, Operations at Acusphere since 2001. Prior to joining Acusphere, he was Vice President of Operations and Vice President of Quality Systems and Regulatory Affairs at Anika Therapeutics, Inc. Mr. Slater has also served as Vice President of Regulatory Affairs at Biogen, Inc., Director of Corporate Regulatory Affairs at Biogen S.A., an independent consultant to the biopharmaceutical industry, as well as Executive Vice President, Development Operations for ImmuLogic Pharmaceutical Corporation. While at Hoechst Pharmaceuticals he held various positions including Senior Manager, Medical Services. Mr. Slater holds a B.S. in Information Science from the Metropolitan University of Leeds, England.

About Acusphere, Inc.

Acusphere (NASDAQ: ACUS) is a specialty pharmaceutical company that develops new drugs and improved formulations of existing drugs using its proprietary microsphere technology. We are focused on developing proprietary drugs that can offer significant benefits such as improved safety and efficacy, increased patient compliance, greater ease of use, expanded indications or reduced cost. Our lead product candidate, ImagifyTM (Perflubutane Polymer Microspheres) for Injectable Suspension, is a cardiovascular drug for the detection of coronary artery disease, the leading cause of death in the United States, for which a New Drug Application (NDA) was submitted to the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) in April 2008 and filed in June 2008. Imagify is designed to enable ultrasound to compete more effectively with nuclear stress testing, the leading procedure for detecting coronary artery disease. It is estimated that more than 10 million procedures are done each year in the U.S. to detect coronary artery disease, the leading cause of death in the United States. The Company estimates that the potential annual U.S. market opportunity for Imagify exceeds $2 billion. Imagify and the Company's other product candidates were created using proprietary technology that enables Acusphere to control the porosity and size of nanoparticles and microspheres in a versatile manner that allows them to be customized to address the delivery needs of a variety of drugs. For more information about Acusphere visit the Company's web site at www.acusphere.com. "Acusphere" and "Imagify" are trademarks of Acusphere, Inc.

Forward-looking Statements

The above press release contains forward-looking statements which are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, including statements regarding, the efficacy, safety and tolerability of Imagify, the NDA submission for Imagify and likelihood of regulatory approval, the commercial opportunity for Imagify, manufacturing qualification, the commercial opportunity for other product candidate and other business development efforts, including partnership discussions. There can be no assurance that Imagify will be approved for the indication the Company is seeking, or at all. There can be no assurance that partnership discussions will result in an agreement. The Company's actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements based upon a number of factors, including anticipated operating losses and existing capital obligations, uncertainties associated with research, development, testing and related regulatory approvals, including uncertainties regarding regulatory evaluation of the Company's statistical analysis plan and clinical trial results and uncertainties regarding the potential effects of not achieving clinical endpoints, limited time to date for the Company to review the details of the clinical trial results, future capital needs and uncertainty of additional financing, uncertainties regarding the cost, timing and ultimate success of the qualification of the Company's commercial manufacturing facility in accordance with applicable regulatory requirements, complex manufacturing, high quality requirements, lack of commercial manufacturing experience, dependence on third-party manufacturers, suppliers and collaborators, uncertainties associated with intellectual property, competition, loss of key personnel, uncertainties associated with market acceptance and adequacy of reimbursement, technological change and government regulation, and other risks and challenges detailed in the Company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2007 and its Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2008. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly release the results of any revisions to these forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect events or circumstances that occur after the date of this press release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

SOURCE: Acusphere, Inc.

Acusphere, Inc. 
Lawrence A. Gyenes, 617-648-8800 
Chief Financial Officer 
or 
Investors: 617-925-3444 
IR@acusphere.com