Cyclo Therapeutics, Inc. - Annual Report: 2020 (Form 10-K)

PART I

Item 1.  Business.

Overview

Cyclo Therapeutics, Inc. (“we,” “our,” “us,” or the “Company”) was organized as a Florida corporation on August 9, 1990, with operations beginning in July 1992. In conjunction with a restructuring in 2000, we changed our name from Cyclodextrin Technologies Development, Inc. to CTD Holdings, Inc. We changed our name to Cyclo Therapeutics, Inc. in September 2019 to better reflect our current business, and on November 6, 2020, we reincorporated from the State of Florida to the State of Nevada.

We are a clinical stage biotechnology company that develops cyclodextrin-based products for the treatment of disease. We filed a Type II Drug Master File with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) in 2014 for our lead drug candidate, Trappsol® Cyclo™ (hydroxypropyl beta cyclodextrin) as a treatment for Niemann-Pick Type C disease (“NPC”). NPC is a rare and fatal cholesterol metabolism disease that impacts the brain, lungs, liver, spleen, and other organs. In 2015, we launched an International Clinical Program for Trappsol® Cyclo™ as a treatment for NPC. In 2016, we filed an Investigational New Drug application (“IND”) with the FDA, which described our Phase I clinical plans for a randomized, double blind, parallel group study at a single clinical site in the U.S. The Phase I study evaluated the safety of Trappsol® Cyclo™ along with markers of cholesterol metabolism and markers of NPC during a 14-week treatment period of intravenous administration of Trappsol® Cyclo™ every two weeks to participants 18 years of age and older. The IND was approved by the FDA in September 2016, and in January 2017 the FDA granted Fast Track designation to Trappsol® Cyclo™ for the treatment of NPC. Initial patient enrollment in the U.S. Phase I study commenced in September 2017. Enrollment in this study was completed in October 2019, and in May 2020 we announced Top Line data showing a favorable safety and tolerability profile for Trappsol® Cyclo™ in this study.

We have also filed Clinical Trial Applications for a Phase I/II clinical study with several European regulatory bodies, including those in the United Kingdom, Sweden and Italy, and in Israel, all of which have approved our applications. The Phase I/II study is evaluating the safety, tolerability and efficacy of Trappsol® Cyclo™ through a range of clinical outcomes, including neurologic, and respiratory, in addition to measurements of cholesterol metabolism and markers of NPC. The European/Israel study is similar to the U.S. study, providing for the administration of Trappsol® Cyclo™ intravenously to NPC patients every two weeks in a double-blind, randomized trial but it differs in that the study period is for 48 weeks (24 doses). The first patient was dosed in this study in July 2017, and in February 2020, we announced completion of enrollment of 12 patients in this study. In September 2020, we released positive data from the seven patients who completed the trial, supporting the efficacy of Trappsol® Cyclo™ in treating NPC patients.

Additionally, in February 2020 we had a face-to-face “Type C” meeting with the FDA with respect to the initiation of our pivotal Phase III clinical trial of Trappsol® Cyclo™ based on the clinical data obtained to date. At that meeting, we also discussed with the FDA submitting a New Drug Application (NDA) under Section 505(b)(1) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act for the treatment of NPC in pediatric and adult patients with Trappsol® Cyclo™. A similar request was submitted to the European Medicines Agency (“EMA”) in February 2020, seeking scientific advice and protocol assistance from the EMA for proceeding with a Phase III clinical trial in Europe. In October 2020 we received a “Study May Proceed” notification from the FDA with respect to the proposed Phase III clinical trial. We currently estimate that in the event our pivotal Phase III trial proceeds as planned and provides further data supporting the safety and efficacy of Trappsol® Cyclo™ in the treatment of NPC, we may obtain regulatory approval of Trappsol® Cyclo™ as early as 2023.

Preliminary data from our clinical studies suggest that Trappsol® Cyclo™ releases cholesterol from cells, crosses the blood-brain-barrier in individuals suffering from NPC, and results in neurological and neurocognitive benefits and other clinical improvements in NPC patients. The full significance of these findings will be determined as part of the final analysis of these clinical trials.

On May 17, 2010, the FDA designated Trappsol® Cyclo™ as an orphan drug for the treatment of NPC, which would provide us with the exclusive right to sell Trappsol® Cyclo™ for the treatment of NPC for seven years following FDA drug approval. In April 2015, we also obtained Orphan Drug Designation for Trappsol® Cyclo™ in Europe, which will provide us with 10 years of market exclusivity following regulatory approval, which period will be extended to 12 years upon acceptance by the EMA’s Pediatric Committee of our pediatric investigation plan (PIP) demonstrating that Trappsol® Cyclo™ addresses the pediatric population. On January 12, 2017, we received Fast Track Designation from the FDA, and on December 1, 2017, the FDA designated NPC a Rare Pediatric Disease.

We are also exploring the use of cyclodextrins in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. In January 2018, the FDA authorized a single patient IND expanded access program using Trappsol® Cyclo™ for the treatment of this disease. After 18 months of treatment in this geriatric patient with late-onset disease, the disease was stabilized and the drug was well tolerated. The patient also exhibited signs of improvement with less volatility and shorter latency in word-finding. In October 2019, we entered into an agreement with Worldwide Clinical Trials, a Contract Research Organization, to conduct a clinical trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of Trappsol® Cyclo™ for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. We prepared a synopsis for an early stage protocol using Trappsol® Cyclo™ intravenously to treat Alzheimer’s Disease, and we plan to present this synopsis to the FDA in early 2021.

We also continue to operate our legacy fine chemical business, consisting of the sale of cyclodextrins and related products to the pharmaceutical, nutritional, and other industries, primarily for use in diagnostics and specialty drugs. However, our core business has transitioned to a biotechnology company primarily focused on the development of cyclodextrin-based biopharmaceuticals for the treatment of disease from a business that had been primarily reselling basic cyclodextrin products.  

Niemann-Pick Type C Disease

NPC is a rare, genetic and progressive disease that impairs the ability of the body to recycle cholesterol and other types of lipids, resulting in damage to the body’s tissues, including the brain. The symptoms upon onset of NPC vary from fatality during the first months after birth to a progressive disorder not diagnosed until adulthood. The disease affects the brain as well as various internal organs. Symptoms of NPC usually occur during early to late childhood, including difficulties in swallowing, loss of speech and cognition, motor coordination and ambulation. During this period, affected individuals may also develop impairment of intellectual ability, psychiatric disturbances and progressive loss of memory. Symptoms include enlargement of the liver and/or spleen and lung diseases, epileptic seizures and dystonia. Systemic symptoms of NPC are more common in infancy or childhood and the rate of progression is usually much slower in individuals with onset of symptoms during adulthood. Age of onset of neurologic symptoms is one predictor of severity of disease. Approximately half of NPC patients are adults with a less aggressive form of the disease that progresses more slowly, and is frequently initially misdiagnosed, as these patients are more likely to present with dementia, psychiatric symptoms and other symptoms. In the US, patients are increasingly diagnosed in their 50’s and 60’s.

NPC is caused by mutations in one of two genes, NPC1 or NPC2, which prevent cells from properly processing cholesterol and other lipids and lead to an accumulation of lipids in the lysosomes, resulting in cell toxicity, loss of cell function or cell death. In the central nervous system, it results in progressive motor and brain impairment. Approximately 95% of people with the disease have mutations in NPC1. Genetic diseases are determined by the combination of the pair of genes for a particular trait received from the father and the mother. NPC is an autosomal recessive disorder, i.e. two copies of an abnormal gene must be present in order for the disease or trait to develop. Although uncertainty exists about the exact function of the NPC1 and NPC2 protein products, they are known to be involved in the trafficking (transportation) of cholesterol within a compartment of the cell called the lysosome. Hence, a mutated gene may lead to faulty NPC protein production and, as a consequence, an abnormal accumulation of cholesterol and other lipids in the organs most commonly affected, such as the liver, spleen and brain. In addition, as with other neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson’s disease, NPC patients exhibit elevated levels of the protein tau in their cerebrospinal fluid.

Addressable Market

We estimate the incidence of NPC to be one in 100,000 live births and that there are currently 3,000 existing NPC patients worldwide, with approximately 1,370 new NPC cases each year. Based on an average annual price of approximately $404,750 for an intravenously administered drug to treat an orphan disease, we estimate the total addressable annual market for treating NPC with Trappsol® Cyclo™ to be approximately $550 million.

Treatment Options for NPC

The majority of current treatment options are directed towards the specific symptoms apparent in each individual. These include, for example, referral to a therapist to optimize the swallowing function, prescription of anti-seizure medications to prevent seizures and prescription of melatonin to treat insomnia and other sleep problems caused by the disease. Symptomatic treatment may require the coordinated efforts of a team of specialists.

Zavesca (miglustat), which was originally developed by Actelion Pharmaceuticals and is now owned by Johnson & Johnson and is also now available as a generic product in several countries, is currently the only approved treatment for NPC. It is approved only in Europe, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and several countries in Asia and in South America as Zavesca and in Japan as Brazaves. In Europe, miglustat is indicated for the treatment of progressive neurological manifestations in adult patients and pediatric patients with NPC disease. The FDA declined to approve miglustat for NPC in 2010 and requested more data be provided. A range of side effects are known to be associated with miglustat, including weight loss, decreased appetite, diarrhea, nausea and thrombocytopenia. While miglustat has not been approved by the FDA for the treatment of NPC, it has been approved by the FDA for the treatment of Gaucher Type I disease. In addition, studies are currently being performed to test the safety and efficacy of other treatment options, which are discussed in more detail below under “—Competition.”

Due to the limited availability, efficacy and side effects of existing treatment options, we believe that a significant unmet need for treatment of NPC continues to exist, and that we may be the only company with a drug candidate that treats both the systemic and neurological manifestations of NPC.

Cyclodextrins

Cyclodextrins are donut shaped rings of glucose (sugar) molecules. Cyclodextrins are formed naturally by the action of bacterial enzymes on starch. They were first noticed and isolated in 1891. The bacterial enzyme naturally creates a mixture of at least three different cyclodextrins depending on how many glucose units are included in the molecular circle; six glucose units yield alpha cyclodextrin; seven units, beta cyclodextrin; eight units, gamma cyclodextrin. The more glucose units in the molecular ring, the larger the cavity in the center of the ring. The inside of this ring provides an excellent resting place for “oily” molecules while the outside of the ring is compatible with water, allowing clear, stable solutions of cyclodextrins to exist in aqueous environments even when an “oily” molecule is carried within the ring. The net result is a molecular carrier that comes in small, medium, and large sizes with the ability to transport and deliver “oily” materials using plain water as the solvent.  It is the ability of molecular encapsulation of compounds that makes cyclodextrins so useful chemically and pharmaceutically.

Use of Cyclodextrins to Treat NPC

Natural cyclodextrins have been confirmed to be generally recognized as safe (GRAS) in most of the world, including the U.S. Moreover, approvals of products containing cyclodextrins by the FDA since 2001 suggest that regulatory approval for new products may be easier to obtain in the future. In 2001, Janssen Pharmaceutica, now a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, received FDA approval to market Sporanox®, an antifungal which contained hydroxypropyl beta cyclodextrin as an excipient. In 2009, one of our products was used in an FDA approved compassionate use investigational new drug protocol for the treatment of NPC. Under the Orphan Drug Act, companies that develop a drug for a disorder affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the United States may seek designation as an orphan drug. If such designation is approved, a company will have the ability to sell the drug exclusively for seven years following FDA drug approval, and the company may receive clinical trial tax incentives.  

Trappsol® Cyclo™ is the first use of a cyclodextrin as an active pharmaceutical and not just as an inactive formulation excipient. On May 17, 2010, the FDA designated Trappsol® Cyclo™ as an orphan drug for the treatment of NPC. We have also obtained Orphan Drug Designation for Trappsol® Cyclo™ in Europe. Trappsol® Cyclo™ has been administered to more than 20 NPC patients in compassionate use programs around the world, including in the U.S., Brazil and Spain. Patients participating in these compassionate use programs demonstrated one or more of the following benefits: a reduction in liver size; restoration of language skills; resolution of interstitial lung disease; improvement in fine and gross motor skills, improvement in behavioral aspects of the disease, and improvement in quality of life. The doctors and patients participating in these programs, including patients that have been administered Trappsol® Cyclo™ intravenously for more than five years, have made their data available to us, which we used to design our clinical studies in the U.S. and abroad, and which we published in a peer-reviewed journal with treating physicians as co-authors.

Our Clinical Studies

As set forth in greater detail below, to date, our clinical studies have preliminarily demonstrated that Trappsol® Cyclo™ is safe and efficacious in the treatment of NPC over a range of dose groups. When measuring efficacy in NPC patients, we utilize the NPC Clinical Severity Scale developed by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) which measures clinical signs and symptoms across “major domains” and “minor domains” as follows:

Nine major domains: ambulation, cognition, eye movement, fine motor, hearing, memory, seizures, speech, and swallowing.

Eight minor domains:– auditory brainstem response, behavior, gelastic cataplexy, hyperreflexia, incontinence, narcolepsy, psychiatric, and respiratory problems.

Major domains are scored on a scale of zero to five, with zero showing no disability, and minor domains add up to two points for severity of condition per domain.

European and Israeli Phase I/II Clinical Study

Our ongoing Phase I/II clinical study has been approved by several European regulatory bodies, including those in the United Kingdom, Sweden and Italy, and in Israel. This study is evaluating the safety, tolerability and efficacy of Trappsol® Cyclo™ through a range of clinical outcomes, including neurologic, and respiratory, in addition to measurements of cholesterol metabolism and markers of NPC, in three dose groups (1500 mg/kg, 2000 mg/kg and 2500 mg/kg). The first patient was dosed in this study in July 2017, and in February 2020, we announced completion of enrollment of 12 patients in this study. The efficacy outcome measures and results from this study are as follows:

Efficacy Outcome Measure 1: At least a one-point reduction (or improvement) in two or more of the 17 domains measured under the NPC Clinical Severity Scale.

Results:

Efficacy Outcome Measure 2: Change from baseline in “Global Impression of Disease” at 48 weeks.

Results:

Additional Data:

US Phase I Clinical Study

In September 2016, the FDA approved our Phase I clinical plans for a randomized, double blind, parallel group study in the U.S. The Phase I study evaluated the safety of Trappsol® Cyclo™ along with markers of cholesterol metabolism and markers of NPC during a 14-week treatment period of intravenous administration of Trappsol® Cyclo™ every two weeks to participants 18 years of age and older in two dose groups (1500 mg/kg and 2500 mg/kg). Enrollment in this study was completed in October 2019, and in May 2020 we announced Top Line data showing a favorable safety and tolerability profile for Trappsol® Cyclo™ in this study. Additional date from this study includes the following data:

Trappsol® Cyclo™ Removes Cholesterol from Liver Cells

Cholesterol accumulates abnormally in the cells of NPC patients. Based on our clinical studies we believe that Trappsol® Cyclo™ can function like the NPC1 protein, allowing cholesterol to be moved normally through cells. The administration of both 1500 mg/kg and 2500 mg/kg dosages in our clinical trials demonstrated that Trappsol® Cyclo™ clears cholesterol from peripheral organs. Management believes this is evidence of a pathway to treat the systemic and neurologic manifestations of the disease. The reduction in cholesterol can be visualized directly in liver cells through biopsies and fillipin staining, as shown below.

Trappsol® Cyclo™ Reduces Tau

Tau is a protein found in elevated levels in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of NPC patients, as well as patients with other neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson’s disease. Data from our clinical studies demonstrate that Trappsol® Cyclo™ reduces tau levels. The chart below shows tau levels measured in the CSF of 10 NPC patients who had lumbar punctures prior to treatment with Trappsol® Cyclo™ and after seven doses over a 14-week period in our Phase I study, with six of 10 patients showing a reduction in tau levels, two remained stable, and two with increased levels of tau. Data from three patients in our Phase I/II study showed a similar pattern of tau reduction in all three patients at 24 weeks and 48 weeks.

Use of Cyclodextrins to Treat Alzheimer’s Disease

Because NPC and Alzheimer’s disease share many features, we have been exploring the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease with Trappsol® Cyclo™. In particular, both NPC and Alzheimer’s patients exhibit cognitive decline, increased levels of tau in CSF, and amyloid beta plaques in the brain, neurofibrillary tangles in the brain, and lysosomal enlargement in neurons in the brain.

Cell and animal studies using hydroxypropyl beta cyclodextrin (“HPBCD”) to treat Alzheimer’s disease have shown:

In January 2018, the FDA authorized a single patient IND expanded access program using Trappsol® Cyclo™ for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. Our partner and principal investigator for the trial was Diana R. Kerwin, MD, an award-winning recognized expert in Alzheimer’s Disease. After 18 months of monthly intravenous infusions, the patient’s disease did not progress as measured with standard cognitive tools. The patient and family reported less volatility and greater word-finding ability, and the treating physician reported cognitive and neurologic stability in contrast to an expected measurable cognitive and functional decline that would have been expected over the treatment period. The patient withdrew from this treatment for reasons unrelated to the safety of Trappsol® Cyclo™. The table below measures the patient’s Mini Mental State Evaluation (a measurement used to assess patients with Alzheimer’s disease) during the treatment period.

In October 2018, we filed a patent application with respect to the use of hydroxypropyl beta cyclodextrins in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. In October 2019, we entered into an agreement with Worldwide Clinical Trials, a Contract Research Organization, to conduct a clinical trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of Trappsol® Cyclo™ for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. We prepared a synopsis for an early stage protocol using Trappsol® Cyclo™ intravenously for Alzheimer’s disease and plan to present it to FDA in early 2021.

Intellectual Property and Regulatory Exclusivities

We have a pending International patent application directed to the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease with cyclodextrins, and we expect to pursue one or more national or regional stage applications based on this International application. The terms of any patents resulting from these national or regional stage applications would be expected to expire in 2039 if all the requisite maintenance fees are paid. In addition, the designation of Trappsol® Cyclo™ as an orphan drug for the treatment of NPC by the FDA and European regulators would provide us with seven years, and 10 to 12 years, of market exclusivity, respectively, following regulatory approval. We also believe that our formulation and manufacturing process for Trappsol® Cyclo™ is protected by trade secrets. We have also protected our Trappsol® and Aquaplex® trademarks by registering them with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Competition

There is currently no known cure for NPC. Although we face competition in the commercialization of a drug product to treat NPC, we believe that we may be the only company with a drug candidate that treats both the systemic and neurological manifestations of NPC. Actelion, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, has a drug, Miglustat, not approved in the US, which treats some of the neurologic symptoms of the disease in some patients. Orphazyme, a public company based in Denmark, has a drug candidate, Arimoclomal, in development and has initiated a rolling NDA submission with the FDA based on limited neurological benefit in sub-groups of the NPC population. In addition, IntraBio is developing a drug candidate for the treatment of NPC with preliminary reports of benefit to a sub-set of neurologic features, primarily ataxia. IntraBio has not yet reached its pivotal trial stage. We believe our clinical progress, our close connections with patient advocacy groups in the U.S. and Europe, and the fact that we have a finished product currently in use in human patients all give us a competitive advantage over potential competitors.

We have also noted increased competition for the distribution of small quantities of cyclodextrins. Those we have examined are small operations or small offerings of a larger distributor that lack the focus and depth of expertise offered by us. They are also most often not price competitive with our products. We believe there is a perceived barrier to entry into the cyclodextrin industry because of the lack of general experience with cyclodextrins. We have established business relationships with many of the producers and consumers of cyclodextrins worldwide and, over more than 30 years, we have developed an unmatched experience database. We believe these relationships and market knowledge provide significant business advantages.

Research and Development

We are currently pursuing clinical programs in the U.S., Europe, and Israel in an effort to gain market authorization of our bio-pharmaceutical product for the treatment of NPC. We have made a substantial investment in the research and development of our Trappsol® Cyclo™ product as we seek approval for marketing the product for the treatment of NPC. We are also exploring the use of cyclodextrins in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. We will continue to expend substantial funds in support of these efforts with the progression of our clinical trials, which we commenced in 2017. Research and development expenses increased to approximately $6,096,000 in 2020, from $4,869,000 in 2019.

Government Regulation

The development, production and marketing of biopharmaceutical products, which include the proposed uses of Trappsol® Cyclo™ to treat disease, including NPC, are subject to regulation by governmental authorities in the United States, at the federal, state and local levels, and in other countries. These regulations govern, among other things, the research, development, testing, manufacture, packaging, storage, recordkeeping, labeling, advertising, promotion, distribution, marketing, and import and export of biopharmaceutical products. The processes for obtaining regulatory approvals in the United States and other countries, along with subsequent compliance with applicable statutes and regulations, require the expenditure of substantial time and financial resources.

United States Government Regulation

In the United States, the FDA regulates drugs under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, or FDCA, and its implementing regulations and guidance. The process of obtaining regulatory approvals and the subsequent compliance with appropriate federal, state, local and non-U.S. statutes, regulations and guidance requires the expenditure of substantial time and financial resources. Failure to comply with the applicable United States requirements at any time during the drug development process, including preclinical and clinical testing, the approval process or post-approval process, may subject an applicant to delays in conducting the preclinical study or clinical trial, regulatory review, approval, a variety of administrative or judicial sanctions, such as the FDA’s refusal to approve a pending NDA, other applications, license suspension or revocation, withdrawal of an approval, imposition of a clinical hold, issuance of warning or untitled letters, product recalls, product seizures, total or partial suspension of production or distribution, injunctions, fines, refusals of government contracts, restitution, civil or criminal investigations brought by the FDA, the DOJ and other government entities, including state agencies and associated civil or criminal penalties.

The process required by the FDA before a drug may be marketed in the United States generally involves:

Preclinical Studies

Preclinical studies include laboratory evaluation of product chemistry, toxicity and formulation, as well as animal studies to assess potential safety and efficacy. An IND sponsor must submit the results of the preclinical tests, together with manufacturing information, analytical data and any available clinical data or literature, among other things, to the FDA as part of an IND. Some preclinical testing may continue even after the IND is submitted. An IND is an exemption from the FDCA that allows an unapproved product candidate to be shipped in interstate commerce for use in an investigational clinical trial and a request for FDA authorization to administer such investigational product to humans. An IND automatically becomes effective 30 days after receipt by the FDA, unless before that time the FDA raises concerns or questions related to one or more proposed clinical trials and places the clinical trial on a clinical hold. In such a case, the IND sponsor and the FDA must resolve any outstanding concerns before the clinical trial can begin.

As a result, submission of an IND may not result in the FDA allowing clinical trials to commence. If the FDA raises concerns or questions either during this initial 30-day period, or at any time during the IND process, it may choose to impose a partial or complete clinical hold. Clinical holds are imposed by the FDA whenever there is concern for patient safety and may be a result of new data, findings, or developments in clinical, preclinical, and/ or chemistry, manufacturing, and controls. This order issued by the FDA would delay either a proposed clinical trial or cause suspension of an ongoing trial, until all outstanding concerns have been adequately addressed and the FDA has notified the company that investigations may proceed. This could cause significant delays or difficulties in completing our planned clinical trial or future clinical trials in a timely manner.

Expanded Access to an Investigational Drug for Treatment Use

Expanded access, sometimes called “compassionate use,” is the use of investigational products outside of clinical trials to treat patients with serious or immediately life-threatening diseases or conditions when there are no comparable or satisfactory alternative treatment options. The rules and regulations related to expanded access are intended to improve access to investigational products for patients who may benefit from investigational therapies. FDA regulations allow access to investigational products under an IND by the company or the treating physician for treatment purposes on a case-by-case basis for: individual patients (single-patient IND applications for treatment in emergency settings and non-emergency settings); intermediate-size patient populations; and larger populations for use of the investigational product under a treatment protocol or treatment IND application.

When considering an IND application for expanded access to an investigational product with the purpose of treating a patient or a group of patients, the sponsor and treating physicians or investigators will determine suitability when all of the following criteria apply: patient(s) have a serious or immediately life threatening disease or condition, and there is no comparable or satisfactory alternative therapy to diagnose, monitor, or treat the disease or condition; the potential patient benefit justifies the potential risks of the treatment and the potential risks are not unreasonable in the context or condition to be treated; and the expanded use of the investigational drug for the requested treatment will not interfere initiation, conduct, or completion of clinical investigations that could support marketing approval of the product or otherwise compromise the potential development of the product.

There is no obligation for a sponsor to make its drug products available for expanded access; however, as required by the 21st Century Cures Act passed in 2016, if a sponsor has a policy regarding how it responds to expanded access requests, it must make that policy publicly available. Although these requirements were rolled out over time, they have now come into full effect. This provision requires drug companies to make publicly available their policies for expanded access for individual patient access to products intended for serious diseases. Sponsors are required to make such policies publicly available upon the earlier of initiation of a Phase II or Phase III clinical trial; or 15 days after the investigational drug receives designation as a breakthrough therapy, fast track product, or regenerative medicine advanced therapy.

In addition, on May 30, 2018, the Right to Try Act was signed into law. The law, among other things, provides a federal framework for certain patients to access certain investigational products that have completed a Phase I clinical trial and that are undergoing investigation for FDA approval. Under certain circumstances, eligible patients can seek treatment with an investigational product without enrolling in clinical trials and without obtaining FDA permission under the FDA expanded access program. There is no obligation for a manufacturer to make its investigational products available to eligible patients as a result of the Right to Try Act.

Clinical Trials

Clinical trials involve the administration of the investigational new drug to human subjects, including healthy volunteers or patients with the disease or condition to be treated, under the supervision of qualified investigators in accordance with GCP requirements, which include the requirement that all research subjects provide their informed consent in writing for their participation in any clinical trial. Clinical trials are conducted under protocols detailing, among other things, the objectives of the clinical trial, inclusion and exclusion criteria, the parameters to be used in monitoring safety and the effectiveness criteria to be evaluated. A protocol for each clinical trial and any subsequent protocol amendments must be submitted to the FDA as part of the IND.

A sponsor who wishes to conduct a clinical trial outside the United States may, but need not, obtain FDA authorization to conduct the clinical trial under an IND. When a foreign clinical trial is conducted under an IND, all FDA IND requirements must be met unless waived. When a foreign clinical trial is not conducted under an IND, the sponsor must ensure that the trial complies with certain regulatory requirements of the FDA in order to use the clinical trial as support for an IND or application for marketing approval. Specifically, the FDA requires that such clinical trials be conducted in accordance with GCP, including review and approval by an independent ethics committee and informed consent from participants. The GCP requirements encompass both ethical and data integrity standards for clinical trials. The FDA’s regulations are intended to help ensure the protection of human subjects enrolled in non-IND foreign clinical trials, as well as the quality and integrity of the resulting data. They further help ensure that non-IND foreign trials are conducted in a manner comparable to that required for clinical trials in the United States.

In addition, an IRB at each institution participating in the clinical trial must review and approve the plan for any clinical trial before it commences at that institution, and the IRB must continue to oversee the clinical trial while it is being conducted. The IRB will consider, among other things, clinical trial design, patient informed consent, ethical factors, and the safety of human subjects. An IRB overseeing a clinical trial of an investigational product must operate in compliance with FDA regulations. The FDA, the IRB, or the clinical trial sponsor may suspend or discontinue a clinical trial at any time for various reasons, including a finding that the clinical trial is not being conducted in accordance with FDA requirements or that the participants are being exposed to an unacceptable health risk. Clinical testing also must satisfy extensive GCP rules and the requirements for informed consent. Information about certain clinical trials must be submitted within specific timeframes to the National Institutes of Health for public dissemination on their ClinicalTrials.gov website.

Human clinical trials are typically conducted in three sequential phases, which may overlap or be combined. Additional studies may be required after approval.

Progress reports detailing the results of the clinical trials must be submitted, at least annually, to the FDA, and more frequently if serious adverse events, or SAEs, occur. Phase I, Phase II and Phase III clinical trials may not be completed successfully within any specified period, or at all. Furthermore, the FDA or the sponsor may suspend or terminate a clinical trial at any time on various grounds, including a finding that the research subjects are being exposed to an unacceptable health risk. Similarly, an IRB can suspend or terminate approval of a clinical trial at its institution if the clinical trial is not being conducted in accordance with the IRB’s requirements, or if the drug has been associated with unexpected serious harm to patients.

Concurrent with clinical trials, companies usually complete additional animal studies and must also develop additional information about the chemistry and physical characteristics of the product and finalize a process for manufacturing the product in commercial quantities in accordance with cGMP requirements. The manufacturing process must be capable of consistently producing quality batches of the product candidate and, among other things, the manufacturer must develop methods for testing the identity, strength, quality and purity of the final product. Additionally, appropriate packaging must be selected and tested and stability studies must be conducted to demonstrate that the product candidate does not undergo unacceptable deterioration over its shelf life.

Compliance with cGMP Requirements

Before approving an NDA, the FDA typically will inspect the facility or facilities where the product is manufactured. The FDA will not approve an application unless it determines that the manufacturing processes and facilities are in full compliance with cGMP requirements and adequate to assure consistent production of the product within required specifications. The Public Health Service Act emphasizes the importance of manufacturing control for products whose attributes cannot be precisely defined. Manufacturers and others involved in the manufacture and distribution of products must also register their establishments with the FDA and certain state agencies. Both domestic and foreign manufacturing establishments must register and provide additional information to the FDA upon their initial participation in the manufacturing process. Any product manufactured by or imported from a facility that has not registered, whether foreign or domestic, is deemed misbranded under the FDCA. Establishments may be subject to periodic unannounced inspections by government authorities to ensure compliance with cGMPs and other laws. Inspections must follow a “risk-based schedule” that may result in certain establishments being inspected more frequently. Manufacturers may also have to provide, on request, electronic or physical records regarding their establishments. Delaying, denying, limiting, or refusing inspection by the FDA may lead to a product being deemed to be adulterated.

Marketing Approval

Assuming successful completion of the required clinical testing, the results of the preclinical studies and clinical trials, together with detailed information relating to the product’s chemistry, manufacture, controls and proposed labeling, among other things, are submitted to the FDA as part of an NDA requesting approval to market the product for one or more indications. In most cases, the submission of an NDA is subject to a substantial application user fee. Under the PDUFA guidelines that are currently in effect, the FDA has a goal of ten months to review and act on a standard NDA and six months to review and act on a priority NDA, measured from the date of “filing” of a standard NDA for a NME. This review typically takes eight months from the date the NDA is submitted to the FDA because the FDA has approximately two months to make a “filing” decision, although timing is not certain, particularly with the FDA’s current focus on COVID-19.

In addition, under the Pediatric Research Equity Act of 2003, as amended an reauthorized, certain NDAs or supplements to an NDA must contain data that are adequate to assess the safety and effectiveness of the drug for the claimed indications in all relevant pediatric subpopulations, and to support dosing and administration for each pediatric subpopulation for which the product is safe and effective. Sponsors must also submit pediatric study plans prior to the assessment data. Those plans must contain an outline of the proposed pediatric study or studies the applicant plans to conduct, including study objectives and design, any deferral or waiver requests, and other information required by regulation. The applicant, the FDA, and the FDA’s internal review committee must then review the information submitted, consult with each other, and agree upon a final plan. The FDA or the applicant may request an amendment to the plan at any time.

For products intended to treat a serious or life-threatening disease or condition, the FDA must, upon the request of an applicant, meet to discuss preparation of the initial pediatric study plan or to discuss deferral or waiver of pediatric assessments. In addition, FDA will meet early in the development process to discuss pediatric study plans with sponsors and FDA must meet with sponsors by no later than the end-of-the Phase I meeting for serious or life-threatening diseases and by no later than 90 days after FDA’s receipt of the study plan.

The FDA may, on its own initiative or at the request of the applicant, grant deferrals for submission of some or all pediatric data until after approval of the product for use in adults, or full or partial waivers from the pediatric data requirements. Additional requirements and procedures relating to deferral requests and requests for extension of deferrals are contained in the Food and Drug Administration Safety and Innovation Act. Unless otherwise required by regulation, the pediatric data requirements do not apply to products with orphan designation.

The FDA also may require submission of a REMS plan to ensure that the benefits of the drug outweigh its risks. The REMS plan could include medication guides, physician communication plans, assessment plans, and/or elements to assure safe use, such as restricted distribution methods, patient registries or other risk minimization tools.

The FDA conducts a preliminary review of all NDAs within the first 60 days after submission, before accepting them for filing, to determine whether they are sufficiently complete to permit substantive review. The FDA may request additional information rather than accept an NDA for filing. In this event, the application must be resubmitted with the additional information. The resubmitted application is also subject to review before the FDA accepts it for filing. Once the submission is accepted for filing, the FDA begins an in-depth substantive review. The FDA reviews an NDA to determine, among other things, whether the drug is safe and effective and whether the facility in which it is manufactured, processed, packaged or held meets standards designed to assure the product’s continued safety, quality and purity.

The FDA may refer an application for a novel drug to an advisory committee. An advisory committee is a panel of independent experts, including clinicians and other scientific experts, that reviews, evaluates and provides a recommendation as to whether the application should be approved and under what conditions. The FDA is not bound by the recommendations of an advisory committee, but it considers such recommendations carefully when making decisions.

Before approving an NDA, the FDA typically will inspect the facility or facilities where the product is manufactured. The FDA will not approve an application unless it determines that the manufacturing processes and facilities are in compliance with cGMP requirements and adequate to assure consistent production of the product within required specifications. Additionally, before approving an NDA, the FDA will typically inspect one or more clinical trial sites to assure compliance with GCP requirements.

The FDA generally accepts data from foreign clinical trials in support of an NDA if the trials were conducted under an IND. If a foreign clinical trial is not conducted under an IND, the FDA nevertheless may accept the data in support of an NDA if the study was conducted in accordance with GCP requirements and the FDA is able to validate the data through an on-site inspection, if deemed necessary. Although the FDA generally requests that marketing applications be supported by some data from domestic clinical studies, the FDA may accept foreign data as the sole basis for marketing approval if the foreign data are applicable to the U.S.

The testing and approval process for an NDA requires substantial time, effort and financial resources, and takes several years to complete. Data obtained from preclinical and clinical testing are not always conclusive and may be susceptible to varying interpretations, which could delay, limit or prevent regulatory approval. The FDA may not grant approval of an NDA on a timely basis, or at all.

After evaluating the NDA and all related information, including the advisory committee recommendation, if any, and inspection reports regarding the manufacturing facilities and clinical trial sites, the FDA may issue an approval letter, or, in some cases, a complete response letter. A complete response letter generally contains a statement of specific conditions that must be met in order to secure final approval of the NDA and may require additional clinical or preclinical testing, manufacturing or formulation modifications or other changes in order for the FDA to reconsider the application. Even with submission of this additional information, the FDA ultimately may decide that the application does not satisfy the regulatory criteria for approval. If and when those conditions have been met to the FDA’s satisfaction, the FDA will typically issue an approval letter. An approval letter authorizes commercial marketing of the drug with specific prescribing information for specific indications.

Even if the FDA approves a product, it may limit the approved indications for use of the product, require that contraindications, warnings or precautions be included in the product labeling, require that post-approval studies, including Phase IV clinical trials, be conducted to further assess a drug’s safety after approval, require testing and surveillance programs to monitor the product after commercialization, or impose other conditions, including distribution and use restrictions or other risk management mechanisms under a REMS, which can materially affect the potential market and profitability of the product. The FDA may prevent or limit further marketing of a product based on the results of post-marketing studies or surveillance programs. After approval, some types of changes to the approved product, such as adding new indications, manufacturing changes, and additional labeling claims, are subject to further testing requirements and FDA review and approval.

Orphan Drug Designation

Trappsol® Cyclo™ has been granted orphan drug status by the FDA. It has been used by a limited number of customers for the treatment of NPC under the supervision of a physician following an Investigational New Drug (IND) protocol approved by the FDA.  Under the Orphan Drug Act, the FDA may grant orphan drug designation to a drug intended to treat a rare disease or condition, which is a disease or condition that affects fewer than 200,000 individuals in the United States, or if it affects more than 200,000, there is no reasonable expectation that sales of the drug in the United States will be sufficient to offset the costs of developing and making the drug available in the United States. Orphan drug designation must be requested before submitting an NDA. A product becomes an orphan when it receives orphan drug designation from the Office of Orphan Products Development at the FDA based on acceptable confidential requests made under the regulatory provisions. The product must then go through the review and approval process like any other product. Orphan drug designation does not convey any advantage in or shorten the duration of the regulatory review and approval process.

A sponsor may request orphan drug designation of a previously unapproved product or new orphan indication for an already marketed product. If the FDA approves a sponsor’s marketing application for a designated orphan drug for use in the rare disease or condition for which it was designated, the sponsor is eligible for tax credits and a seven-year period of marketing exclusivity, during which the FDA may not approve another sponsor’s marketing application for a drug with the same active moiety and intended for the same use or indication as the approved orphan drug, except in limited circumstances, such as if a subsequent sponsor demonstrates its product is clinically superior. During a sponsor’s orphan drug exclusivity period, competitors, however, may receive approval for drugs with different active moieties for the same indication as the approved orphan drug, or for drugs with the same active moiety as the approved orphan drug, but for different indications. Orphan drug exclusivity could block the approval of one of our products for seven years if a competitor obtains approval for a drug with the same active moiety intended for the same indication before we do, unless we are able to demonstrate that grounds for withdrawal of the orphan drug exclusivity exist, or that our product is clinically superior. Further, if a designated orphan drug receives marketing approval for an indication broader than the rare disease or condition for which it received orphan drug designation, it may not be entitled to exclusivity.

The period of exclusivity begins on the date that the marketing application is approved by the FDA and applies only to the indication for which the product has been designated. The FDA may approve a second application for the same product for a different use or a second application for a clinically superior version of the product for the same use. The FDA cannot, however, approve the same product made by another manufacturer for the same indication during the market exclusivity period unless it has the consent of the sponsor or the sponsor is unable to provide sufficient quantities.

Special FDA Expedited Review and Approval Programs; Priority Review Voucher

The FDA has various programs, including fast track designation, accelerated approval, priority review, and breakthrough therapy designation, which are intended to expedite or simplify the process for the development and FDA review of drugs that are intended for the treatment of serious or life threatening diseases or conditions and demonstrate the potential to address unmet medical needs. The purpose of these programs is to provide important new drugs to patients earlier than under standard FDA review procedures. In January 2017 the FDA granted Fast Track designation to Trappsol® Cyclo™ for the treatment of NPC.

To be eligible for a fast track designation, the FDA must determine, based on the request of a sponsor, that a product is intended to treat a serious or life-threatening disease or condition and demonstrates the potential to address an unmet medical need. The FDA will determine that a product will fill an unmet medical need if it will provide a therapy where none exists or provide a therapy that may be potentially superior to existing therapy based on efficacy or safety factors. The FDA may review sections of the NDA for a fast track product on a rolling basis before the complete application is submitted. If the sponsor provides a schedule for the submission of the sections of the NDA, the FDA agrees to accept sections of the NDA and determines that the schedule is acceptable, and the sponsor pays any required user fees upon submission of the first section of the NDA.

The FDA may give a priority review designation to drugs that are designed to treat serious conditions, and if approved, would provide a significant improvement in treatment, or provide a treatment where no adequate therapy exists. A priority review means that the goal for the FDA to review an application is six months, rather than the standard review of ten months under current PDUFA guidelines. Under the current PDUFA agreement, these six and ten month review periods are measured from the “filing” date rather than the receipt date for NDAs for new molecular entities, which typically adds approximately two months to the timeline for review and decision from the date of submission. Most products that are eligible for fast track designation may be considered appropriate to receive a priority review.

In addition, products studied for their safety and effectiveness in treating serious or life-threatening illnesses and that provide meaningful therapeutic benefit over existing treatments may be eligible for accelerated approval and may be approved on the basis of adequate and well-controlled clinical trials establishing that the drug product has an effect on a surrogate endpoint that is reasonably likely to predict clinical benefit, or on a clinical endpoint that can be measured earlier than irreversible morbidity or mortality, that is reasonably likely to predict an effect on irreversible morbidity or mortality or other clinical benefit, taking into account the severity, rarity or prevalence of the condition and the availability or lack of alternative treatments. As a condition of approval, the FDA may require a sponsor of a drug receiving accelerated approval to perform post-marketing studies to verify and describe the predicted effect on irreversible morbidity or mortality or other clinical endpoint, and the drug may be subject to accelerated withdrawal procedures.

Breakthrough therapy designation is for a drug that is intended, alone or in combination with one or more other drugs, to treat a serious or life-threatening disease or condition, and preliminary clinical evidence indicates that the drug may demonstrate substantial improvement over existing therapies on one or more clinically significant endpoints, such as substantial treatment effects observed early in clinical development. The FDA must take certain actions, such as holding timely meetings and providing advice, intended to expedite the development and review of an application for approval of a breakthrough therapy.

Even if a product qualifies for one or more of these programs, the FDA may later decide that the product no longer meets the conditions for qualification or decide that the time period for FDA review or approval will not be shortened. We may explore some of these opportunities for our product candidate as appropriate.

On December 1, 2017, the FDA designated NPC a Rare Pediatric Disease. Rare Pediatric Disease designation by FDA enables priority review voucher eligibility upon U.S. market approval of a designated drug for rare pediatric diseases. The rare pediatric disease-priority review voucher program is intended to encourage development of therapies to prevent and treat rare pediatric diseases. The voucher, which is awarded upon NDA approval to the sponsor of a designated rare pediatric disease can be sold or transferred to another entity and used by the holder to receive priority review for a future NDA submission, which reduces the FDA review time of such future submission from ten to six months.

Coverage and Reimbursement

The future commercial success of any approved product candidate will depend in part on the extent to which governmental payor programs at the federal and state levels, including Medicare and Medicaid, private health insurers and other third-party payors provide coverage for and establish adequate reimbursement levels for our product candidate. Government health administration authorities, private health insurers and other organizations generally decide which drugs they will pay for and establish reimbursement levels for healthcare. In particular, in the United States, private health insurers and other third-party payors often provide reimbursement for products and services based on the level at which the government, through the Medicare or Medicaid programs, provides reimbursement for such treatments. In the United States, the European Union, or EU, and other potentially significant markets for our product candidate, government authorities and third-party payors are increasingly attempting to limit or regulate the price of medical products and services, particularly for new and innovative products and therapies, which often has resulted in average selling prices lower than they would otherwise be. Further, the increased emphasis on managed healthcare in the United States and on country and regional pricing and reimbursement controls in the European Union will put additional pressure on product pricing, reimbursement and usage, which may adversely affect our future product sales and results of operations. These pressures can arise from rules and practices of managed care groups, judicial decisions and laws and regulations related to Medicare, Medicaid and healthcare reform, pharmaceutical coverage and reimbursement policies and pricing in general.

Impact of Healthcare Reform on our Business

The United States and some foreign jurisdictions are considering enacting or have enacted a number of additional legislative and regulatory proposals to change the healthcare system in ways that could affect our ability to sell our product candidate profitably, if approved. Among policy makers and payors in the United States and elsewhere, there is significant interest in promoting changes in healthcare systems with the stated goals of containing healthcare costs, improving quality and expanding access. In the United States, the pharmaceutical industry has been a particular focus of these efforts, which include major legislative initiatives to reduce the cost of care through changes in the healthcare system, including limits on the pricing, coverage, and reimbursement of pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical products, especially under government-funded health care programs, and increased governmental control of drug pricing.

There have been several U.S. government initiatives over the past few years to fund and incentivize certain comparative effectiveness research, including creation of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, as amended by the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, or collectively the ACA. It is also possible that comparative effectiveness research demonstrating benefits in a competitor’s product could adversely affect the sales of our product candidate. If third-party payors do not consider our product candidate to be cost-effective compared to other available therapies, they may not cover our product candidate, once approved, as a benefit under their plans or, if they do, the level of payment may not be sufficient to allow us to sell our product on a profitable basis.

The ACA became law in March 2010 and substantially changed the way healthcare is financed by both governmental and private insurers. Among other measures that may have an impact on our business, the ACA established an annual, nondeductible fee on any entity that manufactures or imports specified branded prescription drugs and biologic agents; a new Medicare Part D coverage gap discount program; and a new formula that increases the rebates a manufacturer must pay under the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program. Additionally, the ACA extended manufacturers’ Medicaid rebate liability, expanded eligibility criteria for Medicaid programs, and expanded entities eligible for discounts under the Public Health Service pharmaceutical pricing program. There have been judicial and Congressional challenges to certain aspects of the ACA, as well as recent efforts by the current presidential administration to repeal or replace certain aspects of the ACA, and we expect such challenges and amendments to continue. Since January 2017, President Trump has signed Executive Orders designed to delay the implementation of any certain provisions of the ACA or otherwise circumvent some of the requirements for health insurance mandated by the ACA. One Executive Order directed federal agencies with authorities and responsibilities under the ACA to waive, defer, grant exemptions from, or delay the implementation of any provision of the ACA that would impose a fiscal or regulatory burden on states, individuals, healthcare providers, health insurers, or manufacturers of pharmaceuticals or medical devices. The second Executive Order terminated the cost-sharing subsidies that reimburse insurers under the ACA. Several state Attorneys General filed suit to stop the administration from terminating the subsidies, but their request for a restraining order was denied by a federal judge in California on October 25, 2017. In addition, CMS has recently proposed regulations that would give states greater flexibility in setting benchmarks for insurers in the individual and small group marketplaces, which may have the effect of relaxing the essential health benefits required under the ACA for plans sold through such marketplaces. In December 2018, CMS published a new final rule permitting further collections and payments to and from certain ACA qualified health plans and health insurance issuers under the ACA risk adjustment program in response to the outcome of the federal court litigation regarding the method CMS uses to determine this risk adjustment. On April 27, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court reversed the Federal Circuit decision that previously upheld Congress’ denial of $12 billion in ACA risk corridor payments to certain ACA qualified health plans and health insurance issuers. The full effects of this gap in reimbursement on third-party payors, the viability of the ACA marketplace, providers, and potentially our business, are not yet known. In addition, in December 2019, a three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals partially affirmed a district court decision that had declared the entire ACA invalid. The ACA’s future continues to be uncertain as the law’s constitutionality has been challenged and will be considered by the U.S. Supreme Court in California v. Texas. This ongoing litigation challenges the ACA’s minimum essential coverage provision (known as the individual mandate) and raises questions about the entire law’s survival. The ACA remains in effect while the litigation is pending. However, if all or most of the law ultimately is struck down, it may have complex and far-reaching consequences for the nation’s health care system.

At the state level, legislatures are increasingly passing legislation and implementing regulations designed to control pharmaceutical and biological product pricing, including price or patient reimbursement constraints, discounts, restrictions on certain product access and marketing cost disclosure and transparency measures, and, in some cases, designed to encourage importation from other countries and bulk purchasing. In addition, regional healthcare authorities and individual hospitals are increasingly using bidding procedures to determine what biopharmaceutical products and which suppliers will be included in their prescription drug and other healthcare programs. These measures could reduce the ultimate demand for our products, once approved, or put pressure on our product pricing.

There have been, and likely will continue to be, additional legislative and regulatory proposals at the foreign, federal, and state levels directed at broadening the availability of healthcare and containing or lowering the cost of healthcare. Such reforms could have an adverse effect on anticipated revenues from product candidates that we may successfully develop and for which we may obtain marketing approval and may affect our overall financial condition and ability to develop product candidates.

Other Healthcare Laws

Outside the United States, our ability to market a product is contingent upon obtaining marketing authorization from the appropriate regulatory authorities. The requirements governing market authorization, pricing and reimbursement vary widely from country to country. In order to market any product outside of the United States, we would need to comply with numerous and varying regulatory requirements of other countries regarding safety and efficacy and governing, among other things, clinical trials, marketing authorization, commercial sales and distribution of our product candidate. Whether or not we obtain marketing approval for a drug in the United States, we would need to obtain the necessary approvals by the comparable regulatory authorities of foreign countries before we can commence clinical trials or marketing of the drug in those countries. The approval process varies from country to country and can involve additional product testing and additional administrative review periods. The time required to obtain approval in other countries might differ from and be longer than that required to obtain approval in the United States. Regulatory approval in one country does not ensure regulatory approval in another, but a failure or delay in obtaining regulatory approval in one country may negatively impact the regulatory process in others.

Our Legacy Fine Chemical Business

Substantially all of our revenues are currently derived from our legacy fine chemical business, consisting of the sale of cyclodextrins, including cyclodextrin complexes, the resale of cyclodextrins manufactured by others for our clients to their specifications, and our own licensed cyclodextrin products. We have trademarked certain products under our Trappsol® and Aquaplex® product lines. The Trappsol® product line includes basic cyclodextrins, and cyclodextrins with different chemical adducts resulting in more than 261 different cyclodextrins products available for sale from us. The Aquaplex® product line includes various cyclodextrins combined with more than 80 different active ingredients that, only as a complex, then become water soluble; we currently list for sale more than 116 different Aquaplex® products. Historically, substantially all of our sales of Aquaplex® products were to one chemical supply house, Sigma-Aldrich Fine Chemical.  Sales of Trappsol® and Aquaplex® comprise approximately 85% and 15%, respectively, of our 2019 product sales.  The Trappsol® and Aquaplex® products can be used in many industries, the largest being the food and pharmaceutical industries.  

Natural and chemically modified cyclodextrins are available from at least four major commercial manufacturers around the world, including Wacker Biosolutions, a division of Wacker Chemie AG (Germany), with a production facility located in Adrian, Michigan; Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation (Japan); Roquettes Freres (France); and Hangzhou Pharma and Chem Co. (China).  Prior to 2008, we purchased all of our Aquaplex® cyclodextrin complex products from Cyclodextrin Research & Development Laboratory, which is located in Budapest, Hungary; there are few, if any, other sources in the world for commercial quantities of current Good Manufacturing Practice (c-GMP) cyclodextrin complexes.  While we continue to purchase many of our cyclodextrin materials from Cyclodextrin Research & Development Laboratory, we also produce our own Aquaplex® materials. Additionally, we use third party manufacturers, such as Equinox Chemical in Albany, Georgia, to develop cyclodextrin complexes.   We historically have not had difficulties obtaining natural and chemically modified cyclodextrins from our suppliers and we do not expect to experience any difficulties obtaining adequate cyclodextrins for our current and expected expanded future needs.  

Cyclodextrin Product Background

Cyclodextrins are molecules that bring together oil and water, making the oily materials soluble in water, and have potential applications anywhere oil and water must be used together. Cyclodextrins can improve the solubility and stability of a wide range of drugs. Many promising drug compounds are unusable or have serious side effects because they are either unstable or poorly soluble in water. Strategies for administering currently approved compounds involve injection of formulations requiring pH adjustment and/or the use of organic solvents. The result is frequently painful, irritating, or damaging to the patient. These side effects can be ameliorated by cyclodextrins. Cyclodextrins also have many potential uses in drug delivery for topical applications to the eyes and skin.  

Successful applications of cyclodextrins have been established in biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, analytical chemistry, cosmetics, diagnostics, electronics, foodstuffs, and toxic waste treatment. Stabilization of food flavors and fragrances is the largest current worldwide market for cyclodextrin applications. We and others have developed cyclodextrin-based applications in stabilization of flavors for food products; elimination of undesirable tastes and odors; preparation of antifungal complexes for foods and pharmaceuticals; stabilization of fragrances and dyes; reduction of foaming in foods, cosmetics and toiletries; and the improvement of quality, stability and storability of foods.

Cyclodextrins are manufactured commercially in large quantities by mixing purified enzymes with starch solutions. A mixture of alpha, beta, and gamma cyclodextrins can be manufactured by this enzymatic modification of starch with purified natural enzymes and therefore are considered to be natural products. Additional processing is required to isolate and separate the individual cyclodextrins. The purified alpha, beta and gamma cyclodextrins are referred to collectively as natural or native cyclodextrins.

The hydroxyl chemical groups on each glucose unit in a cyclodextrin molecule provide chemists with ways to modify the properties of the cyclodextrins, i.e. to make them more water soluble or less water soluble, thereby making them better carriers for a specific chemical. The cyclodextrins that result from chemical modifications are no longer considered natural and are referred to as chemically modified cyclodextrins. Since the property modifications achieved are often advantageous to a specific application, the Company does not believe the loss of the natural product categorization will prevent its ultimate pharmaceutical use. It does, however, create a greater regulatory burden.

Other Cyclodextrin Uses

Applications of cyclodextrins in personal products and for industrial uses have appeared in many patents and patent applications. Cyclodextrins are used in numerous brand-name household goods, including fabric softeners and air fresheners. With increased manufacturing capacity and supply, the prices of the natural cyclodextrins have decreased to the point that use of these materials is considered in even the most price sensitive goods.

In Japan, at least twelve pharmaceutical preparations are now marketed which contain cyclodextrins; there are also multiple products in Europe and the United States.  Cyclodextrins permit the use of all routes of administration. Ease of delivery and improved bioavailability of such well-known drugs as nitroglycerin, dexamethasone, PGE(1&2), and cephalosporin permit these “old” drugs to command new market share and sometimes new patent lives. Because of the value added, it is management’s opinion that the dollar value of the worldwide market for products containing cyclodextrins and for complexes of cyclodextrins can be substantially greater than that of the market sales of the cyclodextrin itself. 

Customers

We currently sell our legacy fine chemical products directly to customers in the pharmaceutical, diagnostics, and industrial chemical industries, and to chemical supply distributors.  For the year ended December 31, 2020, our revenues consisted of 3% biopharmaceuticals, 96% basic natural and chemically modified cyclodextrins, and 1% cyclodextrin complexes.

Our cyclodextrin sales historically involve small quantities (i.e., less than 1.0 kg).  We sell directly to our customers, package the orders at our facility and ship using common carriers.

The majority of our revenues are from five to ten customers who have historically been repeat purchasers. For the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, three and four customers accounted for 69% and 70% of our sales, respectively. Sigma-Aldrich Fine Chemical, Inc. accounted for almost 83% and 100% of our 2020 and 2019 annual sales, respectively, of Aquaplex®. In a given year, we typically sell to fewer than 200 individual customers. Our industrial customers buy products from us as needed primarily for product research and development purposes.  Therefore, it is difficult to predict future sales from these customers, as it is dependent on the current cyclodextrin related research and development activities of others, which we have monitored in the past by following  the issuance and applications of patents in the US and elsewhere.

We intend to continue promoting the use of Trappsol® and Aquaplex® products in the research and product development activities of existing and new customers and clients.

Employees

We currently employ eight people on a full-time basis. None of our employees belong to a union.  We believe relations with our employees are good.

Item 1A.  Risk Factors.

Risks Related to our Financial Position and Capital Needs

We have suffered recent losses and our future profitability is uncertain.

We have incurred net losses of approximately $8.9 million and $7.5 million for the years ended December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019, respectively. Our recent losses have predominantly resulted from research and development expenses for our Trappsol® Cyclo™ product and other general operating expenses, including personnel costs. We believe our expenses will continue to increase as we conduct clinical trials and continue to seek regulatory approval for the use of Trappsol® Cyclo™ in the treatment of NPC and Alzheimer’s disease. As a result, we expect our operating losses to continue until such time, if ever, that product sales, licensing fees, royalties and other sources generate sufficient revenue to fund our operations. We cannot predict when, if ever, we might achieve profitability and cannot be certain that we will be able to sustain profitability, if achieved.

Even with the proceeds from our recent public offering, we will need additional capital to fund our operations as planned.

For the year ended December 31, 2020, our operations used approximately $8,540,000 in cash. Cash used in operations consisted of cash on hand and cash raised through public offerings and private placements of our securities. At December 31, 2020, the Company had a cash balance of approximately $12,846,000 and current liabilities of approximately $3,673,000. Although we raised approximately $12,672,000 in our December 2020 public offering, and approximately $985,000 from the exercise of warrants issued in the public offering, we will need additional capital to maintain our operations, continue our research and development programs, conduct clinical trials, seek regulatory approvals and manufacture and market our products. We will seek such additional funds through public or private equity or debt financings and other sources. We cannot be certain that adequate additional funding will be available to us on acceptable terms, if at all. If we cannot raise the additional funds required for our anticipated operations, we may be required to reduce the scope of or eliminate our research and development programs, delay our clinical trials and the ability to seek regulatory approvals, downsize our general and administrative infrastructure, or seek alternative measures to avoid insolvency. If we raise additional funds through future offerings of shares of our Common Stock or other securities, such offerings would cause dilution of current stockholders’ percentage ownership in the Company, which could be substantial. Future offerings also could have a material and adverse effect on the price of our Common Stock. 

We have not received approval for any drug candidate for commercial sale and, as a result, we have never generated any revenue from the sale of biopharmaceutical products, and expect to continue to incur significant financial losses in the future, which makes it difficult to assess our future viability.

While we sell cyclodextrins for use and research in numerous industries, we have not yet received the necessary regulatory approvals to commercially sell any biopharmaceutical products. Biopharmaceutical product development is a highly speculative undertaking and involves a substantial degree of risk, including risks related to the regulatory approval process. Because the focus of our business has transitioned to the development of cyclodextrin-based products for the treatment of disease, we anticipate that our expenses will increase substantially as we:

We will continue to incur significant losses until such time, if ever, as we are able to commercialize our drug candidates. If we are not able to do so we may not sustain a viable business.

Risks Related to Product Development, Regulatory Approval and Commercialization

We are largely dependent upon the success of our Trappsol® Cyclo™ product, which may never receive regulatory approval for the treatment of disease.

Our lead drug candidate, Trappsol® Cyclo™ is the focus of much of our management team’s development efforts. The product is currently designated as an orphan drug for the treatment of NPC in the United States and Europe. We plan to continue to make substantial investment in continued research and development of our Trappsol® Cyclo™ product in connection with obtaining approval for marketing the product for the treatment of NPC, as well as Alzheimer’s disease. The potential population of NPC patients is small, and our ability to market the drug for use other than research is severely constrained by regulatory restrictions. In the course of its development, our Trappsol® Cyclo™ drug product will be subject to extensive and rigorous government regulation through the European Medicines Agency in the E.U. and through the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States. Regulatory approval in any jurisdiction cannot be guaranteed. There can be no guarantees that our product will be effective and safe in the treatment of NPC, Alzheimer’s disease or any other disease nor is there any guarantee that it will be deemed by the regulatory agencies of any jurisdiction to be effective and safe. Despite the time and expense involved in developing a drug candidate, failure of a drug candidate can occur at any stage of development and for many reasons, including without limitation negative or inconclusive results from pre-clinical data or clinical trials. Failure to comply with applicable regulatory requirements in any jurisdiction, either before or after product approval, may subject us to administrative or judicially imposed sanctions.

Even if Trappsol® Cyclo™ receives regulatory approval, we may not be successful in our commercialization efforts and Trappsol® Cyclo™ may fail to achieve the degree of market acceptance by physicians, patients, healthcare payors and others in the medical community necessary for commercial success.

Even if Trappsol® Cyclo™ receives regulatory approval, we may not be successful in our commercialization efforts and market acceptance by physicians, patients, third-party payors and others in the medical community may be less than estimated. Market acceptance will require us to build and maintain strong relationships with healthcare professionals involved in the treatment of NPC. The number of healthcare professionals associated with treatment centers that address NPC is limited. A failure to build or maintain these important relationships with these healthcare professionals and treatment centers could result in lower market acceptance. Our efforts to educate physicians, patients, third-party payors and others in the medical community on the benefits of Trappsol® Cyclo™ may require significant resources and may never be successful. The degree of market acceptance of Trappsol® Cyclo™, if approved for commercial sale, will depend on a number of factors, including:

The results of our clinical trials may not support our product claims or may result in the discovery of adverse side effects.

Even if our clinical trials are completed as planned, we cannot be certain that their results will support our product claims or that any regulatory authority whose approval we will require in order to market and sell our products in any territory will agree with our conclusions regarding them. Success in pre-clinical studies and early clinical trials does not ensure that later clinical trials will be successful, and we cannot be sure that clinical trials will replicate the results of prior trials and pre-clinical studies. The clinical trial process may fail to demonstrate that our product candidates are safe and effective for the proposed indicated uses, which could cause us to abandon a product and may delay development of others. Any delay or termination of our clinical trials will delay the filing of our regulatory submissions and, ultimately, our ability to commercialize our product candidates and generate revenues. It is also possible that patients enrolled in clinical trials will experience adverse side effects that are not currently part of the product candidate’s profile.

Clinical trials involve a lengthy and expensive process with an uncertain outcome, and results of earlier studies and trials may not be predictive of future trial results.

We have limited experience in conducting and managing the clinical trials necessary to obtain regulatory approvals, including FDA approval. Clinical trials are expensive and complex, can take many years and have uncertain outcomes. We cannot predict whether we will encounter problems with any of our completed, ongoing or planned clinical trials that will cause us or regulatory authorities to delay or suspend clinical trials, or delay the analysis of data from completed or ongoing clinical trials. We estimate that clinical trials of Trappsol® Cyclo™ for the treatment of NPC will continue for several years, but they may take significantly longer to complete. Failure can occur at any stage of the testing and we may experience numerous unforeseen events during, or as a result of, the clinical trial process that could delay or prevent commercialization of our current or future therapeutic candidates, including but not limited to:

A number of companies in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries have suffered significant setbacks in advanced clinical trials, even after seeing promising results in earlier clinical trials. Despite the results reported in earlier clinical trials for Trappsol® Cyclo™, we do not know whether any Phase III or other clinical trials we may conduct will demonstrate adequate efficacy and safety to result in regulatory approval to market Trappsol® Cyclo™. If later-stage clinical trials do not produce favorable results, our ability to obtain regulatory approval for Trappsol® Cyclo™ may be adversely impacted.

Later discovery of previously unknown problems could limit our ability to market or sell Trappsol® Cyclo™, even if it is initially approved, and can expose us to product liability claims.

Later discovery of previously unknown problems with a product, including adverse events of unanticipated severity or frequency, or with any third-party manufacturers or manufacturing processes, or failure to comply with regulatory requirements, may result in, among other things: 

Discovery of previously unknown problems or risks relating to our product could also subject us to potential liabilities through product liability claims.

If we do not obtain required approvals in other countries in which we aim to market our products, we will be limited in our ability to export or sell the products in those markets.

Our lack of experience in conducting clinical trials in any jurisdiction may negatively impact the approval process in those jurisdictions where we intend to seek approval of Trappsol® Cyclo™. If we are unable to obtain and maintain required approval from one or more foreign jurisdictions where we would like to sell Trappsol® Cyclo™, we will be unable to market products as intended, our international market opportunity will be limited and our results of operations will be harmed.

We rely in part on third parties for research and clinical trials for products using Trappsol® Cyclo™.

We rely on contract research organizations (“CROs”), academic institutions, corporate partners, and other third parties to assist us in managing, monitoring, and otherwise carrying out clinical trials and research activities. We rely or will rely heavily on these parties for the execution of our clinical studies and control only certain aspects of their activities. Accordingly, we may have less control over the timing and other aspects of these clinical trials than if we conducted them entirely on our own. Although we rely on these third parties to manage the data from clinical trials, we will be responsible for confirming that each of our clinical trials is conducted in accordance with its general investigational plan and protocol. Our failure, or the failure of third parties on which we rely, to comply with the strict requirements relating to conducting, recording, and reporting the results of clinical trials, or to follow good clinical practices, may delay the regulatory approval process or cause us to fail to obtain regulatory approval for Trappsol® Cyclo™.

We currently have no marketing and sales organization for our pharmaceutical candidates and may have to invest significant resources to develop these capabilities. If we are unable to establish marketing and sales capabilities or enter into agreements with third parties to market and sell our product candidates, we may not be able to generate product revenue.

We have no internal sales, marketing or distribution capabilities for the sale of biopharmaceutical products. If any of our drug candidates ultimately receives regulatory approval, we may not be able to effectively market and distribute it. We may have to seek collaborators, especially for marketing and sales outside of the United States, or invest significant amounts of financial and management resources to develop internal sales, distribution and marketing capabilities. We may not be able to enter into collaborations or hire consultants or external service providers to assist us in sales, marketing and distribution functions on acceptable financial terms, or at all. In addition, our product revenues and our profitability, if any, may be lower if we rely on third parties for these functions than if we were to market, sell and distribute products that we develop ourselves. We likely will have little control over such third parties, and any of them may fail to devote the necessary resources and attention to sell and market our products effectively. Even if we determine to perform sales, marketing and distribution functions ourselves, we could face a number of additional related risks, including:

We rely upon third parties for the manufacture of Trappsol® Cyclo™ and are dependent on their quality and effectiveness.

Trappsol® Cyclo™ requires precise, high-quality manufacturing. The failure to achieve and maintain high manufacturing standards, including the failure to conform to c-GMP (current Good Manufacturing Practice), or to detect or control anticipated or unanticipated manufacturing errors or the frequent occurrence of such errors, could result in discontinuance or delay of ongoing or planned clinical trials, delays or failures in product testing or delivery, cost overruns, product recalls or withdrawals, patient injury or death, and other problems that could seriously hurt our business. Contract drug manufacturers often encounter difficulties involving production yields, quality control and quality assurance and shortages of qualified personnel. These manufacturers are subject to stringent regulatory requirements, including the FDA’s c-GMP regulations and similar foreign laws and standards. If our contract manufacturers fail to maintain ongoing compliance at any time, the production of our product candidates could be interrupted, resulting in delays or discontinuance of our clinical trials, additional costs and loss of potential revenues.

We face competition from well-funded companies to treat NPC.

We face competition from other entities, including pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies and governmental institutions that are working on supporting orphan drug designations and clinical trials for the neurological manifestations of NPC. Some of these entities are well-funded, with more financial, technical and personnel resources than we have, and have more experience than we do in designing and implementing clinical trials. If we are unable to compete effectively against our current or future competitors, sales of our Trappsol® Cyclo™ product may not grow and our financial condition may suffer.

Our business and operations would suffer in the event of computer system failures or security breaches.

In the ordinary course of our business, we collect, store and transmit confidential information, including intellectual property, proprietary business information and personal information. Despite the implementation of security measures, our internal computer systems, and those of our contract research organizations, or CROs, and other third parties on which we rely, are vulnerable to damage from computer viruses, unauthorized access, cyberattacks, natural disasters, fire, terrorism, war and telecommunication and electrical failures. Cyberattacks are increasing in their frequency, sophistication and intensity. Cyberattacks could include the deployment of harmful malware, denial-of-service attacks, social engineering and other means to affect service reliability and threaten the confidentiality, integrity and availability of information. Significant disruptions of our information technology systems or security breaches could adversely affect our business operations and/or result in the loss, misappropriation, and/or unauthorized access, use or disclosure of, or the prevention of access to, confidential information (including trade secrets or other intellectual property, proprietary business information and personal information), and could result in financial, legal, business and reputational harm to us. If such disruptions were to occur and cause interruptions in our operations, it could result in a material disruption of our product development programs. For example, the loss of clinical trial data from completed, ongoing or planned clinical trials could result in delays in our regulatory approval efforts and significantly increase our costs to recover or reproduce the data. Further, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a significant number of our employees and partners working remotely, which increases the risk of a data breach or issues with data and cybersecurity. To the extent that any disruption or security breach results in a loss of, or damage to, our data or applications, or inappropriate disclosure of confidential or proprietary information, we could incur liability and the further development of our future product candidates could be delayed.

We are subject to risks arising from the recent global outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus.

The recent outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus has spread across the globe and is impacting worldwide economic activity. A pandemic, including COVID-19 or other public health epidemic, poses the risk that we or our employees, CROs, suppliers, manufacturers and other partners may be prevented from conducting business activities for an indefinite period of time, including due to the spread of the disease or shutdowns that may be requested or mandated by governmental authorities.  While it is not possible at this time to estimate the full impact that COVID-19 could have on our business, the continued spread of COVID-19 could disrupt our clinical trials, supply chain and the manufacture or shipment of our cyclodextrin products, and other related activities, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. COVID-19 has also had an adverse impact on global economic conditions which could impair our ability to raise capital when needed. While we have not yet experienced any disruptions in our business or other negative consequences relating to COVID-19, the extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic impacts our results will depend on future developments that are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted.

Risks Related to Our Intellectual Property

The rights we rely upon to protect our unpatented trade secrets may be inadequate.

To manufacture and produce Trappsol® Cyclo™, we rely primarily on unpatented trade secrets, know-how and technology which are difficult to protect, especially in the pharmaceutical industry, where much of the information about a product must be made public during the regulatory approval process. We seek to protect trade secrets, in part, by entering into confidentiality agreements with third-party manufacturers, employees, consultants and others. These parties may breach or terminate these agreements or may refuse to enter into such agreements with us, and we may not have adequate remedies for such breaches. Furthermore, these agreements may not provide meaningful protection for our trade secrets or other proprietary information and may not provide an adequate remedy in the event of unauthorized use or disclosure of confidential information or other breaches of the agreements. Despite our efforts to protect our trade secrets, we or others may unintentionally or willfully disclose our proprietary information to competitors.

If we fail to maintain trade secret protection, our competitive position may be adversely affected. Competitors may also independently discover our trade secrets. Enforcement of claims that a third party has illegally obtained and is using trade secrets is expensive, time consuming and uncertain. If our competitors independently develop equivalent knowledge, methods and know-how, we would not be able to assert our trade secrets against them and our business could be harmed.

We cannot ensure that patent rights relating to inventions described and claimed in our pending patent applications will issue or that patents based on our patent applications will not be challenged and rendered invalid and/or unenforceable.

We have patent applications pending with respect to the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease with Trappsol® Cyclo™. However, we cannot predict:

We cannot be certain that the claims in our pending patent applications will be considered patentable by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office or by patent offices in foreign countries. Even if the patents do issue based on our patent applications, third parties may challenge the validity, enforceability or scope thereof, which may result in such patents being narrowed, invalidated or held unenforceable. Furthermore, even if they are unchallenged, our patents may not adequately exclude third parties from practicing relevant technology or prevent others from designing around our claims. If the breadth or strength of our intellectual property position with respect to our product candidates is threatened, it could dissuade companies from collaborating with us and threaten our ability to commercialize our product candidates. It is possible that third parties with whom we have collaborated may contend that they co-own patent rights we have filed, which, if correct and in the absence of an agreement to the contrary, could prevent us from asserting the patent rights against our competitors. Furthermore, in the event of litigation or administrative proceedings, we cannot be certain that the claims in any of our issued patents will be considered valid by courts in the United States or foreign countries.

We are susceptible to intellectual property suits that could cause us to incur substantial costs or pay substantial damages or prohibit us from selling our product candidates.

There is a substantial amount of litigation over patent and other intellectual property rights in the biotechnology industry. Whether or not a product infringes a patent involves complex legal and factual considerations, the determination of which is often uncertain. Searches typically performed to identify potentially infringed patents of third parties are often not conclusive and, because patent applications can take many years to issue, there may be applications now pending, which may later result in issued patents which our current or future products may infringe or be alleged to infringe. In addition, our competitors or other parties may assert that our product candidates and the methods employed may be covered by patents held by them. If any of our products infringes a valid patent, we could be prevented from manufacturing or selling such product unless we are able to obtain a license or able to redesign the product in such a manner as to avoid infringement. A license may not always be available or may require us to pay substantial royalties. We also may not be successful in any attempt to redesign our product to avoid infringement, nor does a later redesign protect the Company from prior infringement. We are aware of third party U.S. patents and patent applications, which may be relevant to our lead product candidate Trappsol® Cyclo™ for treating Niemann-Pick Type C disease. Although we believe that we would not infringe a valid claim of those patents or pending patent applications, if issued, the owner of the patent rights may disagree with our assessment and bring an infringement action against us. There is no assurance that a court would find in our favor on questions of infringement or validity. Infringement and other intellectual property claims, with or without merit, can be expensive and time-consuming to litigate and can divert our management’s attention from operating our business.

We may need to initiate lawsuits to protect or enforce our intellectual property rights, which could be expensive and, if we lose, could cause us to lose some of our intellectual property rights, which would harm our ability to compete in the market.

In order to protect or enforce our intellectual property rights, we may initiate patent, trademark and related litigation against third parties, such as infringement suits or requests for injunctive relief. Our ability to establish and maintain a competitive position may be achieved in part by prosecuting claims against others who we believe to be infringing its rights. Any lawsuits that we initiate could be expensive, take significant time and divert our management’s attention from other business concerns and the outcome of litigation to enforce our intellectual property rights in patents, trade secrets or trademarks is highly unpredictable. Litigation also puts our patents at risk of being invalidated or interpreted narrowly and our patent applications at risk of not issuing, or adversely affect our ability to distribute any products that are subject to such litigation. In addition, we may provoke third parties to assert claims against us. We may not prevail in any lawsuits that we initiate, and the damages or other remedies awarded, including attorney fees, if any, may not be commercially valuable.

Risks Related to Legal and Regulatory Compliance Matters

The pharmaceutical business is subject to increasing government regulation and reform, including with respect to price controls, reimbursement and access to drugs, which could adversely affect our future revenues and profitability.

To the extent our products are developed, commercialized, and successfully introduced to market, they may not be considered cost-effective, and third-party or government reimbursement might not be available or sufficient. Globally, governmental and other third-party payors are becoming increasingly aggressive in attempting to contain health care costs by strictly controlling, directly or indirectly, pricing and reimbursement and, in some cases, limiting or denying coverage altogether on the basis of a variety of justifications, and we expect pressures on pricing and reimbursement from both governments and private payors inside and outside the U.S. to continue.

If we obtain the required regulatory approval to sell our drug candidates, we will be subject to substantial pricing, reimbursement, and access pressures from state Medicaid programs, private insurance programs and pharmacy benefit managers, and the implementation of U.S. health care reform legislation that is increasing these pricing pressures. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as amended by the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act, instituted comprehensive health care reform, and includes provisions that, among other things, reduce and/or limit Medicare reimbursement, and impose new and/or increased taxes. The future of the Affordable Care Act and its constituent parts are uncertain at this time.

In almost all markets, pricing and choice of prescription pharmaceuticals are subject to governmental control. Therefore, the price of our products and their reimbursement in Europe and in other countries is and will be determined by national regulatory authorities. Reimbursement decisions from one or more of the European markets may impact reimbursement decisions in other European markets. A variety of factors are considered in making reimbursement decisions, including whether there is sufficient evidence to show that treatment with the product is more effective than current treatments, that the product represents good value for money for the health service it provides, and that treatment with the product works at least as well as currently available treatments.

The continuing efforts of government and insurance companies, health maintenance organizations, and other payors of health care costs to contain or reduce costs of health care may affect our future revenues and profitability or those of our potential customers, suppliers, and collaborative partners, as well as the availability of capital.

United States federal and state privacy laws, and equivalent laws of other nations, may increase our costs of operation and expose us to civil and criminal sanctions.

Regulation of data processing is evolving, as federal, state, and foreign governments continue to adopt new, or modify existing, laws and regulations addressing data privacy and security, and the collection, processing, storage, transfer, and use of data. These new or proposed laws and regulations are subject to differing interpretations and may be inconsistent among jurisdictions, and guidance on implementation and compliance practices are often updated or otherwise revised, which adds to the complexity of processing personal data. These and other requirements could require us or our collaborators to incur additional costs to achieve compliance, limit our competitiveness, necessitate the acceptance of more onerous obligations in our contracts, restrict our ability to use, store, transfer, and process data, impact our or our collaborators’ ability to process or use data in order to support the provision of our products, affect our or our collaborators’ ability to offer our products in certain locations, or cause regulators to reject, limit or disrupt our clinical trial activities.

We and our collaborators may be subject to federal, state and foreign data protection laws and regulations (i.e., laws and regulations that address privacy and data security). In the United States, numerous federal and state laws and regulations, including federal health information privacy laws, state personal information laws, state data breach notification laws, state health information privacy laws and federal and state consumer protection laws and regulations that govern the collection, use, disclosure and protection of health-related and other personal information could apply to our operations or the operations of our collaborators. In addition, we may obtain health information from third parties (including research institutions from which we obtain clinical trial data) that are subject to privacy and security requirements under the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, or HIPAA, as amended by the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009, or HITECH. Depending on the facts and circumstances, we could be subject to civil or criminal penalties if we knowingly use or disclose individually identifiable health information maintained by a HIPAA-covered entity in a manner that is not authorized or permitted by HIPAA.

Risks Related to Employee Matters

We are dependent on our executive officers, and we may not be able to pursue our current business strategy effectively if we lose them.

Our success to date has largely depended on the efforts and abilities of our executive officers, namely N. Scott Fine, our Chief Executive Officer, Jeffrey L. Tate, Ph.D., our Chief Operating Officer, and Sharon Hrynkow, Ph.D., our Chief Scientific Officer and Senior Vice President for Medical Affairs. Our ability to manage our operations and meet our business objectives could be adversely affected if, for any reason, such officers do not remain with us.

Our employees, clinical trial investigators, CROs, consultants, vendors and any potential commercial partners may engage in misconduct or other improper activities, including non-compliance with regulatory standards.

We are exposed to the risk of fraud or other misconduct by our employees, clinical trial investigators, CROs, consultants, vendors and any potential commercial partners. Misconduct by these parties could include intentional, reckless and/or negligent conduct or disclosure of unauthorized activities to us that violates: (i) U.S. laws and regulations or those of foreign jurisdictions, including those laws that require the reporting of true, complete and accurate information, (ii) manufacturing standards, (iii) federal and state health and data privacy, security, fraud and abuse, government price reporting, transparency reporting requirements, and other healthcare laws and regulations in the United States and abroad or (iv) laws that require the true, complete and accurate reporting of financial information or data. Such misconduct could also involve the improper use of information obtained in the course of clinical trials, which could result in regulatory sanctions and cause serious harm to our reputation. We have adopted a code of conduct applicable to all of our employees, as well as a disclosure program and other applicable policies and procedures, but it is not always possible to identify and deter employee misconduct, and the precautions we take to detect and prevent this activity may not be effective in controlling unknown or unmanaged risks or losses or in protecting us from governmental investigations or other actions or lawsuits stemming from a failure to comply with these laws or regulations. If any such actions are instituted against us, and we are not successful in defending ourselves or asserting our rights, those actions could have a significant impact on our business, including the imposition of significant civil, criminal and administrative penalties, damages, fines, disgorgement, individual imprisonment, exclusion from government funded healthcare programs, such as Medicare, Medicaid and other federal healthcare programs, contractual damages, reputational harm, diminished profits and future earnings, additional integrity reporting and oversight obligations, and the curtailment or restructuring of our operations, any of which could adversely affect our ability to operate our business and our results of operations.

If we fail to comply with the U.S. federal Anti-Kickback Statute and similar state and foreign country laws, we could be subject to criminal and civil penalties and exclusion from federally funded healthcare programs including the Medicare and Medicaid programs and equivalent third country programs, which would have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

A provision of the Social Security Act, commonly referred to as the federal Anti-Kickback Statute, prohibits the knowing and willful offer, payment, solicitation or receipt of any form of remuneration, directly or indirectly, in cash or in kind, to induce or reward the referring, ordering, leasing, purchasing or arranging for, or recommending the ordering, purchasing or leasing of, items or services payable, in whole or in part, by Medicare, Medicaid or any other federal healthcare program. The federal Anti-Kickback Statute is very broad in scope and many of its provisions have not been uniformly or definitively interpreted by existing case law or regulations. In addition, many states have adopted laws similar to the federal Anti-Kickback Statute that apply to activity in those states, and some of these laws are even broader than the federal Anti-Kickback Statute in that their prohibitions may apply to items or services reimbursed under Medicaid and other state programs or, in several states, apply regardless of the source of payment. Violations of the federal Anti-Kickback Statute may result in substantial criminal, civil or administrative penalties, damages, fines and exclusion from participation in federal healthcare programs.

While we believe our operations will be in compliance with the federal Anti-Kickback Statute and similar state laws, we cannot be certain that we will not be subject to investigations or litigation alleging violations of these laws, which could be time-consuming and costly to us and could divert management’s attention from operating our business, which in turn could have a material adverse effect on our business. In addition, if our arrangements were found to violate the federal Anti-Kickback Statute or similar state laws, the consequences of such violations would likely have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

Risks Related To Our Fine Chemical Business

A small number of our customers account for a substantial portion of our revenue, and the loss of any of these customers would materially decrease our revenues.

Our single largest customer accounted for 34% of our total sales in fiscal 2020 and our largest five customers collectively accounted for 81% of total sales in fiscal 2020. We have a supply contract with only one of our major customers. The loss of one of these customers would materially decrease our revenues if we were unable to replace such customers.

We are dependent on certain third-party suppliers.

We purchase the Trappsol® cyclodextrin products we sell from third-party suppliers and depend on those suppliers for the cyclodextrins we use in our Aquaplex® products. We are also dependent on outside manufacturers that use lyophilization techniques for our Aquaplex® products.   We purchase substantially all of our Trappsol® products from bulk manufacturers and distributors in the U.S., Japan, China, and Europe. Although products are available from multiple sources, an unexpected interruption of supply, or material increases in the price of products, for any reason, such as regulatory requirements, import restrictions, loss of certifications, power interruptions, fires, hurricanes, war or other events could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows. 

We may be negatively affected by currency exchange rate fluctuations.

Our earnings and cash flows are influenced by currency fluctuations due to the geographic diversity of our suppliers, which may have a significant impact on our financial results.  As we buy inventory from foreign suppliers, the change in the value of the U.S. dollar in relation to the Euro, Yen and Yuan has an effect on our cost of inventory, and will continue to do so. We buy most of our products from outside the U.S. using U.S. dollars. Our main supplier of specialty cyclodextrins and complexes, Cyclodextrin Research & Development Laboratory, is located in Hungary and its prices are set in Euros. The cost of our bulk inventory often changes due to fluctuations in the U.S. dollar. These products currently represent a significant portion of our revenues. When we experience short-term increases in currency fluctuation or supplier price increases, we are often not able to raise our prices sufficiently to maintain our historical margins and therefore, our margins on these sales may decline. If the U.S. dollar weakens against foreign currencies, the translation of these foreign currency denominated transactions may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

Risks Related To Our Common Stock

The market price of our Common Stock may be highly volatile, and you could lose all or part of your investment.

The trading price of our Common Stock and warrants is likely to be volatile. This volatility may prevent you from being able to sell your securities at or above the price you paid for your securities. Our stock price and warrant price could be subject to wide fluctuations in response to a variety of factors, which include:

In addition, the stock market in general, and the stock of clinical stage biotechnology companies in particular, have experienced extreme price and volume fluctuations that have often been unrelated or disproportionate to the operating performance of these companies. Broad market and industry factors may negatively affect the market price of our Common Stock, regardless of our actual operating performance.

If we are delisted from The Nasdaq Capital Market, and our shares become subject to the penny stock rules, it would become more difficult to trade our shares.

The SEC has adopted rules that regulate broker-dealer practices in connection with transactions in penny stocks. Penny stocks are generally equity securities with a price of less than $5.00, other than securities registered on certain national securities exchanges or authorized for quotation on certain automated quotation systems, provided that current price and volume information with respect to transactions in such securities is provided by the exchange or system. If we do not maintain a listing on Nasdaq and if the price of our Common Stock is less than $5.00, our Common Stock will be deemed a penny stock. The penny stock rules require a broker-dealer, before a transaction in a penny stock not otherwise exempt from those rules, to deliver a standardized risk disclosure document containing specified information. In addition, the penny stock rules require that before effecting any transaction in a penny stock not otherwise exempt from those rules, a broker-dealer must make a special written determination that the penny stock is a suitable investment for the purchaser and receive (i) the purchaser’s written acknowledgment of the receipt of a risk disclosure statement; (ii) a written agreement to transactions involving penny stocks; and (iii) a signed and dated copy of a written suitability statement. These disclosure requirements may have the effect of reducing the trading activity in the secondary market for our Common Stock, and therefore stockholders may have difficulty selling their shares.

Our failure to meet the continued listing requirements of The Nasdaq Capital Market could result in a de-listing of our securities.

If we fail to satisfy the continued listing requirements of Nasdaq, such as the corporate governance requirements or the minimum closing bid price requirement, Nasdaq may take steps to de-list our securities. Such a de-listing would likely have a negative effect on the price of our Common Stock and would impair your ability to sell or purchase our Common Stock when you wish to do so. In the event of a de-listing, we would take actions to restore our compliance with Nasdaq’s listing requirements, but we can provide no assurance that any such action taken by us would allow our Common Stock to become listed again, stabilize the market price or improve the liquidity of our securities, prevent our Common Stock from dropping below the Nasdaq minimum bid price requirement or prevent future non-compliance with Nasdaq’s listing requirements.

We will indemnify and hold harmless our officers and directors to the maximum extent permitted by Nevada law.

Our bylaws provide that we will indemnify and hold harmless our officers and directors against claims arising from our activities, to the maximum extent permitted by Nevada law. If we were called upon to perform under our indemnification agreement, then the portion of our assets expended for such purpose would reduce the amount otherwise available for our business.

Because we do not expect to pay dividends for the foreseeable future, investors seeking cash dividends should not purchase shares of Common Stock.

We have never declared or paid any cash dividends on our Common Stock. We currently intend to retain future earnings, if any, to finance the expansion of our business. As a result, we do not anticipate paying any cash dividends in the foreseeable future. Our payment of any future dividends will be at the discretion of our Board of Directors after taking into account various factors, including but not limited to our financial condition, operating results, cash needs, growth plans and the terms of any credit agreements that we may be a party to at the time. Accordingly, investors seeking cash dividends should not purchase our shares.

Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments.

Not applicable.

Item 2.  Properties.

We do not currently own any real property. In December 2016, we sold our office and manufacturing facility located in Alachua, Florida for $800,000 and entered into a lease with respect to 2,500 square feet of office and warehouse space located in Gainesville, Florida for $1,600 per month. On December 16, 2020, we entered into a new lease with respect to these premises for $1,650 month, which lease expires on January 31, 2023, subject to a two-year renewal option that may be exercised by us only with the landlord’s approval. We believe that this leased property is currently sufficient for our operating requirements, and that we will be able to find alternative space suitable for our needs in the event we are unable to renew this lease upon its expiration.

Item 3.  Legal Proceedings.

From time to time, we are a party to claims and legal proceedings arising in the ordinary course of business. Our management evaluates our exposure to these claims and proceedings individually and in the aggregate and allocates additional monies for potential losses on such litigation if it is possible to estimate the amount of loss and if the amount of the loss is probable. Other than as set forth above, we are not currently involved in any litigation nor to our knowledge, is any litigation threatened against us, the outcome of which would, in our judgment based on information currently available to us, have a material adverse effect on our financial position or results of operations.

Item 4.  Mine Safety Disclosures.

Not applicable.

PART II

Item 5.  Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities.

Our Common Stock and warrants are traded on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbols “CYTH” and “CYTHW” respectively.

Holders

As of March 10, 2021, the number of holders of record of shares of Common Stock, excluding the number of beneficial owners whose securities are held in street name, was approximately 253.

Dividend Policy

The Company paid no dividends in 2020 and will not pay any cash dividends on its Common Stock in 2021 because it intends to retain its earnings to finance the expansion of its business. Any future declaration of dividends will be determined by the Board of Directors in light of conditions then existing, including without limitation the Company’s financial condition, capital requirements and business condition.

Item 6.  Selected Financial Data

Not applicable.

Item 7.  Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

This Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, and other parts of this prospectus contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. All forward-looking statements included in this prospectus are based on information available to us on the date hereof, and we assume no obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors, including those set forth in the section captioned “Risk Factors” in Annual Report. The following should be read in conjunction with our audited financial statements included elsewhere herein.

Overview

We are a clinical stage biotechnology company that develops cyclodextrin-based products for the treatment of disease. We filed a Type II Drug Master File with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) in 2014 for our lead drug candidate, Trappsol® Cyclo™ (hydroxypropyl beta cyclodextrin) as a treatment for Niemann-Pick Type C disease (“NPC”). NPC is a rare and fatal cholesterol metabolism disease that impacts the brain, lungs, liver, spleen, and other organs. In 2015, we launched an International Clinical Program for Trappsol® Cyclo™ as a treatment for NPC. In 2016, we filed an Investigational New Drug application (“IND”) with the FDA, which described our Phase I clinical plans for a randomized, double blind, parallel group study at a single clinical site in the U.S. The Phase I study evaluated the safety of Trappsol® Cyclo™ along with markers of cholesterol metabolism and markers of NPC during a 14-week treatment period of intravenous administration of Trappsol® Cyclo™ every two weeks to participants 18 years of age and older. The IND was approved by the FDA in September 2016, and in January 2017 the FDA granted Fast Track designation to Trappsol® Cyclo™ for the treatment of NPC. Initial patient enrollment in the U.S. Phase I study commenced in September 2017. Enrollment in this study was completed in October 2019, and in May 2020 we announced Top Line data showing a favorable safety and tolerability profile for Trappsol® Cyclo™ in this study.

We have also filed Clinical Trial Applications for a Phase I/II clinical study with several European regulatory bodies, including those in the United Kingdom, Sweden and Italy, and in Israel, all of which have approved our applications. The Phase I/II study is evaluating the safety, tolerability and efficacy of Trappsol® Cyclo™ through a range of clinical outcomes, including neurologic, and respiratory, in addition to measurements of cholesterol metabolism and markers of NPC. The European/Israel study is similar to the U.S. study, providing for the administration of Trappsol® Cyclo™ intravenously to NPC patients every two weeks in a double-blind, randomized trial but it differs in that the study period is for 48 weeks (24 doses). The first patient was dosed in this study in July 2017, and in February 2020, we announced completion of enrollment of 12 patients in this study. In September 2020, we released positive data from the seven patients who completed the trial, supporting the efficacy of Trappsol® Cyclo™ in treating NPC patients.

Additionally, in February 2020 we had a face-to-face “Type C” meeting with the FDA with respect to the initiation of our pivotal Phase III clinical trial of Trappsol® Cyclo™ based on the clinical data obtained to date. At that meeting, we also discussed with the FDA submitting a New Drug Application (NDA) under Section 505(b)(1) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act for the treatment of NPC in pediatric and adult patients with Trappsol® Cyclo™. A similar request was submitted to the European Medicines Agency (“EMA”) in February 2020, seeking scientific advice and protocol assistance from the EMA for proceeding with a Phase III clinical trial in Europe. In October 2020 we received a “Study May Proceed” notification from the FDA with respect to the proposed Phase III clinical trial. We currently estimate that in the event our pivotal Phase III trial proceeds as planned and provides further data supporting the safety and efficacy of Trappsol® Cyclo™ in the treatment of NPC, we may obtain regulatory approval of Trappsol® Cyclo™ as early as 2023.

Preliminary data from our clinical studies suggest that Trappsol® Cyclo™ releases cholesterol from cells, crosses the blood-brain-barrier in individuals suffering from NPC, and results in neurological and neurocognitive benefits and other clinical improvements in NPC patients. The full significance of these findings will be determined as part of the final analysis of these clinical trials.

On May 17, 2010, the FDA designated Trappsol® Cyclo™ as an orphan drug for the treatment of NPC, which would provide us with the exclusive right to sell Trappsol® Cyclo™ for the treatment of NPC for seven years following FDA drug approval. In April 2015, we also obtained Orphan Drug Designation for Trappsol® Cyclo™ in Europe, which will provide us with 10 years of market exclusivity following regulatory approval, which period will be extended to 12 years upon acceptance by the EMA’s Pediatric Committee of our pediatric investigation plan (PIP) demonstrating that Trappsol® Cyclo™ addresses the pediatric population. On January 12, 2017, we received Fast Track Designation from the FDA, and on December 1, 2017, the FDA designated NPC a Rare Pediatric Disease.

We are also exploring the use of cyclodextrins in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. In January 2018, the FDA authorized a single patient IND expanded access program using Trappsol® Cyclo™ for the treatment of this disease. After 18 months of treatment in this geriatric patient with late-onset disease, the disease was stabilized and the drug was well tolerated. The patient also exhibited signs of improvement with less volatility and shorter latency in word-finding. In October 2019, we entered into an agreement with Worldwide Clinical Trials, a Contract Research Organization, to conduct a clinical trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of Trappsol® Cyclo™ for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. We prepared a synopsis for an early stage protocol using Trappsol® Cyclo™ intravenously to treat Alzheimer’s Disease, and we plan to present this synopsis to the FDA in early 2021.

We filed an International patent application in October 2019 under the Patent Cooperation Treaty directed to the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease with cyclodextrins, and we expect to pursue one or more national or regional stage applications based on this International application. The terms of any patents resulting from these national or regional stage applications would be expected to provide us with patent protection until 2039.

We also continue to operate our legacy fine chemical business, consisting of the sale of cyclodextrins and related products to the pharmaceutical, nutritional, and other industries, primarily for use in diagnostics and specialty drugs. However, our core business has transitioned to a biotechnology company primarily focused on the development of cyclodextrin-based biopharmaceuticals for the treatment of disease from a business that had been primarily reselling basic cyclodextrin products. 

Year Ended December 31, 2020 Compared to Ended December 31, 2019

For 2020, we incurred a net loss of approximately $8,942,000, compared to a net loss in 2019 of approximately $7,532,500. Total revenues for 2020 were $903,000 compared to $1,007,000 for 2019.   

Our change in the mix of our product sales for 2020 and 2019 is as follows: 

Trappsol® Cyclo™ HPBCDs
First and second-generation formulations of Trappsol® Cyclo™ HPBCD (in liquid and powder form) have been sold to a single customer who exports to Brazil for compassionate use in NPC patients.  Sales decreased 71% to approximately $30,000 for 2020 from approximately $104,000 for 2019. The population of patients who use the product on a compassionate basis is small.

Trappsol® HPB
Our sales of Trappsol® HPB increased 10% to approximately $527,000 for 2020 from approximately $481,000 for 2019. 

Trappsol® other products
Our sales of other Trappsol® products increased 24% to approximately $330,000 for 2020 from approximately $266,000 for 2019. 

Aquaplex®
Our sales of Aquaplex® decreased to approximately $7,000 for 2020 compared to approximately $150,000 for 2019, and are primarily attributable to a single customer. The decrease in sales is representative of the periodic purchasing pattern of our primary Aquaplex® customer.  Aquaplex® sales to this customer for the last five years were approximately $7,000 in 2020 $150,000 in 2019, $111,000 in 2018, $17,000 in 2017, and $134,000 in 2016. 

The largest customers of our legacy fine chemical business continue to follow historical product ordering trends to place periodic large orders that represent a significant share of our annual revenue volume. In 2020, our five largest customers (Charles River Laboratories, Inc., Ventana Medical Systems, Inc., Thermofisher Scientific Diagnostics, Inc., Uno Healthcare and Siemens) accounted for 81% of our revenues, and the largest accounted for 34% of our revenues. In 2019, our five largest customers (Charles River Laboratories, Inc., Ventana Medical Systems, Inc., Sigma-Aldrich Fine Chemicals, Inc., Uno Healthcare, and Thermofisher Scientific Diagnostics, Inc.) accounted for 78% of our revenues, and the largest accounted for 25% of our revenues. Historically, our usual smaller sales of HPB occur more frequently throughout the year compared to our large sales that we receive periodically.  The timing of when we receive and are able to complete these two kinds of sales has a significant effect on our quarterly revenues and operating results and makes period to period comparisons difficult. 

Our cost of products sold decreased to approximately $66,000 for 2020 compared to approximately $75,500 for 2019. Our cost of products sold as a percentage of product sales was 7.0% for 2020 and 2019.  This percentage is a function of the sales make up by product mix as well as customer order size.  Historically, the timing and product mix of sales to our large customers has had a significant effect on our sales, cost of products sold and the related margin. We did not experience any significant increases in material costs during 2020 or 2019. 

Our gross margins may not be comparable to those of other entities, since some entities include all the costs related to their distribution network in cost of goods sold. Our cost of goods sold includes only the direct cost of products sold and does not include any allocation of inbound or outbound freight charges, indirect overhead expenses, warehouse and distribution expenses, or depreciation and amortization expense. Our employees provide management, receiving, inspection, warehousing and shipping operations for us. The cost of our employees is included in personnel expense. Our other costs of warehousing and shipping functions are included in office and other expense.

As we buy inventory from foreign suppliers, the change in the value of the U.S. dollar in relation to the Euro, Yen and Yuan has an effect on our cost of inventory. Our main supplier of specialty cyclodextrins and complexes, Cyclodextrin Research & Development Laboratory, is located in Hungary and its prices are set in Euros. The cost of our bulk inventory often changes due to fluctuations in the U.S. dollar. The cost of shipping from outside the U.S. also has a significant effect on our inventory acquisition costs. When we experience short-term increases in currency fluctuation or supplier price increases, we are often not able to raise our prices sufficiently to maintain our historical margins.  Therefore, our margins on these sales may decline. 

Personnel expenses increased 34% to approximately $2,562,000 for 2020, from approximately $1,906,000 for 2019.  In June 2019 we hired a Chief Financial Officer (CFO) on a part-time basis, and in September 2019 we hired a Global Head of Regulatory Affairs and Senior Vice President of Business Development. Increased personnel expenses reflect compensation expense and stock awards. In December 2020 the CFO went from part-time to full-time.

Research and development expenses increased 25% to approximately $6,096,000 for 2020, from approximately $4,869,000 for 2019. The increase in research and development expenses is due to increased activity in our International Clinical Program and U.S. clinical trials. We expect research and development costs to further increase in 2021 as we continue to seek regulatory approval for the use of Trappsol® Cyclo™ in the treatment of NPC and Alzheimer’s disease.

Repairs and maintenance expenses decreased 13% to approximately $7,000 for 2020 from approximately $8,000 for 2019.  This decrease is due to varying levels of maintenance required on equipment and rental facilities.  We expect our repairs and maintenance expenses to remain consistent in 2021. 

Professional fees decreased 6% to approximately $537,000 for 2020 from approximately $572,000 for 2019.  Professional fees may increase in the future due to new initiatives in raising capital and the continuation of product development.

Office and other expenses decreased 40% to approximately $507,000 for 2020 from approximately $846,000 for 2019. Office and other expenses include costs for travel to, and participation in, industry conferences and similar events, which were limited in 2020 due to COVID-19, and investor relations expenses.

Board of Directors fees and costs decreased to approximately $70,000 for 2020 from approximately $109,000 for 2019.  Board of Directors fees and costs include fees paid to our non-employee directors and scientific advisory board members, reimbursement of expenses of our board members, and related expenses.

Amortization and depreciation increased to approximately $13,000 for 2020 from approximately $6,000 for 2019.  These expenses fluctuate slightly with equipment purchases and dispositions. 

Freight and shipping expenses were approximately $5,000 for 2020 compared to approximately $6,000 for 2019. Freight and shipping is dependent on frequency of ordering products for inventory and frequency of shipping out products sold.

We recorded an impairment expense for slow moving and expired inventory of approximately $154,000 for 2019.  We did not incur this expense in 2020.

We increased our valuation allowance to allow for 100% of the 2020 increase in our deferred tax asset and did not recognize an income tax benefit or provision for 2020 and 2019.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Our cash increased to approximately $12,846,000 as of December 31, 2020, compared to approximately $2,784,000 as of December 31, 2019, primarily as the result of the public and private sales of our securities, including the public offering we closed in December 2020 described below. Our current assets less current liabilities were approximately $10,378,000 as of December 31, 2020, compared to approximately $817,000 at December 31, 2019. Cash used in operations was approximately $8,540,000 for the year ended December 31, 2020, compared to approximately $6,589,000 for 2019. The increase in cash used in operations is due primarily to our net loss and increasing expenses for our drug development and expansion strategy, which we intend to continue funding with the capital we raise. 

On May 31, 2019, we completed a private placement of our securities to a group of accredited investors that included several directors of the Company and members of management. Investors in the private placement purchased a total of 297,700 units at a price per unit of $25.00, each unit consisting of one share of Common Stock and one warrant to purchase a share of Common Stock, resulting in gross proceeds to us of $7,442,500, before deducting placement agent fees and offering expenses.

In April 2020, we completed a private placement in which we raised $2,000,000 from the sale of 200,000 shares of Common Stock, at a price $10.00 per share, and in August 2020, we completed a private placement in which we raised an additional approximately $2,831,000 from the sale of 283,111 units at a price of $10.00 per unit, each unit consisting of one share of Common Stock and a seven-year warrant to purchase one share of Common Stock at an exercise price of $15.00 per share.

We also borrowed approximately $158,000 under the Paycheck Protection Program in May 2020, and plan to use the loan proceeds for qualifying expenses and to apply for forgiveness of the loan in accordance with the terms of the CARES Act. While we currently believe our use of the loan proceeds met or will meet the conditions for forgiveness of the loan, there can be no assurance in that regard.

On December 11, 2020 we sold an aggregate of 2,500,000 units at a price to the public of $5.00 per unit (the “Public Offering”), each unit consisting of one share of our Common Stock, and a warrant to purchase one share of Common Stock at an exercise price of $5.00 per share (the “Warrants”), pursuant to an Underwriting Agreement we entered into with Maxim Group LLC (“Maxim”). In addition, pursuant to the Underwriting Agreement, we granted Maxim a 45-day option to purchase up to 375,000 additional shares of Common Stock, and/or 375,000 additional Warrants, to cover over-allotments in connection with the Offering, which Maxim partially exercised to purchase 375,000 Warrants on the closing date.

We received gross proceeds of $12,503,750 upon the initial closing of the Public Offering, before deducting underwriting discounts and commissions of eight percent (8%), and expenses.  On December 22, 2020, we sold an additional 375,000 shares of Common Stock to Maxim upon its exercise of the balance of its over-allotment option, and received additional gross proceeds of $1,871,250 from such sale, bringing the total gross proceeds of the Public Offering to $14,375,000.   The total expenses of the Public Offering were approximately $1,703,000 which included Maxim’s expenses relating to the offering.

Pursuant to the Underwriting Agreement, we issued warrants (the “Underwriter’s Warrants”) to Maxim to purchase up to a total of 57,500 shares of Common Stock (2% of the shares of Common Stock sold in the Public Offering). The Underwriter’s Warrants are exercisable at $6.25 per share of Common Stock and have a term of five years.

Subsequent to the closing of our December 2020 Public Offering through March 10, 2021, Warrants to purchase an aggregate of 1,654,184 shares of Common Stock were exercised resulting in gross proceeds to the Company of approximately $8,271,000.

The Company has continued to realize losses from operations. However, as a result of our Public Offering, we believe we will have sufficient cash to meet our anticipated operating costs and capital expenditure requirements through March 2022.  We will need to raise additional capital in the future to support our ongoing operations and continue our clinical trials.  We expect to continue to raise additional capital through the sale of our securities from time to time for the foreseeable future to fund the development of our drug product candidates through clinical development, manufacturing and commercialization. Our ability to obtain such additional capital will likely be subject to various factors, including our overall business performance and market conditions. There can be no guarantee that the Company will be successful in its ability to raise capital to fund future operational and development initiatives.

At December 31, 2020, we had approximately $25,168,000 in net state and federal operating loss carryforwards expiring from 2021 through 2037, including $17,000,000 that will not expire, that can be used to offset our current and future taxable net income and reduce our income tax liabilities. We have provided a 100% valuation allowance on our deferred tax asset based on our expected future expenses related to our clinical trials and other development initiatives. 

We had no off-balance sheet arrangements as of December 31, 2020.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

The results of operations are based on the preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. The preparation of consolidated financial statements requires management to select accounting policies for critical accounting areas as well as make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the consolidated financial statements. The Company’s accounting policies are more fully described in Note 1 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for our year ended December 31, 2020. Significant changes in assumptions and/or conditions in our critical accounting policies could materially impact the operating results. We have identified the following accounting policies and related judgments as critical to understanding the results of our operations. 

Revenue Recognition

Revenues are recognized when our customer obtains control of promised goods or services, in an amount that reflects the consideration which we expect to receive in exchange for those goods or services. We recognize revenues following the five step model prescribed under ASU No. 2014-09: (i) identify contract(s) with a customer; (ii) identify the performance obligations in the contract; (iii) determine the transaction price; (iv) allocate the transaction price to the performance obligations in the contract; and (v) recognize revenues when (or as) we satisfy the performance obligation.

Product Revenues

In the U.S. we sell our products to the end user or wholesale distributors. In other countries, we sell our products primarily to wholesale distributors and other third-party distribution partners. These customers subsequently resell our products to health care providers and patients.

Revenues from product sales are recognized when the customer obtains control of our product, which occurs at a point in time, typically upon delivery to the customer. We expense incremental costs of obtaining a contract as and when incurred if the expected amortization period of the asset that we would have recognized is one year or less or the amount is immaterial.  We treat shipping and handling costs performed after a customer obtains control of the product as a fulfillment cost. We have identified one performance obligation in our contracts with customers which is the delivery of product to our customers.  The transaction price is recognized in full when we deliver the product to our customer, which is the point at which we have satisfied our performance obligation.

Reserves for Discounts and Allowances

Revenues from product sales are recorded net of reserves established for applicable discounts and allowances that are offered within contracts with our customers, health care providers or payors, including those associated with the implementation of pricing actions in certain of the international markets in which we operate. Our process for estimating reserves established for these variable consideration components do not differ materially from our historical practices.

Product revenue reserves, which are classified as a reduction in product revenues, are generally characterized in the following categories: discounts, contractual adjustments and returns. These reserves are based on estimates of the amounts earned or to be claimed on the related sales and are classified as reductions of accounts receivable (if the amount is payable to our customer) or a liability (if the amount is payable to a party other than our customer). Our estimates of reserves established for variable consideration typically utilize the most likely method and reflect our historical experience, current contractual and statutory requirements, specific known market events and trends, industry data and forecasted customer buying and payment patterns. The transaction price, which includes variable consideration reflecting the impact of discounts and allowances, may be subject to constraint and is included in the net sales price only to the extent that it is probable that a significant reversal of the amount of the cumulative revenues recognized will not occur in a future period. Actual amounts may ultimately differ from our estimates. If actual results vary, we adjust these estimates, which could have an effect on earnings in the period of adjustment.

Valuation Allowance on Deferred Tax Assets

At December 31, 2020, we fully reserved for our net deferred tax asset with an approximately $12,182,000 valuation allowance. We increased our valuation allowance by approximately $3,302,000 in 2020 to reduce our recognized deferred tax asset to zero.

We have determined it is more likely than not that we will not realize our temporary deductible differences and net operating loss carryforwards, and we have provided a 100% valuation allowance at December 31, 2020.

Current accounting standards require that deferred tax assets be evaluated for future realization and reduced by the extent to which we believe a portion will not be realized. We consider many factors when assessing the likelihood of future realization of our deferred tax assets including our recent cumulative earnings (loss) experience, expectations of future expenses from research and development and product development, expectations of future taxable income, the carry-forward periods available to us for tax reporting purposes, and other relevant factors.  The range of possible judgments relating to the valuation of our deferred tax asset is very wide.  Significant judgment is required in making this assessment, and it is very difficult to predict when, if ever, our assessment may conclude our deferred tax assets are realizable.  

Research and Development

The Company’s research and development activities and expenses are related to our International Clinical Trial Program. We expense our research and development costs as incurred. 

Forward-looking Statements

This Annual Report on Form 10-K contains forward-looking statements that reflect our current expectations about our future results, performance, prospects and opportunities. These forward-looking statements are subject to significant risks, uncertainties, and other factors, including those identified in "Risk Factors" above, which may cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, any forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements within this Form 10-K may be identified by words such as "believes," "anticipates," "expects," "intends," "may," "would," "will" and other similar expressions. However, these words are not the exclusive means of identifying these statements. In addition, any statements that refer to expectations, projections or other characterizations of future events or circumstances are forward-looking statements. Except as expressly required by the federal securities laws, we undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances occurring subsequent to the filing of this Form 10-K with the SEC or for any other reason. You should carefully review and consider the various disclosures we make in this report and our other reports filed with the SEC that attempt to advise interested parties of the risks, uncertainties and other factors that may affect our business.

Item 7A.  Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk.

Not applicable.

Item 8.  Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.

CYCLO THERAPEUTICS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Table of Contents

REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

To the Board of Directors and Stockholders, Cyclo Therapeutics, Inc.

Opinion on the Financial Statements

We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of Cyclo Therapeutics, Inc. and subsidiaries, (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, and the related consolidated statements of operations, stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for each of the years in the two-year period ended December 31, 2020, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”). In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the two years in the period ended December 31, 2020, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

Basis for Opinion

These consolidated financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these consolidated financial statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) ("PCAOB") and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Company is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audits, we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Company's internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.

Our audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the consolidated financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the consolidated financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the consolidated financial statements. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

Critical Audit Matters

The critical audit matters communicated below are matters arising from the current period audit of the consolidated financial statements that were communicated or required to be communicated to the audit committee and that: (1) relate to accounts or disclosures that are material to the consolidated financial statements and (2) involved our especially challenging, subjective, or complex judgments. The communication of critical audit matters does not alter in any way our opinion on the consolidated financial statements, taken as a whole, and we are not, by communicating the critical audit matters below, providing separate opinions on the critical audit matters or on the accounts or disclosures to which they relate.

The Company’s business plan and going concern considerations

Description of the Matter:

The Company’s financial statements as of and for the year ended December 31, 2019 included a disclosure of their liquidity and a going concern and the Company concluded as and for the year ended December 31, 2020 there was no such disclosure required.

Auditing management’s conclusions about whether there are conditions and events that raise substantial doubt about the entity’s ability to continue as a going concern within one year after the financial statements are issued is subjective and requires significant judgement.

How We Addressed the Matter in Our Audit:

We obtained an understanding of controls over the Company’s process for determining their ability to continue as a going concern.

To assess the Company’s conclusion about their ability to continue as a going concern, we obtained an analysis about their plans and reviewed all the positive and negative conditions.  In addition to examining all subsequent events we received the Company’s estimated operating budget, including capital expenditures, for the year ending December 31, 2021 and for the period from January 1, 2022 through March 31, 2022.  We examined the budget for reasonableness in addition to reviewing management’s plans and considered whether it is likely that the Company will have sufficient available cash to fund their continuing operations and meet their current obligations as they become due for a reasonable period of time, and that such plans can be effectively implemented.

Valuation of Inventory

Description of the Matter:

At December 31, 2020, the Company had an inventory balance of $289,794 with an allowance for obsolete inventory of $52,922 As discussed in Note 1 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company’s most significant estimate relates to inventory obsolescence which management bases on historical experience.

Auditing management’s estimates for excess and obsolete inventory involved subjective auditor judgment because management’s assessment of whether a write-down is required and the measurement of any excess of cost over net realizable value is judgmental and considers a number of qualitative factors that are affected by market and economic conditions outside of the Company’s control.

How We Addressed the Matter in Our Audit:

We obtained an understanding of the controls over the Company’s inventory and obsolescence review process.  We further tested the Company’s processes and the design of internal controls addressing the identified audit risks.  This includes controls over management’s assessment of inventory valuation of excess and obsolete inventory. 

To test the estimated net realizable value of the Company’s inventory and the adequacy of the reserve for obsolete inventory, our audit procedures included, among others, assessing the methodologies and testing the significant assumptions used by the Company to purchase and record inventory received and accrue for obsolescence. Our procedures to test the adequacy of the reserve for obsolescence included comparing sales data with inventory on hand and developing an aging of inventory on hand as of December 31, 2020. This analysis was used to identify slow moving inventory and also to develop an independent estimate of the allowance based on historical data. The independent estimate was compared to the actual inventory obsolescence reserve recorded by management to evaluate the reasonableness of the calculations.  In addition we tested the net realizable value of inventory on hand by examining a sample of items purchased and the related costs billed by the manufacturer.  The Company uses a contract manufacturer to produce its products for inventory and therefore there was no overhead included in the cost of inventory.  For the items sampled we also examined a related sales transaction to ensure the sales value was in excess of the historical costs held, which ensured the value of the inventory was recorded at the lower of costs or net realizable value.

/s/ WithumSmith+Brown, PC

We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2011.

Orlando, Florida

March 12, 2021

CYCLO THERAPEUTICS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.

CYCLO THERAPEUTICS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.

CYCLO THERAPEUTICS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2020 AND 2019

See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.

CYCLO THERAPEUTICS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements

CYCLO THERAPEUTICS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES

NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

DECEMBER 31, 2020 AND 2019

Item 9.  Changes In and Disagreements With Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure

None.

Item 9A.  Controls and Procedures

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures.

Disclosure controls and procedures are the Company’s controls and other procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by us in the reports that we file or submit under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms. Disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by us in the reports that we file under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to our management, including our principal executive officer and principal financial officer, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. Our management recognizes that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can only provide reasonable assurance of achieving their objectives and management necessarily applies its judgment in evaluating the possible controls and procedures.

Our management has evaluated, with the participation of our principal executive officer and principal financial officer, the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures (as such term is defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act) as of the end of the period covered by this report. Based upon this evaluation, our management, including our principal executive officer and principal financial officer, has concluded that, as of the end of the period covered by this report, the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures were effective at the reasonable assurance level.

Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting

Company management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting. Internal control over financial reporting is a process designed by, or under the supervision of, our principal executive and principal financial officers and effected by the Company’s Board of Directors, management and other personnel to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and includes those policies and procedures that:

Because of inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risks that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

Management assessed the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2020.  In making this assessment, management used the criteria set forth in Internal Control – Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission.   Based on our assessment, management has concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was effective as of December 31, 2020.

Changes in Internal Control.

We made no changes in our internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act) identified in connection with the evaluation of our internal controls that occurred during our last fiscal quarter that has materially affected, or which is reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

Item 9B.  Other Information.

None.

PART III

Item 10.  Directors, Executive Officers, Promoters, Control Persons and Corporate Governance.

Information with respect to this item will be set forth in the Proxy Statement for the 2021 Annual Meeting of Stockholders (“Proxy Statement”) under the headings “Directors,” “Executive Officers,” “Delinquent Section 16 Reports” and “Corporate Governance” or an amendment to this Annual Report on Form 10-K (“Form 10-K/A”), and is incorporated herein by reference. The Proxy Statement or Form 10-K/A, as the case may be, will be filed with the SEC within 120 days after the end of the fiscal year covered by this Annual Report on Form 10-K. 

Item 11.  Executive Compensation.

Information with respect to this item will be set forth in the Proxy Statement under the headings “Executive Compensation” and “Director Compensation,” or the Form 10-K/A, and is incorporated herein by reference. 

Item 12.  Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters.

Information with respect to this item will be set forth in the Proxy Statement under the headings “Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management” and “Executive Compensation—Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans” or the Form 10-K/A, and is incorporated herein by reference.  

Item 13.  Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence.

Information with respect to this item will be set forth in the Proxy Statement under the headings “Related Party Transactions” and “ Director Independence” and is incorporated herein by reference or the Form 10-K/A.

Item 14.  Principal Accountant Fees and Services.

Information with respect to this item will be set forth in the Proxy Statement under the headings “Audit and Non-Audit Related Fees” and “Pre-Approval Policy” and is incorporated herein by reference or the Form 10-K/A.

PART IV

Item 15.  Exhibits, Financial Statement Schedules.

SIGNATURES

In accordance with Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act, the Registrant caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.

In accordance with the Exchange Act, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.