NOTE 2 – SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES

Interim financial statements

The unaudited condensed consolidated interim financial statements of the Company have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”) for interim financial information and the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 8 of Regulation S-X. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by GAAP for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring accruals) considered necessary for a fair presentation have been included.

The condensed consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2016 contained herein has been derived from audited financial statements.

Operating results for the three and six months ended June 30, 2017 are not necessarily indicative of results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2017. These condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto for the year ended December 31, 2016 included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on April 13, 2017.

Recent accounting pronouncements

In February 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842). Under the new guidance, lessees will be required to recognize the following for all leases (with the exception of short-term leases) at the commencement date: a lease liability, which is a lessee‘s obligation to make lease payments arising from a lease, measured on a discounted basis; and a right-of-use asset, which is an asset that represents the lessee’s right to use, or control the use of, a specified asset for the lease term. Public business entities should apply the amendments in ASU 2016-02 for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2018, including interim periods within those fiscal years. Early application is permitted.  Lessees (for capital and operating leases) must apply a modified retrospective transition approach for leases existing at, or entered into after, the beginning of the earliest comparative period presented in the financial statements. The modified retrospective approach would not require any transition accounting for leases that expired before the earliest comparative period presented. Lessees may not apply a full retrospective transition approach. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of adopting this guidance.

In November 2016, FASB issued ASU 2016-18, “Statement of Cash Flows (Topic 230): Restricted Cash,” to provide guidance on the presentation of restricted cash or restricted cash equivalents in the statement of cash flows, thereby reducing the diversity in presentation. This update is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2017. This update may have an effect on the Company’s future classification of certain transactions on its consolidated statement of cash flows and related disclosures.

Risks and uncertainties

The Company's primary efforts are devoted to conducting research and development of innovative pharmaceutical products to address public health challenges. The Company has experienced net losses and negative cash flows from operations since inception and expects these conditions to continue for the foreseeable future. Further, the Company does not have any commercial products available for sale and has not generated revenues and there is no assurance that if its products are approved for sale, that the Company will be able to generate cash flow to fund operations. In addition, there can be no assurance that the Company's research and development will be successfully completed or that any product will be approved or commercially viable.

At June 30, 2017, the Company had working capital of approximately $33.7 million, after raising approximately $17.4 million of net proceeds from sales of common stock during the six months ended June 30, 2017.

At June 30, 2017, the Company had cash and cash equivalents of approximately $34.4 million, which constitutes sufficient funds for the Company to meet its research and development and other funding requirements for at least 12 months from the date of this report.

Use of estimates

The preparation of financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and the reported amounts of expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Significant estimates include the useful life of fixed assets, assumptions used in the fair value of stock-based compensation and other equity instruments, and the percent of completion of research and development contracts.

Cash equivalents

The Company considers cash equivalents to be those investments which are highly liquid, readily convertible to cash and have an original maturity of three months or less when purchased. At June 30, 2017 and December 31, 2016, cash equivalents, which consisted of money market funds, amounted to $17.3 million and $10.0 million, respectively.

Marketable securities

Marketable securities consist primarily of certificates of deposit and corporate, U.S. agency, and U.S. treasury bonds with maturities greater than three months and up to two years at the time of purchase. These securities, which are classified as available for sale, are carried at fair value, with unrealized gains and losses, net of any tax effect, reported in stockholders’ equity as accumulated other comprehensive (loss) income. As investments are available for current operations, they are classified as current irrespective of their maturities. Amortization of premiums is included in interest income. For the three and six months ended June 30, 2017, the amortization of bond premiums totaled $0 and $6,000, respectively. For the three and six months ended June 30, 2016, the amortization of bond premiums totaled $22,000 and $46,000, respectively. The values of these securities may fluctuate as a result of changes in market interest rates and credit risk. Marketable securities with a principal balance aggregating $7.2 million matured during the six months ended June 30, 2017.

The balance of marketable securities at June 30, 2017 and December 31, 2016 is as follows (in thousands):

Property and equipment

Property and equipment are stated at cost, less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is calculated using the straight-line method over the asset's estimated useful life, which is three years for computer assets, five years for furniture and all other equipment and term of lease for leasehold improvements. Expenditures for maintenance and repairs are expensed as incurred. Depreciation and amortization expense for the three and six months ended June 30, 2017 was $16,000 and $34,000, respectively, and $34,000 and $67,000, respectively, for the three and six months ended June 30, 2016. All property and equipment is located in the United States.

Intangible assets with indefinite lives 

The Company purchased certain internet domain rights, which were determined to have an indefinite life. Identifiable intangibles with indefinite lives are not amortized but are reviewed for impairment annually or whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that its carrying amount may be less than fair value. As of June 30, 2017, the Company believed that no impairment existed.

Research and development costs

The Company outsources certain of its research and development efforts and expenses these costs as incurred, including the cost of manufacturing products for testing, as well as licensing fees and costs associated with planning and conducting clinical trials. The value ascribed to patents and other intellectual property acquired has been expensed as research and development costs, as such property related to particular research and development projects and had no alternative future uses.

The Company estimates its expenses resulting from its obligations under contracts with vendors, clinical research organizations and consultants and under clinical site agreements in connection with conducting clinical trials. The financial terms of these contracts are subject to negotiations, which vary from contract to contract and may result in payment flows that do not match the periods over which materials or services are provided under such contracts. The Company accounts for trial expenses according to the timing of various aspects of the trial. The Company determines accrual estimates taking into account discussion with applicable personnel and outside service providers as to the progress or state of consummation of trials, or the services completed.

During the course of a clinical trial, the Company adjusts its clinical expense recognition if actual results differ from its estimates. The Company makes estimates of its accrued expenses as of each balance sheet date based on the facts and circumstances known to it at that time. The Company’s clinical trial accruals are dependent upon the timely and accurate reporting of contract research organizations and other third-party vendors.

Stock-based compensation

All stock-based payments to employees and to nonemployee directors for their services as directors, including grants of restricted stock units (“RSUs”), and stock options, are measured at fair value on the grant date and recognized in the condensed consolidated statements of operations as compensation or other expense over the relevant service period.

Stock-based payments to nonemployees are recognized as an expense over the period of performance. Such payments are measured at fair value at the earlier of the date a performance commitment is reached or the date performance is completed. In addition, for awards that vest immediately and are non-forfeitable, the measurement date is the date the award is issued.

Foreign currency translation

Operations of the Canadian subsidiary are conducted in local currency, which represents its functional currency. The U.S. dollar is the functional currency of the other foreign subsidiaries. Balance sheet accounts of the Canadian subsidiary were translated from foreign currency into U.S. dollars at the exchange rate in effect at the balance sheet date and income statement accounts were translated at the average rate of exchange prevailing during the period. Translation adjustments resulting from this process were included in accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) on the condensed consolidated balance sheets.

Comprehensive income (loss)

Comprehensive income (loss) is defined as the change in equity of a business during a period from transactions and other events and circumstances from non-owners sources. It includes all changes in equity during a period except those resulting from investments by owners and distributions to owners. Other comprehensive income (loss) represents foreign currency translation adjustments and unrealized gains or losses from available for sale securities.

The following table summarizes the changes in accumulated other comprehensive income by component (in thousands):

Income taxes

Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are determined based on the estimated future tax effects of net operating loss and credit carryforwards and temporary differences between the tax basis of assets and liabilities and their respective financial reporting amounts measured at the current enacted tax rates. The Company records a valuation allowance on its deferred income tax assets if it is not more likely than not that these deferred income tax assets will be realized.

The Company recognizes a tax benefit from an uncertain tax position only if it is more likely than not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by taxing authorities, based on the technical merits of the position. The tax benefits recognized in the consolidated financial statements from such a position are measured based on the largest benefit that has a greater than 50% likelihood of being realized upon ultimate settlement. As of June 30, 2017, the Company has not recorded any unrecognized tax benefits.

Per share data

Basic and diluted net loss per common share is calculated by dividing net loss, by the weighted average number of outstanding shares of common stock, adjusted to give effect to the 1-for-10 reverse stock split, which was effected on March 17, 2017 (see Note 4).

As of June 30, 2017 and 2016, there were outstanding warrants to purchase an aggregate of 731,194 and 172,922 shares, respectively, of the Company’s common stock. In addition, the Company has issued to employees, directors and consultants, options to acquire shares of the Company’s common stock, of which 433,458 and 232,663 were outstanding at June 30, 2017 and 2016, respectively, and restricted stock units issued to non-employee directors to acquire shares of the Company’s common stock of which 1,500 and 11,250 were outstanding at each of June 30, 2017 and 2016 (see Note 6). In computing diluted net loss per share for the three and six months ended June 30, 2017 and 2016, no effect has been given to such options, warrants and restricted stock units as their effect would be anti-dilutive.