CuO catalyst was prepared from HKUST-1 temple through a pyrolysis process, noted as CuO-p. Its morphology with octahedral shape was verified to be inherited from the HKUST-1 and however essentially difference with CuO-c prepared by coprecipitation method. Moreover, CuO-p (15.4 m(2)/g) obtained by HKUST-1 pyrolysis has a bigger surface area than that (CuO-c, 3.4 m(2)/g) obtained by coprecipitation. The CuO samples and HKUST-1 were tested for low-temperature selective catalytic reduction (SCR) of NO with NH3 as reducing agent. The CuO-p catalyst derived from HKUST-1 exhibited the superior deNO(x) activity with respect to CuO-c. The further calcination at 600 degrees C under an N-2 atmosphere is beneficial for improving the specific surface area and achieving an ideal SCR performance (TOF of 3.45 x 10(-5) s(-1) and similar to 100% selectivity towards N-2 at 270 degrees C). This work expands the potential applications of MOFs as catalysts.