LIXTE BIOTECHNOLOGY HOLDINGS, INC. - Quarter Report: 2018 March (Form 10-Q)

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-Q

[X] QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the quarterly period ended March 31, 2018

[  ] TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

Commission file number: 000-51476

LIXTE BIOTECHNOLOGY HOLDINGS, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

248 Route 25A, No. 2

East Setauket, New York 11733

(Address of principal executive offices)

(631) 942-7959

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Not applicable

(Former name, former address and former fiscal year, if changed since last report)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.

Yes [X] No [  ]

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).

Yes [X] No [  ]

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. [  ]

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).

Yes [  ] No [X]

As of May 1, 2018, the Company had 58,025,814 shares of common stock, $0.0001 par value, issued and outstanding.

Documents incorporated by reference: None

LIXTE BIOTECHNOLOGY HOLDINGS, INC.
AND SUBSIDIARY

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Forward-Looking Statements

This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q of Lixte Biotechnology Holdings, Inc. (the “Company”) contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These might include statements regarding the Company’s financial position, business strategy and other plans and objectives for future operations, and assumptions and predictions about future product demand, supply, manufacturing, costs, marketing and pricing factors are all forward-looking statements. These statements are generally accompanied by words such as “intend,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “potential(ly),” “continue,” “forecast,” “predict,” “plan,” “may,” “will,” “could,” “would,” “should,” “expect” or the negative of such terms or other comparable terminology. The Company believes that the assumptions and expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, based on information available to it on the date hereof, but the Company cannot provide assurances that these assumptions and expectations will prove to have been correct or that the Company will take any action that the Company may presently be planning. These forward-looking statements are inherently subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties. Actual results or experience may differ materially from those expected, anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, regulatory policies or changes thereto, available cash, research and development results, competition from other similar businesses, and market and general economic factors. This discussion should be read in conjunction with the condensed consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in Item 1 of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017, including the section entitled “Item 1A. Risk Factors”. The Company does not intend to update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect new information, future events or otherwise.

PART I - FINANCIAL INFORMATION

ITEM 1. CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

LIXTE BIOTECHNOLOGY HOLDINGS, INC.

AND SUBSIDIARY

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

LIXTE BIOTECHNOLOGY HOLDINGS, INC.

AND SUBSIDIARY

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(Unaudited)

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

LIXTE BIOTECHNOLOGY HOLDINGS, INC.

AND SUBSIDIARY

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

(Unaudited)

Three Months Ended March 31, 2018

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

LIXTE BIOTECHNOLOGY HOLDINGS, INC.

AND SUBSIDIARY

CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

LIXTE BIOTECHNOLOGY HOLDINGS, INC.

AND SUBSIDIARY

NOTES TO CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Three Months Ended March 31, 2018 and 2017

1. Organization and Basis of Presentation

The condensed consolidated financial statements of the Lixte Biotechnology Holdings, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“Holdings”), including its wholly-owned Delaware subsidiary, Lixte Biotechnology, Inc. (“Lixte”) (collectively, the “Company”), at March 31, 2018, and for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017, are unaudited. In the opinion of management of the Company, all adjustments, including normal recurring accruals, have been made that are necessary to present fairly the financial position of the Company as of March 31, 2018, and the results of its operations for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017, and its cash flows for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017. Operating results for the interim periods presented are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for a full fiscal year. The consolidated balance sheet at December 31, 2017 has been derived from the Company’s audited financial statements at such date.

The statements and related notes have been prepared pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). Accordingly, certain information and footnote disclosures normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles have been omitted pursuant to such rules and regulations. These financial statements should be read in conjunction with the financial statements and other information included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017, as filed with the SEC.

2. Business

The Company is a drug discovery company that uses biomarker technology to identify enzyme targets associated with serious common diseases and then designs novel compounds to attack those targets. The Company’s product pipeline encompasses two major categories of compounds at various stages of pre-clinical and clinical development that the Company believes have broad therapeutic potential not only for cancer but also for other debilitating and life-threatening diseases.

The Company’s activities are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, including the need for additional capital, as described below. The Company has not yet commenced any revenue-generating operations, does not have positive cash flows from operations, and is dependent on periodic infusions of equity capital to fund its operating requirements.

The Company’s common stock is traded on the OTCQB operated by the OTC Markets under the symbol “LIXT”.

Going Concern

The Company’s consolidated financial statements have been presented on the basis that it is a going concern, which contemplates the realization of assets and satisfaction of liabilities in the normal course of business. The Company has not generated any revenues from operations to date and does not expect to do so in the foreseeable future. The Company has experienced recurring operating losses and negative operating cash flows since inception and has financed its working capital requirements during this period through the recurring sale of its equity securities and the exercise of outstanding common stock options and purchase warrants.

As a result, management has concluded that there is substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern within one year of the date that the condensed consolidated financial statements are being issued. In addition, the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm, in their report on the Company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2017, has also expressed substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern.

The Company’s ability to continue as a going concern is dependent upon its ability to raise additional equity capital to fund its research and development activities and to ultimately achieve sustainable operating revenues and profits. The Company’s consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of these uncertainties.

Because the Company is currently engaged in research at a relatively early stage, it will likely take a significant amount of time to develop any product or intellectual property capable of generating sustainable revenues. Accordingly, the Company’s business is unlikely to generate any sustainable operating revenues in the next several years and may never do so. In addition, to the extent that the Company is able to generate revenues through licensing its technologies or through product sales, there can be no assurance that the Company will be able to achieve positive earnings and operating cash flows.

At March 31, 2018, the Company had cash of $808,038. The Company believes that it has sufficient working capital resources to fund the Company’s ongoing business activities through approximately June 2018. The next steps in the development of the Company’s lead anti-cancer compound LB-100 are to evaluate its anti-cancer effects in Phase 1b/2 clinical trials, which will require additional financing. The Company’s longer-term objective is to secure one or more strategic partnerships with pharmaceutical companies with major programs in cancer.

The amount and timing of future cash requirements in 2018 and thereafter will depend on the pace and design of the Company’s clinical trial program. As market conditions present uncertainty as to the Company’s ability to secure additional funds, there can be no assurances that the Company will be able to secure additional financing on acceptable terms, or at all, as and when necessary to continue to conduct operations. If cash resources are insufficient to satisfy the Company’s ongoing cash requirements, the Company would be required to scale back or discontinue its technology and product development programs and/or clinical trials, or obtain funds, if available (although there can be no certainty), through strategic alliances that may require the Company to relinquish rights to certain of its compounds, or to discontinue its operations entirely.

Reclassifications

Certain comparative amounts in 2017 have been reclassified to conform to the current year’s presentation. Other than the reclassification for comparability of $159,611 of patent-related legal costs from research and development costs to general and administrative costs in the condensed consolidated statement of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2017, these reclassifications were immaterial, both individually and in the aggregate. These changes did not impact the loss from operations or net loss.

3. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Principles of Consolidation

The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements of the Company have been prepared in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) and include the financial statements of Holdings and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Lixte. Intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of expenses during the reporting period. Management bases its estimates on historical experience and on various assumptions that are believed to be reasonable in relation to the financial statements taken as a whole under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Management regularly evaluates the key factors and assumptions used to develop the estimates utilizing currently available information, changes in facts and circumstances, historical experience and reasonable assumptions. After such evaluations, if deemed appropriate, those estimates are adjusted accordingly. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Significant estimates include those related to assumptions used in accruals for potential liabilities, valuing equity instruments issued for services, and the realization of deferred tax assets.

Cash Concentrations

The Company maintains cash balances with financial institutions in federally-insured accounts. The Company may periodically have cash balances in banks in excess of FDIC insurance limits. The Company maintains its accounts with financial institutions with high credit ratings. The Company has not experienced any losses to date resulting from this practice.

Research and Development

Research and development costs consist primarily of fees paid to consultants and outside service providers, and other expenses relating to the acquisition, design, development and testing of the Company’s compounds and product candidates.

Research and development costs are expensed ratably over the life of the underlying contracts, unless the achievement of milestones, the completion of contracted work, or other information indicates that a different expensing schedule is more appropriate.

Obligations incurred with respect to mandatory scheduled payments under research agreements without milestone provisions are recognized ratably over the appropriate period, as specified in the agreement, and are recorded as liabilities in the Company’s consolidated balance sheet, with a corresponding charge to research and development costs in the Company’s consolidated statement of operations.

The Company retained Theradex Systems, Inc. (“Theradex”), an international contract research organization (“CRO”) that provides professional services for the clinical research and development of pharmaceutical compounds, to be responsible for managing and administering the Company’s Phase 1 clinical trial of LB-100. The costs of the Phase 1 clinical trial of LB-100 that were paid through Theradex were recorded and expensed based upon the documentation provided by the CRO.

Payments made pursuant to research and development contracts are initially recorded as advances on research and development contract services in the Company’s balance sheet and then charged to research and development costs in the Company’s statement of operations as those contract services are performed. Expenses incurred under research and development contracts in excess of amounts advanced are recorded as research and development contract liabilities in the Company’s balance sheet, with a corresponding charge to research and development costs in the Company’s statement of operations. The Company reviews the status of its research and development contracts on a quarterly basis.

Patent and Licensing Costs

Due to the significant uncertainty associated with the successful development of one or more commercially viable products based on the Company’s research efforts and related patent applications, all patent-related legal and filing fees and licensing-related legal fees are expensed as incurred. Patent and licensing costs were $217,659 and $315,354 for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively. Patent and licensing costs are included in general and administrative costs in the Company’s condensed consolidated statements of operations.

Accounting for Preferred Stock

The Company accounts for preferred stock as either equity or debt, depending on the specific characteristics of the security issued. The Series A Convertible Preferred Stock issued by the Company in January 2016 and March 2015 has been classified in stockholders’ equity, as described at Note 4.

Concentration of Risk

The Company periodically contracts with directors, including companies controlled by or associated with directors, to provide consulting services related to the Company’s research and development and clinical trial activities. Agreements for these services can be for a specific time period (typically one year) or for a specific project or task and can include both cash and non-cash compensation. The only such contract that represents 10% or more of general and administrative or research and development costs is described below.

On September 21, 2012, the Company entered into a work order agreement with Theradex, the CRO responsible for the clinical development of the Company’s lead anti-cancer compound LB-100, to manage and administer the Phase 1 clinical trial of LB-100. The Phase 1 clinical trial of LB-100, which began during April 2013 with the entry of patients into the clinical trial, was carried out by nationally recognized comprehensive cancer centers. The patient accrual goal was reached in April 2016 and the clinical trial was closed to further patient enrollment at that time. All patients completed treatment with LB-100 and were off study by the end of May 2016. The Company has continued to incur costs to complete the analysis of the clinical data, reconcile and pay the remaining costs owed to the participating clinical sites, and to prepare and submit the required Clinical Study Report to the United States Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”) on the completed Phase 1 clinical trial of LB-100, which process was substantially complete at December 31, 2017.

Total costs charged to operations from 2013 through December 31, 2017 for services paid to or through Theradex for the Phase 1 clinical trial of LB-100 aggregated $2,233,248, with approximately 60% of such costs allocated for services provided by Theradex and approximately 40% for pass-through costs for clinical center laboratory costs and investigator costs over the life of the clinical trial. During the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017, the Company incurred $0 and $64,615, respectively, of such clinical trial costs, representing approximately 0% and 45% of research and development costs for such periods. Costs pursuant to this agreement are included in research and development costs in the Company’s condensed consolidated statements of operations.

Income Taxes

The Company accounts for income taxes under an asset and liability approach for financial accounting and reporting for income taxes. Accordingly, the Company recognizes deferred tax assets and liabilities for the expected impact of differences between the financial statements and the tax basis of assets and liabilities.

The Company has elected to deduct research and development costs on a current basis for federal income tax purposes. For federal tax purposes, start-up and organization costs were deferred until January 1, 2008 at which time the Company began to amortize such costs over a 180-month period.

The Company records a valuation allowance to reduce its deferred tax assets to the amount that is more likely than not to be realized. In the event the Company was to determine that it would be able to realize its deferred tax assets in the future in excess of its recorded amount, an adjustment to the deferred tax assets would be credited to operations in the period such determination was made. Likewise, should the Company determine that it would not be able to realize all or part of its deferred tax assets in the future, an adjustment to the deferred tax assets would be charged to operations in the period such determination was made.

The Company is subject to U.S. federal income taxes and income taxes of various state tax jurisdictions. As the Company’s net operating losses have yet to be utilized, all previous tax years remain open to examination by Federal authorities and other jurisdictions in which the Company currently operates or has operated in the past. The Company had no unrecognized tax benefits as of March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017 and does not anticipate any material amount of unrecognized tax benefits within the next 12 months.

The Company accounts for uncertainties in income tax law under a comprehensive model for the financial statement recognition, measurement, presentation and disclosure of uncertain tax positions taken or expected to be taken in income tax returns as prescribed by GAAP. The tax effects of a position are recognized only if it is “more-likely-than-not” to be sustained by the taxing authority as of the reporting date. If the tax position is not considered “more-likely-than-not” to be sustained, then no benefits of the position are recognized. As of March 31, 2018, the Company had not recorded any liability for uncertain tax positions. In subsequent periods, any interest and penalties related to uncertain tax positions will be recognized as a component of income tax expense.

On December 22, 2017, the President of the United States signed and enacted into law H.R. 1 (the “Tax Reform Law”). The Tax Reform Law, effective for tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2018, except for certain provisions, resulted in significant changes to existing United States tax law, including various provisions that are expected to impact the Company. The Tax Reform Law reduces the federal corporate tax rate from 35% to 21% effective January 1, 2018. The Company will continue to analyze the provisions of the Tax Reform Law to assess the impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

Stock-Based Compensation

The Company periodically issues common stock and stock options to officers, directors, Scientific Advisory Committee members and consultants for services rendered. Options vest and expire according to terms established at the issuance date of each grant.

The Company accounts for stock-based payments to officers and directors by measuring the cost of services received in exchange for equity awards based on the grant date fair value of the awards, with the cost recognized as compensation expense on the straight-line basis in the Company’s financial statements over the vesting period of the awards. The Company accounts for stock-based payments to Scientific Advisory Committee members and consultants by determining the value of the stock compensation based upon the measurement date at either (a) the date at which a performance commitment is reached or (b) at the date at which the necessary performance to earn the equity instruments is complete.

Stock grants, which are generally time vested, are measured at the grant date fair value and charged to operations ratably over the vesting period.

Stock options granted to members of the Company’s Scientific Advisory Committee and to outside consultants are revalued each reporting period to determine the amount to be recorded as an expense in the respective period. As the stock options vest, they are valued on each vesting date and an adjustment is recorded for the difference between the value already recorded and the value on the date of vesting.

The fair value of common stock issued as stock-based compensation is determined by reference to the closing price of the Company’s common stock on the date of issuance. The fair value of stock options granted as stock-based compensation is determined utilizing the Black-Scholes option-pricing model, and is affected by several variables, the most significant of which are the life of the equity award, the exercise price of the stock option as compared to the fair market value of the common stock on the grant date, and the estimated volatility of the common stock over the term of the equity award. Estimated volatility is based on the historical volatility of the Company’s common stock. The risk-free interest rate is based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of grant. The fair market value of common stock is determined by reference to the quoted market price of the Company’s common stock.

The Company recognizes the fair value of stock-based compensation awards in general and administrative costs and in research and development costs, as appropriate, in the Company’s condensed consolidated statement of operations. The Company issues new shares of common stock to satisfy stock option exercises.

Earnings (Loss) Per Share

The Company’s computation of earnings (loss) per share (“EPS”) includes basic and diluted EPS. Basic EPS is measured as the income (loss) attributable to common stockholders divided by the weighted average common shares outstanding for the period. Diluted EPS is similar to basic EPS but presents the dilutive effect on a per share basis of potential common shares (e.g., preferred shares, warrants and stock options) as if they had been converted at the beginning of the periods presented, or issuance date, if later. Potential common shares that have an anti-dilutive effect (i.e., those that increase income per share or decrease loss per share) are excluded from the calculation of diluted EPS.

Loss per common share is computed by dividing net loss by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the respective periods. Basic and diluted loss per common share is the same for all periods presented because all preferred shares, warrants and stock options outstanding are anti-dilutive.

At March 31, 2018 and 2017, the Company excluded the outstanding securities summarized below, which entitle the holders thereof to acquire shares of common stock, from its calculation of earnings per share, as their effect would have been anti-dilutive.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

The authoritative guidance with respect to fair value established a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes the inputs to valuation techniques used to measure fair value into three levels and requires that assets and liabilities carried at fair value be classified and disclosed in one of three categories, as presented below. Disclosure as to transfers in and out of Levels 1 and 2, and activity in Level 3 fair value measurements, is also required.

Level 1. Observable inputs such as quoted prices in active markets for an identical asset or liability that the Company has the ability to access as of the measurement date. Financial assets and liabilities utilizing Level 1 inputs include active-exchange traded securities and exchange-based derivatives.

Level 2. Inputs, other than quoted prices included within Level 1, which are directly observable for the asset or liability or indirectly observable through corroboration with observable market data. Financial assets and liabilities utilizing Level 2 inputs include fixed income securities, non-exchange-based derivatives, mutual funds, and fair-value hedges.

Level 3. Unobservable inputs in which there is little or no market data for the asset or liability which requires the reporting entity to develop its own assumptions. Financial assets and liabilities utilizing Level 3 inputs include infrequently-traded non-exchange-based derivatives and commingled investment funds and are measured using present value pricing models.

The Company determines the level in the fair value hierarchy within which each fair value measurement falls in its entirety, based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety. In determining the appropriate levels, the Company performs an analysis of the assets and liabilities at each reporting period end.

The carrying value of financial instruments (consisting of cash and accounts payable and accrued expenses) is considered to be representative of their respective fair values due to the short-term nature of those instruments.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Recently Adopted Accounting Standards

In May 2014, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2014-09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (“ASU 2014-09”). ASU 2014-09 eliminates transaction- and industry-specific revenue recognition guidance under current GAAP and replaces it with a principle based approach for determining revenue recognition. ASU 2014-09 requires that companies recognize revenue based on the value of transferred goods or services as they occur in the contract. ASU 2014-09 also requires additional disclosure about the nature, amount, timing and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows arising from customer contracts, including significant judgments and changes in judgments and assets recognized from costs incurred to obtain or fulfill a contract. The FASB has recently issued ASU 2016-08, ASU 2016-10, ASU 2016-11, ASU 2016-12, and ASU 2016-20, all of which clarify certain implementation guidance within ASU 2014-09. ASU 2014-09 is effective for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017. Entities will be able to transition to the standard either retrospectively or as a cumulative-effect adjustment as of the date of adoption. The Company adopted the provisions of ASU 2014-09 in the quarter beginning January 1, 2018. The adoption of ASU 2014-09 did not have any impact on the Company’s financial statement presentation or disclosures.

In July 2017, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2017-11, Earnings Per Share (Topic 260); Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity (Topic 480); Derivatives and Hedging (Topic 815): (Part I) Accounting for Certain Financial Instruments with Down Round Features; (Part II) Replacement of the Indefinite Deferral for Mandatorily Redeemable Financial Instruments of Certain Nonpublic Entities and Certain Mandatorily Redeemable Noncontrolling Interests with a Scope Exception (“ASU 2017-11”). ASU 2017-11 allows companies to exclude a down round feature when determining whether a financial instrument (or embedded conversion feature) is considered indexed to the entity’s own stock. As a result, financial instruments (or embedded conversion features) with down round features are no longer be required to be accounted for as derivative liabilities. A company will recognize the value of a down round feature only when it is triggered and the strike price has been adjusted downward. For equity-classified freestanding financial instruments, an entity will treat the value of the effect of the down round as a dividend and a reduction of income available to common shareholders in computing basic earnings per share. For convertible instruments with embedded conversion features containing down round provisions, entities will recognize the value of the down round as a beneficial conversion discount to be amortized to earnings. ASU 2017-11 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2018, and interim periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is permitted. The guidance in ASU 2017-11 can be applied using a full or modified retrospective approach. The adoption of ASU 2017-11 did not have any impact on the Company’s financial statement presentation or disclosures.

Recently Issued Accounting Standards

In February 2016, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842) (“ASU 2016-02”). ASU 2016-02 requires a lessee to record a right-of-use asset and a corresponding lease liability, initially measured at the present value of the lease payments, on the balance sheet for all leases with terms longer than 12 months, as well as the disclosure of key information about leasing arrangements. ASU 2016-02 requires recognition in the statement of operations of a single lease cost, calculated so that the cost of the lease is allocated over the lease term, generally on a straight-line basis. ASU 2016-02 requires classification of all cash payments within operating activities in the statement of cash flows. Disclosures are required to provide the amount, timing and uncertainty of cash flows arising from leases. A modified retrospective transition approach is required for lessees for capital and operating leases existing at, or entered into after, the beginning of the earliest comparative period presented in the financial statements, with certain practical expedients available. ASU 2016-02 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2018, including interim periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is permitted. The Company will adopt the provisions of ASU 2016-02 in the quarter beginning January 1, 2019. The adoption of ASU 2016-02 is not expected to have any impact on the Company’s financial statement presentation or disclosures.

Management does not believe that any other recently issued, but not yet effective, authoritative guidance, if currently adopted, would have a material impact on the Company’s financial statement presentation or disclosures.

4. Stockholders’ Equity

Preferred Stock

The Company has authorized a total of 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.0001 per share. On March 17, 2015, the Company filed a Certificate of Designations, Preferences, Rights and Limitations (the “Certificate of Designations”) of its Series A Convertible Preferred Stock with the Delaware Secretary of State to amend the Company’s certificate of incorporation. The Company designated 175,000 shares as Series A Convertible Preferred Stock, which are non-voting and are not subject to increase without the written consent of a majority of the holders of the Series A Convertible Preferred Stock or as otherwise set forth in the Certificate of Designations. The holders of each 175,000 share tranche of the Series A Convertible Preferred Stock are entitled to receive a per share dividend equal to 1% of the annual net revenue of the Company divided by 175,000, until converted or redeemed.

Effective January 28, 2016, the Series A Convertible Preferred Stock Certificate of Designations was amended to increase the authorized shares of Series A Convertible Preferred Stock from 175,000 shares to 350,000 shares. Accordingly, as of December 31, 2017, 9,650,000 shares of preferred stock were undesignated and may be issued with such rights and powers as the Board of Directors may designate.

Effective March 17, 2015, the Company entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement with a stockholder of the Company who owned 10.6% of the Company’s issued and outstanding shares of common stock immediately prior to this transaction, pursuant to which such stockholder purchased 175,000 shares of the Company’s Series A Convertible Preferred Stock at $10.00 per share for an aggregate purchase price of $1,750,000. As the closing price of the Company’s common stock was $0.25 per share on March 17, 2015, which was less than the $0.80 effective price per share of the shares of common stock underlying the Series A Convertible Preferred Stock, there was no beneficial conversion feature associated with this transaction.

Effective January 21, 2016, the Company entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement with the holder of the Series A Convertible Preferred Stock previously sold on March 17, 2015, pursuant to which the Company sold an additional 175,000 shares of Series A Convertible Preferred Stock at $10.00 per share for an aggregate purchase price of $1,750,000. As the closing price of the Company’s common stock was $0.22 per share on January 21, 2016, which was less than the $0.80 effective price per share of the shares of common stock underlying the Series A Convertible Preferred Stock, there was no beneficial conversion feature associated with this transaction.

Each share of Series A Convertible Preferred Stock may be converted, at the option of the holder, into 12.5 shares of common stock (subject to customary anti-dilution provisions) and the Series A Convertible Preferred Stock is subject to mandatory conversion at the conversion rate in the event of a merger or sale transaction resulting in gross proceeds to the Company of at least $21,875,000. The Series A Convertible Preferred Stock has a liquidation preference based on its assumed conversion into shares of common stock. The Series A Convertible Preferred Stock does not have a cash liquidation preference.

If fully converted, the 350,000 outstanding shares of Series A Convertible Preferred Stock would convert into 4,375,000 shares of common stock at December 31, 2017. The Company has the right to redeem the Series A Convertible Preferred Stock up to the fifth anniversary of the respective closing dates at a price per share equal to $50.00. The Series A Convertible Preferred Stock has no right to cash, except for the payment of the aforementioned dividend based on the generation of revenues by the Company and does not have any registration rights.

Based on the attributes of the Series A Convertible Preferred Stock described above, the Company determined to account for the Series A Convertible Preferred Stock as a permanent component of stockholders’ equity.

Common Stock

Effective February 24, 2017, the Company entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement with an accredited investor pursuant to which the purchaser purchased 4,000,000 shares of the Company’s common stock at a price of $0.25 per share for an aggregate purchase price of $1,000,000.

Effective April 3, 2017, the Company entered into a Securities Purchase Agreement with an accredited investor pursuant to which the purchaser purchased 6,000,000 shares of the Company’s common stock at a price of $0.25 per share for an aggregate purchase price of $1,500,000.

Information with respect to the issuance of common stock in connection with various stock-based compensation arrangements is provided at Note 6.

5. Related Party Transactions

The Company’s Chairman and major stockholder, Dr. John Kovach, was paid a salary of $15,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017, which amounts are included in general and administrative costs in the Company’s condensed consolidated statements of operations. Beginning in late February 2017, Dr. Kovach began devoting 100% of his time to the Company’s business activities.

The Company’s principal office facilities are being provided without charge by Dr. Kovach. Such costs were not material to the Company’s consolidated financial statements and, accordingly, have not been reflected therein.

On September 12, 2007, the Company entered into a consulting agreement with Gil Schwartzberg for Mr. Schwartzberg to provide financial advisory and consulting services to the Company with respect to financing matters, capital structure and strategic development, and to assist management in communications with investors and shareholders. Mr. Schwartzberg is currently a significant stockholder of the Company and continues to be a consultant to the Company. Consideration under this consulting agreement, including subsequent extensions, has been paid exclusively in the form of stock options. On January 28, 2014, the Company entered into a second amendment to the consulting agreement to extend it to January 28, 2019. In conjunction with the second amendment to the consulting agreement, the Company granted to Mr. Schwartzberg stock options to purchase an additional aggregate of 4,000,000 shares of common stock, exercisable for a period of the earlier of five years from the grant date or the termination of the consulting agreement at $0.50 per share, with one-half of the stock options (2,000,000 shares) vesting immediately and one-half of the stock options (2,000,000 shares) vesting on January 28, 2015. Accordingly, all stock-based compensation expense with respect to the January 28, 2014 extension of the consulting agreement was charged to operations during the years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014.

Legal and consulting fees charged to operations for services rendered by the Eric Forman Law Office were $12,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017. Eric J. Forman is the son-in-law of Gil Schwartzberg, a significant stockholder of and consultant to the Company, and is the son of Dr. Stephen J. Forman, who was elected to the Company’s Board of Directors on May 13, 2016. Julie Forman, the wife of Eric Forman and the daughter of Gil Schwartzberg, is Vice President of Morgan Stanley Wealth Management, where the Company maintains a banking relationship.

Stock-based compensation arrangements involving members of the Company’s Board of Directors and affiliates are described at Note 6. Total stock-based compensation expense relating to directors, officers, affiliates and related parties was $0 and $3,844 for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively.

6. Stock-Based Compensation

The Company issues common stock and stock options as incentive compensation to directors and as compensation for the services of independent contractors and consultants of the Company.

On June 20, 2007, the Board of Directors of the Company approved the 2007 Stock Compensation Plan (the “2007 Plan”), which provides for the granting of awards, consisting of stock options, stock appreciation rights, performance shares, or restricted shares of common stock, to employees and independent contractors, for up to 2,500,000 shares of the Company’s common stock, under terms and conditions as determined by the Company’s Board of Directors. The 2007 Plan terminated on June 19, 2017. As of March 31, 2018, unexpired stock options for 1,350,000 shares were issued and outstanding under the 2007 Plan.

The fair value of each stock option awarded is estimated on the date of grant and subsequent measurement dates using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. The expected dividend yield assumption is based on the Company’s expectation of dividend payouts. The expected volatilities are based on historical volatility of the Company’s stock. The risk-free interest rate is based on the U.S. treasury yield curve in effect as of the grant date. The expected life of the stock options is the average of the vesting term and the full contractual term of the stock options.

There were no stock options requiring an assessment of value during the three months ended March 31, 2018.

For stock options requiring an assessment of value during the three months ended March 31, 2017, the fair value of each stock option award was estimated using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model with the following assumptions:

On December 24, 2013, the Company entered into an agreement with NDA Consulting Corp. (“NDA”) for consultation and advice in the field of oncology research and drug development. As part of the agreement, NDA also agreed to cause its president, Dr. Daniel D. Von Hoff, M.D., to become a member of the Company’s Scientific Advisory Committee. In connection with this agreement, NDA was granted stock options to purchase 100,000 shares of the Company’s common stock, vesting 25,000 shares on June 24, 2014, and thereafter 25,000 shares annually on June 24, 2015, 2016 and 2017, exercisable for a period of five years from the date of grant at $0.13 per share, which was the fair market value of the Company’s common stock on the grant date. The fair value of these stock options, as calculated pursuant to the Black-Scholes option-pricing model, was initially determined to be $12,960 ($0.13 per share). The Company re-measures the non-vested options to fair value at the end of each reporting period. The unvested portion of the fair value of the stock options was charged to operations ratably from December 24, 2013 through June 24, 2017. During the three months ended March 31, 2017, the Company recorded a charge to operations of $12,138 with respect to these stock options.

Effective September 14, 2015, the Company entered into a Collaboration Agreement with BioPharmaWorks LLC (“BioPharmaWorks”), pursuant to which the Company engaged BioPharmaWorks to perform certain services for the Company as described at Note 7. In connection with the Collaboration Agreement, the Company agreed to issue to BioPharmaWorks 1,000,000 fully-vested shares of the Company’s common stock, valued at $260,000, based upon the closing price of the Company’s common stock of $0.26 per share, on September 14, 2015. Additionally, the Company issued to BioPharmaWorks two options in the form of warrants to purchase 1,000,000 shares (500,000 shares per warrant) of the Company’s common stock. The first warrant vested on September 14, 2016 and is exercisable for a period of five years from the date of grant at $1.00 per share. The second warrant vested on September 14, 2017 and is exercisable for a period of five years from the date of grant at $2.00 per share. The fair value of the first and second warrants, as calculated pursuant to the Black-Scholes option-pricing model, was determined to be $128,400 ($0.2568 per share) and $127,850 ($0.2557 per share), respectively. The Company re-measured the non-vested stock options to fair value at the end of each reporting period through September 30, 2017. During the three months ended March 31, 2017, the Company recorded a charge to operations of $55,957 with respect to these common shares and warrants.

Effective May 13, 2016, in conjunction with his appointment as a director of the Company, the Company granted to Dr. Stephen J. Forman stock options to purchase an aggregate of 200,000 shares of common stock under the 2007 Plan, exercisable for a period of five years from vesting date at $0.16 per share, which was the fair market value of the Company’s common stock on such date. One-half of such stock option (100,000 shares) vested on May 13, 2016 and the remaining one-half of such stock option (100,000 shares) vested on May 13, 2017. The fair value of these stock options, as calculated pursuant to the Black-Scholes option-pricing model, was determined to be $31,180 ($0.1559 per share), of which $15,590 was attributable to the stock options fully-vested on May 13, 2016 and was therefore was charged to operations on that date. The remaining unvested portion of the fair value of the stock options was charged to operations ratably from May 13, 2016 through May 13, 2017. During the three months ended March 31, 2017, the Company recorded a total charge to operations of $3,844 with respect to these stock options.

Total stock-based compensation expense was $0 and $71,939 for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively.

A summary of stock option activity, including options issued in the form of warrants, during the three months ended March 31, 2018 is presented in the table below.

There was no deferred compensation expense for the outstanding value of unvested stock options at March 31, 2018.

The exercise prices of common stock options outstanding and exercisable, including options issued in the form of warrants, are as follows at March 31, 2018:

The intrinsic value of exercisable but unexercised in-the-money stock options at March 31, 2018 was approximately $2,300, based on a fair market value of $0.1250 per share on March 31, 2018.

All outstanding options to acquire shares of the Company’s common stock were vested at March 31, 2018.

The Company expects to satisfy such stock obligations through the issuance of authorized but unissued shares of common stock.

7. Commitments and Contingencies

The Company may be subject to legal proceedings from time to time as part of its business. As of March 31, 2018, the Company was not subject to any pending or threatened legal actions or claims.

Significant agreements and contracts are summarized as follows:

Effective October 18, 2013, the Company entered into a Materials Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (M-CRADA) with the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for a term of four years. The Surgical Neurology Branch of NINDS is conducting research characterizing a variety of compounds proprietary to the Company and is examining the potential of the compounds for anti-cancer activity, reducing neurological deficit due to ischemia and brain injury, and stabilizing catalytic function of misfolded proteins for inborn brain diseases. Under an M-CRADA, a party provides research material, in this case proprietary compounds from the Company’s pipeline, for study by scientists at NIH. The exchange of material is for research only and does not imply any endorsement of the material on the part of either party. Under the M-CRADA, the NIH grants a collaborator an exclusive option to elect an exclusive or non-exclusive commercialization license.

On June 14, 2017, the Company executed Amendment No. 1 to the M-CRADA, pursuant to which the Company agreed to provide funding in the amount of $100,000 to the National Cancer Institute for use in acquiring technical, statistical and administrative support for research activities. The $100,000 amount is scheduled to be paid in two equal installments of $50,000, the first of which was paid, as scheduled, on July 9, 2017, and was charged to operations on such date. The second installment of $50,000 is scheduled to be paid on the June 14, 2018 anniversary date of the amendment and is being accreted ratably through such date. During the three months ended March 31, 2018, $12,500 was charged to operations and is included in research and development costs with respect to Amendment No. 1.

On December 24, 2013, the Company entered into an agreement with NDA Consulting Corp. (“NDA”) for consultation and advice in the field of oncology research and drug development. As part of the agreement, NDA also agreed to cause its president, Dr. Daniel D. Von Hoff, M.D., to become a member of the Company’s Scientific Advisory Committee. The term of the agreement was for one year and provided for a quarterly cash fee of $4,000. In 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017, the agreement has been automatically renewed on its anniversary date for an additional one-year term. Consulting and advisory fees charged to operations pursuant to this agreement were $4,000 during the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017.

Effective September 14, 2015, the Company entered into a Collaboration Agreement with BioPharmaWorks, pursuant to which the Company engaged BioPharmaWorks to perform certain services for the Company. Those services include, among other things: (a) assisting the Company to (i) commercialize its products and strengthen its patent portfolio, (ii) identify large pharmaceutical companies with potential interest in the Company’s product pipeline, and (iii) prepare and deliver presentations concerning the Company’s products; (b) at the request of the Board of Directors, serving as backup management for up to three months should the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and scientific leader be temporarily unable to carry out his duties; (c) being available for consultation in drug discovery and development; and (d) identifying providers and overseeing tasks relating to clinical use and commercialization of new compounds.

BioPharmaWorks was founded in 2015 by former Pfizer scientists with extensive multi-disciplinary research and development and drug development experience. The Collaboration Agreement was for an initial term of two years and automatically renews for subsequent annual periods unless terminated by a party not less than 60 days prior to the expiration of the applicable period. In connection with the Collaboration Agreement, the Company agreed to pay BioPharmaWorks a monthly fee of $10,000, subject to the right of the Company to pay a negotiated hourly rate in lieu of the monthly payment and agreed to issue to BioPharmaWorks certain equity-based compensation as described at Note 6. In November 2016, it was mutually agreed to suspend services and payments pursuant to this agreement, without extending the term of the agreement, for the period from November 1, 2016 through March 31, 2017. The agreement resumed as scheduled on April 1, 2017 and was automatically renewed for an additional one-year period on September 13, 2017. In April 2018, it was again mutually agreed to suspend services and payments pursuant to this agreement, without extending the term of the agreement, for the period from February 1, 2018 through June 30, 2018. The Company recorded charges to operations pursuant to this Collaboration Agreement of $10,000 and $0 during the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively.

On March 22, 2018, the Company entered into a Patent Assignment and Exploitation Agreement (the “Agreement”) with INSERM TRANSFERT SA, acting as delegatee of the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research (“INSERM”), for the assignment to the Company of INSERM’S interest in United States Patent No. 9,833,450 entitled “Oxabicyloheptanes and Oxabicycloheptenes for the Treatment of Depressive and Stress Disorders”, which was filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office in the name of INSERM and the Company as co-owners on February 19, 2015 and granted on May 12, 2017, and related patent applications and filings. INSERM is a French public institution dedicated to research in the field of health and medicine that had previously entered into a Material Transfer Agreement (“MTA”) with the Company to allow INSERM to conduct research on the Company’s proprietary compound LB-100 and/or its analogs for the treatment of depressive or stress disorders in humans. Pursuant to the Agreement, the Company has agreed to make certain milestone payments to INSERM aggregating up to $1,750,000 upon achievement of development milestones and up to $6,500,000 upon achievement of commercial milestones. The Company also agreed to pay INSERM certain commercial royalties on net sales of products attributed to the Agreement. The Company’s current plan is to complete the validation process to evaluate LB-100 for the treatment of depressive or stress disorders in humans within three years; however, the exploitation of this patent for the treatment of depressive and stress disorders in humans will require substantial additional capital and/or a joint venture or other type of business arrangement with a pharmaceutical company with substantially greater capital and business resources than the Company. As there can be no assurances that the Company will be able to obtain the capital or business resources necessary to focus on the exploitation of this patent, it is uncertain when the Company may reach any of the development or commercialization milestones under the Agreement, if at all.

Summary of Principal Cash Obligations and Commitments

The following table sets forth the Company’s principal cash obligations and commitments for the next five fiscal years as of March 31, 2018 aggregating $109,740, of which $49,940 is included in current liabilities in the Company’s condensed consolidated balance sheet at March 31, 2018. Amounts included in the 2018 column represent amounts due at March 31, 2018 for the remainder of the 2018 fiscal year ending December 31, 2018.

8. Subsequent Events

Effective April 2, 2018, the Company entered into a Consulting Agreement with Liberi Life Consultancy BV for consulting and advisory services with respect to sales, licensing and the procurement of investors. The term of the agreement was for two years and provides for the payment of a fixed, one time retainer of EURO 15,000 (US $18,348) and 2.5% of the net payments received by the Company from sales of products or licensing activities arising directly and exclusively from advisor leads during the term of the agreement, and any investors introduced to the Company by the advisor that results in an investment in the Company during the term of the agreement.

ITEM 2. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

Overview

The Company is a drug discovery company that uses biomarker technology to identify enzyme targets associated with serious common diseases and then designs novel compounds to attack those targets. The Company’s product pipeline encompasses two major categories of compounds at various stages of pre-clinical and clinical development that the Company believes have broad therapeutic potential not only for cancer but also for other debilitating and life-threatening diseases.

The Company’s activities are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, including the need for additional capital, as described below. The Company has not yet commenced any revenue-generating operations, does not have positive cash flows from operations, and is dependent on periodic infusions of equity capital to fund its operating requirements.

The Company’s common stock is traded on the OTCQB operated by the OTC Markets under the symbol “LIXT”.

Going Concern

The Company’s condensed consolidated financial statements have been presented on the basis that it is a going concern, which contemplates the realization of assets and satisfaction of liabilities in the normal course of business. The Company has not generated any revenues from operations to date and does not expect to do so in the foreseeable future. The Company has experienced recurring operating losses and negative operating cash flows since inception and has financed its working capital requirements during this period primarily through the recurring sale of its equity securities and the exercise of outstanding common stock options and purchase warrants.

As a result, management has concluded that there is substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern within one year of the date that the consolidated financial statements are being issued. In addition, the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm, in their report on the Company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2017, has also expressed substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern.

The Company’s ability to continue as a going concern is dependent upon its ability to raise additional equity capital to fund its research and development activities and to ultimately achieve sustainable operating revenues and profits. The Company’s condensed consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of these uncertainties.

Because the Company is currently engaged in research at a relatively early stage, it will likely take a significant amount of time to develop any product or intellectual property capable of generating sustainable revenues. Accordingly, the Company’s business is unlikely to generate any sustainable operating revenues in the next several years and may never do so. In addition, to the extent that the Company is able to generate revenues through licensing its technologies or through product sales, there can be no assurance that the Company will be able to achieve positive earnings and operating cash flows.

At March 31, 2018, the Company had cash of $808,038. The Company believes that it has sufficient working capital resources to fund the Company’s ongoing business activities through approximately June 2018. The next steps in the development of the Company’s lead anti-cancer compound LB-100 are to evaluate its anti-cancer effects in Phase 1b/2 clinical trials, which will require additional financing. The Company’s longer-term objective is to secure one or more strategic partnerships with pharmaceutical companies with major programs in cancer.

The amount and timing of future cash requirements in 2018 and thereafter will depend on the pace and design of the Company’s clinical trial program. As market conditions present uncertainty as to the Company’s ability to secure additional funds, there can be no assurances that the Company will be able to secure additional financing on acceptable terms, or at all, as and when necessary to continue to conduct operations. If cash resources are insufficient to satisfy the Company’s ongoing cash requirements, the Company would be required to scale back or discontinue its technology and product development programs and/or clinical trials, or obtain funds, if available (although there can be no certainty), through strategic alliances that may require the Company to relinquish rights to certain of its compounds, or to discontinue its operations entirely.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Information with respect to recent accounting pronouncements is provided at Note 2 to the condensed consolidated financial statements for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017 included elsewhere in this document.

Concentration of Risk

Information with respect to concentration of risk is provided at Note 3 to the condensed consolidated financial statements for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017 included elsewhere in this document.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

The preparation of the Company’s condensed consolidated financial statements in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“GAAP”) requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the financial statements and the notes to the financial statements. Some of those judgments can be subjective and complex, and therefore, actual results could differ materially from those estimates under different assumptions or conditions. A summary of the Company’s critical accounting policies is presented in Item 7 of the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017. There have been no material changes to the Company’s critical accounting policies during the three months ended March 31, 2018.

Plan of Operation

Overview of Plans

The Company has two classes of drugs under development for the treatment of cancer, consisting of protein phosphatase inhibitors (PTase-i), designated by the Company as the LB-100 series of compounds, and histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi), designated by the Company as the LB-200 series of compounds. Compounds of both types also have potential use in the prevention and treatment of neurodegenerative diseases. The LB-100 series consists of novel structures, which have the potential to be first in their class and may be useful in the treatment of not only several types of cancer, but also vascular and metabolic diseases. The LB-200 series contains compounds which have the potential to be the most effective in its class and may be useful for the treatment of chronic hereditary diseases, such as Gaucher’s disease, in addition to cancer and neurodegenerative diseases.

The Company has completed a Phase 1 clinical of its lead anti-cancer compound, LB-100, that showed it is associated with anti-tumor activity in humans at doses that are readily tolerable. Responses included objective regression (tumor shrinkage) lasting for 11 months of a pancreatic cancer and cessation of growth (stabilization of disease) for 4 months or more of 9 other progressive solid tumors out of 20 patients who had measurable disease. As Phase 1 clinical trials are fundamentally designed to determine safety of a new compound in humans, the Company is encouraged by these results. The next step is to demonstrate in Phase 2 clinical trials the efficacy of LB-100 in one or more specific tumor types, against which the compound has well documented activity in pre-clinical models.

Collaborations with leading academic research centers in the United States, Europe and Asia have established the breadth of activity of LB-100 in preclinical models of several major cancers. There is considerable scientific interest in LB-100 because it exerts its activity by a novel mechanism and is the first of its type to be evaluated so broadly in multiple animal models of cancer and now in human beings. LB-100 is one a series of serine/threonine phosphatase (s/t ptase) inhibitors designed by the Company. The s/t ptases are ubiquitous enzymes that regulate many cell signaling networks important to cell growth, division and death. The s/t ptases have long been appreciated as potentially important targets for anti-cancer drugs. However, because of the multi- functionality of these enzymes, it had been widely held that pharmacologic inhibitors of s/t ptases would be too toxic to allow their development as anti-cancer treatments, but the Company has shown that this is not the case. LB-100 was well tolerated at doses associated with objective regression (significant tumor shrinkage) and/or the arresting of tumor progression in patients with progressive cancers.

Pre-clinical studies showed that LB-100 itself inhibits a spectrum of human cancers and that combined with standard cytotoxic drugs and/or radiation, LB-100 potentiates their effectiveness against hematologic and solid tumor cancers without enhancing toxicity. Recently, LB-100, given at very low doses in animal models of cancer, markedly increased the effectiveness of a PD-1 blocker, one of the widely used new immunotherapy drugs. This finding raises the possibility that LB-100 may further expand the value of the expanding field of cancer immunotherapy.

Although the Company’s focus has been on developing drugs for cancer treatment, several academic centers studying LB-100 under material transfer agreements with the Company have generated pre-clinical data indicating that LB-100 may be therapeutically effective in important non-neoplastic diseases. This development stems from the fact that dysregulation of the PP2A function is not only a feature of many cancers but is also a component of the basic inflammatory response elicited by diverse types of injury in animal models. These include lipid buildup in the blood vessels (type 2 diabetes), acute oxygen deprivation (myocardial infarction and stroke (MI/S)), and aversive physical and/or psychological trauma (depression and post traumatic shock-like syndromes.). The Company’s patent portfolio covers composition of matter for structurally distinct but comparably effective PP2A inhibitors and their use in the therapy of a broad spectrum of human diseases. However, the focus of the Company at this time is on demonstrating the value of LB-100 against specific cancers in humans.

At this time, the Company is not aware of any compound in clinical study that is a potent inhibitor of PP2A. Revlimid (Celgene) has recently been recognized to have weak PP2A activity, which presumably underlies its effects in MDS. Over 30 articles have been published reporting the anti-cancer activity of LB-100 against many different types of human cancers in model systems. As a result, the Company believes that some pharmaceutical companies are evaluating LB-100 and/or designing their own inhibitors of PP2A. The Company’s patent portfolio includes composition of matter and multiple uses of LB-100 and analogs and PP2A inhibition in general for multiple cancers and non-neoplastic diseases.

The LB-200 series consists of histone deacetylase inhibitors. Many pharmaceutical companies are also developing drugs of this type, and at least two companies have HDACi approved for clinical use, in both cases for the treatment of a type of lymphoma. Despite this significant competition, the Company has demonstrated that its HDACi has broad activity against many cancer types, has neuroprotective activity, and has anti-fungal activity. In addition, these compounds have low toxicity, making them attractive candidates for development. It appears that one type of molecule has diverse effects, affecting biochemical processes that are fundamental to the life of the cell, whether they are cancer cells, nerve cells, or even fungal cells. The neuroprotective activity of the Company’s HDACi has been demonstrated in the test tube in model systems that mimic injury to brain cells, such as occurs in stroke and Alzheimer’s disease. This type of protective activity may have potential application to a broad spectrum of other chronic neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson’s disease and Amytrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease). LB-200 has not yet advanced to the clinical stage and will require additional capital to fund further development.

Operating Plans

LB-100 Anti-Cancer Targets

LB-100 used alone has modest inhibitory activity against many cancers in model systems, but certain human cancers possessing unique genetic changes, in addition to those reducing DNA damage repair, are particularly susceptible to inhibition of PP2A by LB-100.

Among these cancers is myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), an increasingly common neoplastic disease, especially in persons aged 65 and older, characterized by failure of the bone marrow. In particular, a variant of MDS termed del(5q)MDS is missing 50% of its PP2A activity, rendering this tumor potentially more sensitive to further pharmacologic inhibition of PP2A. There is only one drug, Revlimid (Celgene), currently approved for the treatment of del(5q)MDS and none for MDS in general.

Other cancers, in particular small cell lung cancer (SCLC) and hepatocellular cancer occurring in the liver (HCC), have acquired genetic abnormalities, which render them sensitive to inhibition of PP2A by a process termed synthetic lethality Pre-clinical studies have shown that both SCLC and HCC are sensitive to PP2A inhibition by LB-100 alone and especially so when LB-100 is combined with drugs used as standard treatment for these diseases. SCLC is the lung cancer variant associated with cigarette smoke and comprises about 15% of all lung cancers. HCC is the 5th most common cancer in the world and the 3rd leading cause of death from cancer, with the majority of cases being in Asia. There is no satisfactory treatment available for either of these devastating tumors.

Scientists at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) have conducted pre-clinical studies of LB-100 that showed anti-cancer activity in models of a variety of human brain tumors, including glioblastomamultiforme (GBM), medulloblastoma and malignant meningioma. Studies of LB-100 and analogs in models of human brain tumors of adults and children are continuing under a Material-Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (M-CRADA) with the National Cancer Institute (NCI). The NCI has an FDA-approved clinical pharmacokinetic (non-therapeutic) study of LB-100 (Phase 0 Trial, NCT03027388) in patients with recurrent GBM to assess penetration of the compound into these highly malignant tumors. The rationale for this clinical study is that LB-100 potentiates the anti-tumor activity of both x-ray and the drug temozolomide, which are the mainstays of treatment for GBM.

Near-Term Objectives

The Company’s immediate goals are to demonstrate significant therapeutic benefit of LB-100 against one or more specific human cancers in Phase 2 clinical trials. The Company has several attractive targets for new therapies incorporating LB-100. Resources permitting, the Company’s current plans are to conduct the following clinical studies:

(1) A Phase 1b/2 clinical trial of LB-100 as a single agent in the treatment of patients with del(5q) myelodysplastic syndrome (del5qMDS) failing first line therapy.

(2) A Phase 1b/2 randomized trial in previously untreated patients with small cell lung cancer (SCLC) comparing the standard regimen, carboplatin/etoposide, with and without LB-100.

(3) A Phase 1b/2 randomized trial in patients with HCC failing their initial treatment with the current standard drug sorafinib, comparing a standard second line drug for this disease, doxorubicin, with and without LB-100, or, depending on the results of ongoing trials of others, in which a PD-1 immune checkpoint blocker may prove minimally more active than sorafinib, an alternative trial by the Company of a PD-1 inhibitor with and without LB-100.

The Phase 1b/2 studies described above will require additional capital or partnering opportunities with other pharmaceutical companies to undertake and complete. There is no assurance that the Company will be able to obtain one or more financing or partnering relationships, or what the terms may be. The Company’s longer-term objective is to secure one or more strategic partnerships with pharmaceutical companies with major programs in cancer.

As a compound moves through the FDA-approval process, it becomes an increasingly valuable property, but at a cost of additional investment at each stage. As the potential effectiveness of LB-100 has been documented at the clinical trial level, the Company has allocated resources to expand the breadth and depth of its patent portfolio. The Company’s approach has been to operate with a minimum of overhead, moving compounds forward as efficiently and inexpensively as possible, and to raise funds to support each of these stages as certain milestones are reached.

Results of Operations

At March 31, 2018, the Company had not yet commenced any revenue-generating operations, does not have any positive cash flows from operations, and is dependent on its ability to raise equity capital to fund its operating requirements.

Certain comparative amounts in 2017 have been reclassified to conform to the current year’s presentation. For the three months ended March 31, 2017, patent-related legal costs of $159,611 were reclassified from research and development costs to general and administrative costs.

The Company’s consolidated statements of operations as discussed herein are presented below.

Three Months Ended March 31, 2018 and 2017

Revenues. The Company did not have any revenues for the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017.

General and Administrative Costs. For the three months ended March 31, 2018, general and administrative costs were $354,070, which consisted of patent and licensing legal fees and costs of $217,659, other consulting and professional fees of $90,246, insurance expense of $12,796, officer’s salary and related costs of $16,965, stock transfer fees of $3,924, filing fees of $6,294, travel and entertainment costs of $254, listing fees of $3,000, and other operating costs of $2,932.

For the three months ended March 31, 2017, general and administrative costs were $477,360, which consisted of patent and licensing legal fees and costs of $315,354, the fair value of stock options issued to directors and consultants of $3,844, consulting and professional fees of $103,765, insurance expense of $13,453, officer’s salary and related costs of $17,023, stock transfer fees of $2,338, conference fees of $6,922, filing fees of $5,299, travel and entertainment costs of $2,264, listing fees of $2,500, and other operating costs of $4,598.

General and administrative costs decreased by $123,290 or 25.8% in 2018 as compared to 2017, primarily as a result of a decrease of $97,695 in patent and licensing legal fees and costs, a decrease of $13,519 in other consulting and professional fees, and a decrease of $6,922 in conference fees. The decrease in consulting and professional fees was principally due to a decrease in corporate legal fees of $11,195.

Research and Development Costs. For the three months ended March 31, 2018, research and development costs were $25,689, which consisted of contractor costs of $25,689 primarily in connection with the Company’s pre-clinical research focused on the development of additional novel anti-cancer compounds to add to its clinical pipeline, including $12,500 to the National Cancer Institute in connection with Amendment No. 1 to the M-CRADA.

As the patient accrual goal of the Phase 1 clinical trial of LB-100 being conducted with Theradex was reached in April 2016, the Phase 1 clinical trial of LB-100 was closed to further patient enrollment at that time. All patients completed treatment with LB-100 and were off study by the end of May 2016. The Company continued to incur costs with Theradex to complete the analysis of the clinical data and to prepare and submit the required Clinical Study Report to the FDA on the completed Phase 1 clinical trial of LB-100, which process was substantially complete at December 31, 2017. During the three months ended March 31, 2018, no additional costs were incurred with Theradex in connection with the Phase 1 clinical trial of LB-100.

For the three months ended March 31, 2017, research and development costs were $143,244, which consisted of the vested portion of the fair value of stock options of $68,095, and contractor costs of $75,149, including $64,615 to Theradex in connection with the Phase 1 clinical trial of LB-100.

Research and development costs decreased by $117,555 or 82.1% in 2018 as compared to 2017, primarily as a result of a decrease of $49,460 in contractor costs, attributable primarily to Theradex, reflecting the wind down of the Phase 1 clinical trial of LB-100, and a decrease in the vested portion of the fair value of common stock options and warrants of $68,095.

The decrease in the fair value of stock options issued to directors and consultants of $68,095 for the three months March 31, 2018 was due primarily to a charge to operations of $55,957during the three months ended March 31, 2017 for the amortization of vesting stock options to acquire 500,000 shares of the Company’s common stock that were issued to BioPharmaWorks on September 14, 2015.

Interest Income. For the three months ended March 31, 2018, the Company had interest income of $599, as compared to interest income of $12 for the three months ended March 31, 2017.

Net Loss. For the three months ended March 31, 2018, the Company incurred a net loss of $379,160, as compared to a net loss of $620,592 for the three months ended March 31, 2017.

Liquidity and Capital Resources – March 31, 2018

The Company’s condensed consolidated financial statements have been presented on the basis that it is a going concern, which contemplates the realization of assets and satisfaction of liabilities in the normal course of business. The Company has not generated any revenues from operations to date and does not expect to do so in the foreseeable future. The Company has experienced recurring operating losses and negative operating cash flows since inception and has financed its working capital requirements during this period primarily through the recurring sale of its equity securities and the exercise of outstanding warrants. As a result, management has concluded that there is substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern within one year of the date that the condensed consolidated financial statements are being issued. In addition, the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm, in their report on the Company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2017, has also expressed substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern (see “Going Concern” above).

At March 31, 2018, the Company had working capital of $615,881, as compared to working capital of $995,041 at December 31, 2017, a decrease in working capital of $379,160 for the three months ended March 31, 2018. The decrease in working capital during the three months ended March 31, 2018 was the result of amounts being utilized to fund the Company’s research and development activities and its ongoing operating expenses, including maintaining and developing its patent portfolio.

At March 31, 2018, the Company had cash of $808,038. The Company believes that it has sufficient working capital resources to fund the Company’s ongoing business activities through approximately June 2018. The next steps in the development of the Company’s lead anti-cancer compound LB-100 are to evaluate its anti-cancer effects in Phase 1b/2 clinical trials, which will require additional financing. The Company’s longer-term objective is to secure one or more strategic partnerships with pharmaceutical companies with major programs in cancer.

The amount and timing of future cash requirements in 2018 and thereafter will depend on the pace and design of the Company’s clinical trial program. As market conditions present uncertainty as to the Company’s ability to secure additional funds, there can be no assurances that the Company will be able to secure additional financing on acceptable terms, or at all, as and when necessary to continue to conduct operations. If cash resources are insufficient to satisfy the Company’s ongoing cash requirements, the Company would be required to scale back or discontinue its technology and product development programs and/or clinical trials, or obtain funds, if available (although there can be no certainty), through strategic alliances that may require the Company to relinquish rights to certain of its compounds, or to discontinue its operations entirely.

Operating Activities. For the three months ended March 31, 2018, operating activities utilized cash of $497,710, as compared to utilizing cash of $328,993 for the three months ended March 31, 2017, to fund the Company’s ongoing research and development activities, and to fund its other ongoing operating expenses, including maintaining and developing its patent portfolio.

Investing Activities. For the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017, the Company had no investing activities.

Financing Activities. For the three months ended March 31, 2018, the Company had no financing activities. For the three months ended March 31, 2017, financing activities consisted of the receipt of $1,000,000 of proceeds from the sale of 4,000,000 shares of the Company’s common stock at $0.25 per share in a closing occurring in January 2017.

Principal Commitments

Effective October 18, 2013, the Company entered into a Materials Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (M-CRADA) with the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for a term of four years. The Surgical Neurology Branch of NINDS is conducting research characterizing a variety of compounds proprietary to the Company and is examining the potential of the compounds for anti-cancer activity, reducing neurological deficit due to ischemia and brain injury, and stabilizing catalytic function of misfolded proteins for inborn brain diseases. Under an M-CRADA, a party provides research material, in this case proprietary compounds from the Company’s pipeline, for study by scientists at NIH. The exchange of material is for research only and does not imply any endorsement of the material on the part of either party. Under the M-CRADA, the NIH grants a collaborator an exclusive option to elect an exclusive or non-exclusive commercialization license.

On June 14, 2017, the Company executed Amendment No. 1 to the M-CRADA, pursuant to which the Company agreed to provide funding in the amount of $100,000 to the National Cancer Institute for use in acquiring technical, statistical and administrative support for research activities. The $100,000 amount is scheduled to be paid in two equal installments of $50,000, the first of which was paid, as scheduled, on July 9, 2017, and was charged to operations on such date. The second installment of $50,000 is scheduled to be paid on the June 14, 2018 anniversary date of the amendment and is being accreted ratably through such date. During the three months ended March 31, 2018, $12,500 was charged to operations and is included in research and development costs with respect to Amendment No. 1.

On December 24, 2013, the Company entered into an agreement with NDA Consulting Corp. (“NDA”) for consultation and advice in the field of oncology research and drug development. As part of the agreement, NDA also agreed to cause its president, Dr. Daniel D. Von Hoff, M.D., to become a member of the Company’s Scientific Advisory Committee. The term of the agreement was for one year and provided for a quarterly cash fee of $4,000. In 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017, the agreement has been automatically renewed on its anniversary date for an additional one-year term. Consulting and advisory fees charged to operations pursuant to this agreement were $4,000 during the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017.

Effective September 14, 2015, the Company entered into a Collaboration Agreement with BioPharmaWorks, pursuant to which the Company engaged BioPharmaWorks to perform certain services for the Company. Those services include, among other things: (a) assisting the Company to (i) commercialize its products and strengthen its patent portfolio, (ii) identify large pharmaceutical companies with potential interest in the Company’s product pipeline, and (iii) prepare and deliver presentations concerning the Company’s products; (b) at the request of the Board of Directors, serving as backup management for up to three months should the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and scientific leader be temporarily unable to carry out his duties; (c) being available for consultation in drug discovery and development; and (d) identifying providers and overseeing tasks relating to clinical use and commercialization of new compounds.

BioPharmaWorks was founded in 2015 by former Pfizer scientists with extensive multi-disciplinary research and development and drug development experience. The Collaboration Agreement was for an initial term of two years and automatically renews for subsequent annual periods unless terminated by a party not less than 60 days prior to the expiration of the applicable period. In connection with the Collaboration Agreement, the Company agreed to pay BioPharmaWorks a monthly fee of $10,000, subject to the right of the Company to pay a negotiated hourly rate in lieu of the monthly payment and agreed to issue to BioPharmaWorks certain equity-based compensation as described at Note 6. In November 2016, it was mutually agreed to suspend services and payments pursuant to this agreement, without extending the term of the agreement, for the period from November 1, 2016 through March 31, 2017. The agreement resumed as scheduled on April 1, 2017 and was automatically renewed for an additional one-year period on September 13, 2017. In April 2018, it was again mutually agreed to suspend services and payments pursuant to this agreement, without extending the term of the agreement, for the period from February 1, 2018 through June 30, 2018. The Company recorded charges to operations pursuant to this Collaboration Agreement of $10,000 and $0 during the three months ended March 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively.

On March 22, 2018, the Company entered into a Patent Assignment and Exploitation Agreement (the “Agreement”) with INSERM TRANSFERT SA, acting as delegatee of the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research (“INSERM”), for the assignment to the Company of INSERM’S interest in United States Patent No. 9,833,450 entitled “Oxabicyloheptanes and Oxabicycloheptenes for the Treatment of Depressive and Stress Disorders”, which was filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office in the name of INSERM and the Company as co-owners on February 19, 2015 and granted on May 12, 2017, and related patent applications and filings. INSERM is a French public institution dedicated to research in the field of health and medicine that had previously entered into a Material Transfer Agreement (“MTA”) with the Company to allow INSERM to conduct research on the Company’s proprietary compound LB-100 and/or its analogs for the treatment of depressive or stress disorders in humans. Pursuant to the Agreement, the Company has agreed to make certain milestone payments to INSERM aggregating up to $1,750,000 upon achievement of development milestones and up to $6,500,000 upon achievement of commercial milestones. The Company also agreed to pay INSERM certain commercial royalties on net sales of products attributed to the Agreement. The Company’s current plan is to complete the validation process to evaluate LB-100 for the treatment of depressive or stress disorders in humans within three years; however, the exploitation of this patent for the treatment of depressive and stress disorders in humans will require substantial additional capital and/or a joint venture or other type of business arrangement with a pharmaceutical company with substantially greater capital and business resources than the Company. As there can be no assurances that the Company will be able to obtain the capital or business resources necessary to focus on the exploitation of this patent, it is uncertain when the Company may reach any of the development or commercialization milestones under the Agreement, if at all.

Summary of Principal Cash Obligations and Commitments

The following table sets forth the Company’s principal cash obligations and commitments for the next five fiscal years as of March 31, 2018 aggregating $109,740, of which $49,940 is included in current liabilities in the Company’s condensed consolidated balance sheet at March 31, 2018. Amounts included in the 2018 column represent amounts due at March 31, 2018 for the remainder of the 2018 fiscal year ending December 31, 2018.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

At March 31, 2018, the Company did not have any transactions, obligations or relationships that could be considered off-balance sheet arrangements.

ITEM 3. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURE ABOUT MARKET RISK

Not applicable.

ITEM 4. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

(a) Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

The Company carried out an evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation of its management, consisting of its principal executive officer and principal financial officer (who is the same person), of the effectiveness of the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) of the Exchange Act (defined below)). Based upon that evaluation, the Company’s principal executive officer and principal financial officer concluded that, as of the end of the period covered in this report, the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures were effective to ensure that information required to be disclosed in reports filed under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the required time periods and is accumulated and communicated to the Company’s management, consisting of the Company’s principal executive officer and principal financial officer, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

The Company’s management, consisting of its principal executive officer and principal financial officer, does not expect that its disclosure controls and procedures or its internal controls will prevent all error or fraud. A control system, no matter how well conceived and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the objectives of the control system are met. Furthermore, the design of a control system must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints and the benefits of controls must be considered relative to their costs. Due to the inherent limitations in all control systems, no evaluation of controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues and instances of fraud, if any, have been detected. In addition, as conditions change over time, so too may the effectiveness of internal controls. However, management believes that the financial statements included in this report fairly present, in all material respects, the Company’s financial condition, results of operations and cash flows for the periods presented.

(b) Changes in Internal Controls Over Financial Reporting

The Company’s management, consisting of its principal executive officer and principal financial officer, has determined that no change in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting (as that term is defined in Rules 13(a)-15(f) and 15(d)-15(f) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934) occurred during or subsequent to the end of the period covered in this report that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting.

PART II - OTHER INFORMATION

ITEM 1. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

The Company is not currently subject to any pending or threatened legal actions or claims.

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

As of the date of this filing, there have been no material changes to the Risk Factors included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2017, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 23, 2018 (the “2017 Form 10-K”). The Risk Factors set forth in the 2017 Form 10-K should be read carefully in connection with evaluating the Company’s business and in connection with the forward-looking statements contained in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Any of the risks described in the 2017 Form 10-K could materially adversely affect the Company’s business, financial condition or future results and the actual outcome of matters as to which forward-looking statements are made. These are not the only risks that the Company faces. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to the Company or that the Company currently deems to be immaterial also may materially adversely affect the Company’s business, financial condition and/or operating results.

ITEM 2. UNREGISTERED SALES OF EQUITY SECURITIES AND USE OF PROCEEDS

Not applicable.

ITEM 3. DEFAULTS UPON SENIOR SECURITIES

Not applicable.

ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

ITEM 5. OTHER INFORMATION

Not applicable.

ITEM 6. EXHIBITS

A list of exhibits required to be filed as part of this report is set forth in the Index to Exhibits, which is presented elsewhere in this document, and is incorporated herein by reference.

SIGNATURES

In accordance with the requirements of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.

INDEX TO EXHIBITS

The following documents are filed as part of this report:

* Filed herewith.

** In accordance with Regulation S-T, the XBRL related information on Exhibit No. 101 to this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q shall be deemed “furnished” herewith but not “filed”.