United States

Securities and Exchange Commission

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-Q

(Mark One)

 

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

For the quarterly period ended March 31,September 30, 2023

or

 

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

For the transition period from ____ to ____

Commission File Number 001-39531

 

Processa Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

Delaware 45-1539785

(State or other jurisdiction

of incorporation or organization)

 

(IRS Employer

Identification No.)

 

7380 Coca Cola Drive, Suite 106,

Hanover, Maryland 21076

((443)443) 776-3133

 

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Exchange Act:

 

Title of Each Class Trading Symbol(s) Name of each exchange on which registered
Common Stock, $0.0001 par value per share PCSA The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC

 

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 ☒ No ☐

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted 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 such files). Yes ☒ 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 emerging growth company. See definition of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

 

Large accelerated filerAccelerated filer
Non-accelerated filer☒ Smaller reporting company
  Emerging growth company

 

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

 

The number of outstanding shares of the registrant’s common stock at May 9,as of November 1, 2023 was 24,531,47424,631,474.

 

 

 

 

PROCESSA PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

Part I. Financial InformationPART 1: FINANCIAL INFORMATION3
ItemITEM 1: Financial StatementsFINANCIAL STATEMENTS3
ITEM 2. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONSItem 2: Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations14
ItemITEM 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market RiskQUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK24
Item 4. Controls and Procedures24
Part II. Other Information25
Item 1. Legal Procedures25
Item 1A. Risk Factors25
Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds25
Item 3. Defaults Upon Senior Securities25
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures25
Item 5. Other Information25
Item 6. Exhibits25
SignaturesITEM 4. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES25
PART II. OTHER INFORMATION25
ITEM 1. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS25
ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS25
ITEM 2. UNREGISTERED SALES OF EQUITY SECURITIES AND USE OF PROCEEDS26
ITEM 3. DEFAULTS UPON SENIOR SECURITIES26
ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES26
ITEM 5. OTHER INFORMATION27
ITEM 6. EXHIBITS27
Signatures28

2

Part I: Financial InformationPART 1: FINANCIAL INFORMATION

ItemITEM 1: Financial StatementsFINANCIAL STATEMENTS

 

Processa Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets

(Unaudited)

 

  

March 31,

2023

  

December 31,

2022

 
ASSETS        
Current Assets        
Cash and cash equivalents $10,741,602  $6,503,595 
Prepaid expenses and other  1,477,519   1,883,134 
Total Current Assets  12,219,121   8,386,729 
         
Property and Equipment, net  -   - 
         
Other Assets        
Operating lease right-of-use assets, net of accumulated amortization  207,787   227,587 
Security deposit  5,535   5,535 
Total Other Assets  213,322   233,122 
Total Assets $12,432,443  $8,619,851 
         
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY        
Current Liabilities        
Current maturities of operating lease liability $81,166  $78,896 
Accounts payable  316,709   327,548 
Due to licensor  189,000   189,000 
Due to related parties  -   51 
Accrued expenses  1,573,961   403,061 
Total Current Liabilities  2,160,836   998,556 
Non-current Liabilities        
Non-current operating lease liability  129,358   150,554 
Total Liabilities  2,290,194   1,149,110 
         
Commitments and Contingencies  -   - 
         
Stockholders’ Equity        
Common stock, par value $0.0001, 50,000,000 shares authorized: 24,631,474 issued and 24,531,474 outstanding at March 31, 2023 and 16,135,400 issued and 16,035,400 outstanding at December 31, 2022  2,463   1,614 
Additional paid-in capital  78,709,420   72,016,688 
Treasury stock at cost — 100,000 shares at March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022  (300,000)  (300,000)
Accumulated deficit  (68,269,634)  (64,247,561)
Total Stockholders’ Equity  10,142,249   7,470,741 
Total Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity $12,432,443  $8,619,851 

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements.

3

Processa Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations

(Unaudited)

  2023  2022 
  Three months ended March 31, 
  2023  2022 
Operating Expenses        
Research and development expenses $1,627,480  $2,043,984 
General and administrative expenses  2,478,055   1,184,730 
         
Operating Loss  (4,105,535)  (3,228,714)
         
Other Income (Expense), net  83,462   1,583 
         
Net Operating Loss Before Income Tax Benefit  (4,022,073)  (3,227,131)
Income Tax Benefit  -   - 
         
Net Loss $(4,022,073) $(3,227,131)
         
Net Loss Per Common Share - Basic and Diluted $(0.18) $(0.20)
         
Weighted Average Common Shares Used to Compute Net Loss Per Common Shares - Basic and Diluted  22,770,789   15,831,118 

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements.

4

Processa Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Condensed Consolidated Statement of Changes in Stockholders’ Equity

(Unaudited)

  Shares  Amount  Capital  Shares  Amount  Deficit  Total 
        Additional             
  Common Stock  Paid-In  Treasury Stock  Accumulated    
  Shares  Amount  Capital  Shares  Amount  Deficit  Total 
Balance at January 1, 2022  15,710,246  $1,571  $62,306,861   -  $-  $(36,823,332) $25,485,100 
Stock-based compensation  103,670   10   828,887   -   -   -   828,897 
Acquisition of treasury stock  -   -   -   (100,000)  (300,000)  -   (300,000)
Shares issued in connection with purchase agreement  123,609   12   449,988   -   -   -   450,000 
Net loss  -   -   -   -   -   (3,227,131)  (3,227,131)
Balance, March 31, 2022  15,937,525  $1,593  $63,585,736   (100,000) $(300,000) $(40,050,463) $23,236,866 
Balance  15,937,525  $1,593  $63,585,736   (100,000) $(300,000) $(40,050,463) $23,236,866 

        Additional             
  Common Stock  Paid-In  Treasury Stock  Accumulated    
  Shares  Amount  Capital  Shares  Amount  Deficit  Total 
Balance at January 1, 2023  16,135,400  $1,614  $72,016,688   (100,000) $(300,000) $(64,247,561) $7,470,741 
Stock-based compensation  63,882   6   341,498   -   -   -   341,504 
Shares issued in connection with capital raises, net of transaction costs  8,432,192   843   6,351,234   -   -   -   6,352,077 
Net loss  -   -   -   -   -   (4,022,073)  (4,022,073)
Balance, March 31, 2023  24,631,474  $2,463  $78,709,420   (100,000) $(300,000) $(68,269,634) $10,142,249 
Balance  24,631,474  $2,463  $78,709,420   (100,000) $(300,000) $(68,269,634) $10,142,249 
  September 30, 2023  December 31, 2022 
ASSETS        
Current Assets        
Cash and cash equivalents $6,860,672  $6,503,595 
Prepaid expenses and other  1,046,790   1,883,134 
Total Current Assets  7,907,462   8,386,729 
         
Property and Equipment, net  2,694   - 
         
Other Assets        
Operating lease right-of-use assets, net  167,035   227,587 
Security deposit  5,535   5,535 
Total Other Assets  172,570   233,122 
Total Assets $8,082,726  $8,619,851 
         
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY        
Current Liabilities        
Current maturities of operating lease liability $82,744  $78,896 
Accounts payable  346,299   327,548 
Due to licensor  189,000   189,000 
Due to related parties  5,791   51 
Accrued expenses  202,236   403,061 
Total Current Liabilities  826,070   998,556 
Non-current Liabilities        
Non-current operating lease liability  88,777   150,554 
Total Liabilities  914,847   1,149,110 
         
Commitments and Contingencies  -   - 
         
Stockholders’ Equity        
Common stock, par value $0.0001, 100,000,000 shares authorized: 24,731,474 issued and 24,631,474 outstanding at September 30, 2023, and 16,135,400 issued and 16,035,400 outstanding at December 31, 2022  2,473   1,614 
Additional paid-in capital  80,429,556   72,016,688 
Treasury stock at cost — 100,000 shares at September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022  (300,000)  (300,000)
Accumulated deficit  (72,964,150)  (64,247,561)
Total Stockholders’ Equity  7,167,879   7,470,741 
Total Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity $8,082,726  $8,619,851 

 

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements.

 

53

 

Processa Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash FlowsOperations

(Unaudited)

 

  2023  2022 
  Three Months Ended March 31, 
  2023  2022 
Cash Flows From Operating Activities        
Net loss $(4,022,073) $(3,227,131)
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities:        
Non-cash lease expense for right-of-use assets  19,800   22,559 
Amortization of issuance costs  -   3,113 
Amortization of intangible asset  -   197,124 
Stock-based compensation  341,504   828,897 
Recording of warrant to be issued to purchase 3,160,130 shares of common stock in connection with a consulting agreement  

1,310,875

   - 
         
Net changes in operating assets and liabilities:        
Prepaid expenses and other  405,615   216,717 
Operating lease liability  (18,926)  (23,195)
Accounts payable  (10,839)  97,187 
Due (from) to related parties  (51)  (1,772)
Other receivables  -   70,274 
Accrued expenses  (139,975)  13,301 
Net cash used in operating activities  (2,114,070)  (1,802,926)
         
Cash Flows From Financing Activities        
Net proceeds from common stock issued  6,352,077   - 
Acquisition of treasury stock  -   (300,000)
Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities  6,352,077   (300,000)
         
Net Increase (Decrease) in Cash  4,238,007   (2,102,926)
Cash and Cash Equivalents – Beginning of Period  6,503,595   16,497,581 
Cash and Cash Equivalents – End of Period $10,741,602  $14,394,655 
         
Non-Cash Financing Activities        
Issuance of 123,609 shares of common stock in connection with the Purchase Agreement with Lincoln Park $-  $450,000 
  2023  2022  2023  2022 
  Three Months Ended
September 30,
  Nine Months Ended
September 30,
 
  2023  2022  2023  2022 
Operating Expenses                
Research and development $1,151,740  $3,136,838  $4,478,793  $8,319,907 
General and administrative  1,015,872   2,920,280   4,508,818   6,137,674 
                 
Operating Loss  (2,167,612)  (6,057,118)  (8,987,611)  (14,457,581)
                 
Other Income (Expense)                
Interest income, net  85,661   36,708   271,022   45,672 
                 
Net Loss $(2,081,951) $(6,020,410) $(8,716,589) $(14,411,909)
                 
Net Loss per Common Share - Basic and Diluted $(0.08) $(0.37) $(0.34) $(0.90)
                 
Weighted Average Common Shares Used to Compute Net Loss Applicable to Common Shares - Basic and Diluted  27,002,908   16,200,222   25,585,222   15,991,653 

 

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements.

4

Processa Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Changes in Stockholders’ Equity

Three and Nine Months Ended September 30, 2022 and 2023

(Unaudited)

  Shares  Amount  Capital  Shares  Amount  Deficit  Total 
     Additional          
  Common Stock  Paid-In  Treasury Stock  Accumulated    
  Shares  Amount  Capital  Shares  Amount  Deficit  Total 
Balance at January 1, 2022  15,710,246  $1,571  $62,306,861  $-  $-  $(36,823,332) $25,485,100 
Stock-based compensation  103,670   10   828,887   -   -   -   828,897 
Acquisition of treasury stock              (100,000)  (300,000)      (300,000)
Shares issued in connection with purchase agreement  123,609   12   449,988   -   -   -   450,000 
Net loss  -   -   -   -   -   (3,227,131)  (3,227,131)
Balance, March 31, 2022  15,937,525   1,593   63,585,736   (100,000)  (300,000)  (40,050,463)  23,236,866 
Stock-based compensation  (18,208)  (1)  2,009,370   -   -   -   2,009,369 
Net loss  -   -   -   -   -   (5,164,368)  (5,164,368)
Balance, June 30, 2022  15,919,317   1,592   65,595,106   (100,000)  (300,000)  (45,214,831)  20,081,867 
Balance  15,919,317   1,592   65,595,106   (100,000)  (300,000)  (45,214,831)  20,081,867 
Stock-based compensation  86,888   9   3,213,806   -   -   -   3,213,815 
Shares withheld to pay income taxes on stock-based compensation  (11,118)  (1)  (35,246)  -   -   -   (35,247)
Net loss  -   -   -   -   -   (6,020,410)  (6,020,410)
Balance, September 30, 2022  15,995,087  $1,600  $68,773,666   (100,000) $(300,000) $(51,235,241) $17,240,025 
Balance  15,995,087  $1,600  $68,773,666   (100,000) $(300,000) $(51,235,241) $17,240,025 

     Additional          
  Common Stock  Paid-In  Treasury Stock  Accumulated    
  Shares  Amount  Capital  Shares  Amount  Deficit  Total 
Balance at January 1, 2023  16,135,400  $1,614  $72,016,688   (100,000) $(300,000) $(64,247,561) $7,470,741 
Stock-based compensation  63,882   6   341,498   -   -   -   341,504 
Shares issued in connection with capital raises, net of transaction costs  8,432,192   843   6,351,234   -   -   -   6,352,077 
Net loss  -   -   -   -   -   (4,022,073)  (4,022,073)
Balance, March 31, 2023  24,631,474   2,463   78,709,420   (100,000)  (300,000)  (68,269,634)  10,142,249 
Stock-based compensation  -   -   319,123   -   -   -   319,123 
Warrant granted in connection with a consulting agreement  -   -   1,310,875           -   1,310,875 
Net loss  -   -   -   -   -   (2,612,565)  (2,612,565)
Balance, June 30, 2023  24,631,474   2,463   80,339,418   (100,000)  (300,000)  (70,882,199)  9,159,682 
Balance  24,631,474   2,463   80,339,418   (100,000)  (300,000)  (70,882,199)  9,159,682 
Stock-based compensation, net of forfeitures  100,000   10   142,884   -   -   -   142,894 
Settlement of stock award  -   -   (52,746)  -   -   -   (52,746)
Net loss  -   -   -   -   -   (2,081,951)  (2,081,951)
Balance, September 30, 2023  24,731,474  $2,473  $80,429,556   (100,000) $(300,000) $(72,964,150) $7,167,879 
Balance  24,731,474  $2,473  $80,429,556   (100,000) $(300,000) $(72,964,150) $7,167,879 

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements.

5

Processa Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows

(Unaudited)

  2023  2022 
  Nine Months Ended September 30, 
  2023  2022 
Cash Flows From Operating Activities        
Net loss $(8,716,589) $(14,411,909)
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities:        
Depreciation  82   - 
Lease expense for right-of-use assets  60,552   66,126 
Milestone expense in connection with license agreement  -   189,000 
Amortization of issuance costs  -   78,113 
Amortization of intangible asset  -   591,372 
Stock-based compensation  803,521   6,052,081 
Warrants issued to purchase 3,160,130 shares of common stock in connection with a consulting agreement  1,310,875   - 
         
Net changes in operating assets and liabilities:        
Prepaid expenses and other  836,344   299,074 
Operating lease liability  (57,929)  (69,420)
Accounts payable  18,751   92,161 
Due (from) to related parties  5,740   (1,772)
Other receivables  -   70,274 
Accrued expenses  (200,825)  (62,858)
Net cash used in operating activities  (5,939,478)  (7,107,758)
         
Cash Flows From Investing Activities        
Purchase of property and equipment  (2,776)  - 
Net cash used in investing activities  (2,776)  - 
         
Cash Flows From Financing Activities        
Net proceeds from common stock issued  6,352,077   (35,247)
Settlement of stock award  (52,746)  - 
Acquisition of treasury stock  -   (300,000)

Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities

  6,299,331   (335,247)
         
Net Increase (Decrease) in Cash  357,077   (7,443,005)
Cash and Cash Equivalents – Beginning of Period  6,503,595   16,497,581 
Cash and Cash Equivalents – End of Period $6,860,672  $9,054,574 
         
Non-Cash Financing Activities        
Issuance of 123,609 shares of common stock in connection with the Purchase Agreement with Lincoln Park $-  $450,000 
         
Right-of-use asset obtained in exchange for operating lease liability $-  $(238,924)
Operating lease liability  -   238,924 
Net  -  $- 

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated financial statements.

 

6

 

Processa Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements

(Unaudited)

 

Note 1 – Organization and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Organization

We are a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on incorporating our Regulatory Science Approach into the development of our Next Generation Chemotherapy (NGC) drugs to improve the safety and efficacy of cancer treatment. Our NGC drugs are modifications of existing FDA-approved oncology drugs resulting in an alteration of the metabolism and/or distribution while maintaining the well-known and established existing mechanisms of killing the cancer cells. By modifying the NGC drugs in this manner, we believe our three NGC treatments will provide improved safety-efficacy profiles when compared to their currently marketed counterparts.

 

Basis of Presentation

The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”) for interim financial information and with the instructions of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on Form 10-Q and Article 8 of Regulation S-X.

 

Accordingly, they do not include all the information and disclosures required by U.S. GAAP for complete financial statements. All material intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. In the opinion of management, the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements include all adjustments necessary, which are of a normal and recurring nature, for the fair presentation of our financial position and of the results of operations and cash flows for the periods presented. These condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited financial statements and notes thereto included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, as filed with the SEC. The results of operations for the interim periods shown in this report are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for any other interim period or for the full year.

 

LiquidityGoing Concern and Management’s Plans

 

We have incurred losses since inception, devoting substantially all of our efforts toward research and development, and have an accumulated deficit of $68.373.0 million at March 31,September 30, 2023. During the threenine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023, we generated a net loss of $4.08.7 million and used $5.9 and wemillion in net cash for operating activities from continuing operations. We expect to continue to generatecontinued operating losses and negative cash flow from operations for the foreseeable future.

During the nine months ended September 30, 2023, we raised gross proceeds of $7.0 million (net proceeds of $6.4 million) from the sale of 8,432,192 shares of our common stock, as described in Note 2. We are using the net proceeds from these financings to prepare for future clinical trials, and on research and development expenses, working capital and other general corporate purposes.

7

Our condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared using U.S. GAAP and are based on the assumption that we will continue as a going concern, which contemplates the realization of assets and liquidation of liabilities in the normal course of business. We face certain risks and uncertainties that are present in many emerging pharmaceutical companies regarding product development, limited working capital, recurring losses and negative cash flow from operations, future profitability, ability to obtain future capital, protection of patents, technologies and property rights, competition, rapid technological change, navigating the domestic and major foreign markets’ regulatory and clinical environment, recruiting and retaining key personnel, dependence on third party manufacturing organizations, third party collaboration and licensing agreements, lack of sales and marketing activities. We currently have no customers or pharmaceutical products to sell or distribute. These risks and other factors raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.

At September 30, 2023, we had cash and cash equivalents totaling $6.9 million. Based on our current plans, we believe our current cash balances are adequatewill enable us to complete our current clinical trial in NGC-Capecitabine (NGC-Cap, also known as PCS6422), prepare for at leasta Phase 2 trial for NGC-Cap, and fund our administrative costs through the next twelve months.second quarter of 2024. Our ability to execute our longer-term operating plans, including future clinical trials for our portfolio ofNGC drugs, will depend on our ability to obtain additional funding from the sale of equity and/or debt securities, a strategic transaction or other funding transactions. We plan to continue to actively pursue financing alternatives, including out-licensing and/or entering into partnerships on any of our non-core assets, but there can be no assurance that we will obtain the necessary funding in the future when necessary.

 

We had no revenue during the threenine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023 and do not have any revenue under contract or any immediate sales prospects. Our primary uses of cash are to fund our planned clinical trials, research and development expenditures and otherfor operating expenses. Cash used to fund operating expenses is impacted by the timing of when we incur and pay these expenses.

 

We are hoping to raise additional funds in late 2023 or early 2024, but will only do so if the terms are acceptable to us. Additional funding may not be available to us on acceptable terms, or at all. If we are unable to obtain adequate financing when needed, we may have to delay, reduce the scope of, or suspend our current or planned future clinical trial plans, or research and development programs. This may also cause us to not meet diligence obligations contained in certain of our license agreements and put these assets at risk. We may seek to raise any necessary additional capital through a combination of public or private equity offerings, debt financings, collaborations, strategic alliances, licensing arrangements and other marketing and distribution arrangements. To the extent that we raise additional capital through marketing and distribution arrangements or other collaborations, strategic alliances or licensing arrangements with third parties, we may have to relinquish valuable rights to our product candidates, future revenue streams, research programs or product candidates or to grant licenses on terms that may not be favorable to us. If we raise additional capital through public or private equity offerings, the ownership interest of our existing stockholders will be diluted, and the terms of these securities may include liquidation or other preferences that adversely affect our stockholders’ rights. If we raise additional capital through debt financing, we may be subject to covenants limiting or restricting our ability to take specific actions, such as incurring additional debt, making capital expenditures or declaring dividends.

Uncertainty concerning our ability to continue as a going concern may hinder our ability to obtain future financing. Continued operations and our ability to continue as a going concern are dependent on our ability to obtain additional funding in the future and thereafter, and no assurances can be given that such funding will be available at all, in a sufficient amount, or on reasonable terms. Without additional funds from debt or equity financing, sales of assets, sales or out-licenses of intellectual property or technologies, or other transactions providing funds, we will rapidly exhaust our resources, be unable to meet diligence obligations in license agreements, and be unable to continue operations. Absent additional funding, we believe that our cash and cash equivalents will not be sufficient to fund our operations for a period of one year or more after the date that these condensed consolidated financial statements are available to be issued based on the timing and amount of our projected net loss from continuing operations and cash to be used in operating activities during that period of time.

As a result, substantial doubt exists about our ability to continue as a going concern within one year after the date that these condensed consolidated financial statements are available to be issued. The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments to reflect the possible future effects on the recoverability and classification of recorded assets, or the amounts and classification of liabilities that might be different should we be unable to continue as a going concern based on the outcome of these uncertainties described above.

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During the three months ended March 31, 2023, we raised gross proceeds of $7.0 million (net proceeds of $6.4 million) from the sale of 8,432,192 shares of our common stock, as described in Note 2. We plan to use the net proceeds from these financings to prepare for future clinical trials; and on research and development expenses, working capital and other general corporate purposes.

Use of Estimates

 

In preparing our condensed consolidated financial statements and related disclosures in conformity with U.S. GAAP and pursuant to the rules and regulations of the SEC, we make estimates and judgments that affect the amounts reported in the condensed consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes. Estimates are used for, but not limited to preclinical and clinical trial expenses, stock-based compensation, intangible assets, future milestone payments and income taxes. These estimates and assumptions are continuously evaluated and are based on management’s experience and knowledge of the relevant facts and circumstances. While we believe the estimates to be reasonable, actual results could differ materially from those estimates and could impact future results of operations and cash flows.

 

Income Taxes

 

We account for income taxes in accordance with ASC Topic 740, Income Taxes. Deferred income taxes are recorded for the expected tax consequences of temporary differences between the basis of assets and liabilities for financial reporting purposes and amounts recognized for income tax purposes. At March 31,September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, we recorded a valuation allowance equal to the full recorded amount of our net deferred tax assets since it is more-likely-than-not that such benefits will not be realized. The valuation allowance is reviewed quarterly and is maintained until sufficient positive evidence exists to support its reversal.

 

Under ACS 740-270 Income Taxes – Interim Reporting, we are required to project our annual federal and state effective income tax rate and apply it to the year-to-date ordinary operating tax basis loss before income taxes. Based on the projection, no current income tax benefit or expense is expected for 2023, andor for the foreseeable future since the deferred tax liability has been offset completely at December 31, 2021 and we expect to generate taxable net operating losses.

 

Concentration of Credit Risk

 

Financial instruments that potentially subject us to significant concentration of credit risk consist primarily of our cash and cash equivalents. We utilize only well-established banks and financial institutions with high credit ratings. Balances on deposit are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) up to specified limits. Total cash held by our banks at March 31,September 30, 2023, exceeded FDIC limits.

 

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

 

From time to time, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) or other standard setting bodies issue new accounting pronouncements. Updates to the FASB Accounting Standards Codification are communicated through issuance of an Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”). We have implemented all new accounting pronouncements that are in effect and that may impact our condensed consolidated financial statements. We have evaluated recently issued accounting pronouncements and determined that there is no material impact on our condensed consolidated financial position or results of operations.

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Note 2 – Stockholders’ Equity

 

Preferred Stock

 

There were no issued or outstanding shares of preferred stock at either March 31,September 30, 2023 or December 31, 2022.

 

Common Stock

Increase in Our Authorized Number of Shares

Subsequent to receiving shareholder approval on June 27, 2023, we amended our Certificate of Incorporation to increase the number of authorized shares of our common stock from 50,000,000 to 100,000,000. We believe 100,000,000 authorized shares of common stock better aligns our capital structure with our future needs and have shown this retroactively in the condensed consolidated financial statements.

During the threenine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023, we issued 8,432,192 shares of our common stock through several fundraising efforts.efforts described below:

9

 

ATM Offering

 

On August 20, 2021, we entered into the Sales Agreement with Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. (the “Sales Agent”) under which we may issue and sell up to $30.0 million from time to time under the ATM Offering. We expect to use net proceeds from the ATM Offering over time as a source for working capital and general corporate purposes. During the three months ended March 31, 2023, we sold 569,648 shares at an average price of $1.22 per share for aggregate gross proceeds of $693,000 (net proceeds of $672,000) prior to deducting sales commissions. On February 5, 2023, in connection with our Registered Direct Offering discussed below, we terminated our ATM and suspended the Sales Agreement with the Sales Agent,Oppenheimer & Co. Inc., but we expect to reinstate it during 2023.in the future. During the nine months ended September 30, 2023, we sold 569,648 shares at an average price of $1.22 per share for aggregate gross proceeds of $693,000 (net proceeds of $672,000) prior to deducting sales commissions.

Lincoln Park Capital Fund, LLC Purchase Agreement

 

On March 23, 2022, we entered into the Purchase Agreement a purchase agreement with Lincoln Park, pursuant to which Lincoln Park has committed to purchase up to $15.0 million of shares (the “Purchase Shares”) of our common stock, subject to the terms and conditions in the Purchase Agreementpurchase agreement with Lincoln Park,, including that the closing sale price of the common stock on the purchase date is not below a threshold price of $1.00. Any proceeds that we receive under the Purchase Agreementpurchase agreement are expected to be used for working capital and general corporate purposes. During the threenine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023, we sold 50,000 shares at an average price of $1.08 per share for aggregate gross proceeds of $54,000 under the Purchase Agreementpurchase agreement with Lincoln Park.

 

Registered Direct Offering

On February 14, 2023, we closed a registered direct offering (the(the “Offering”) for the sale of 7,812,544 shares of common stock at a purchase price of $0.80 per share for gross proceeds of $6.3million (net proceeds of $5.6 million). The Purchase Agreement provides that, subject to certain exceptions, until the earlier of (i) 90 days after the closing of the Offering or (ii) the trading day following the date that our common stock’s closing price exceeds $2.00 for a period of 10 consecutive trading days, neither we nor our subsidiary will issue or enter into any agreement to issue or announce the issuance or proposed issuance of any shares of common stock or common stock equivalentsmillion).

 

We paid the Placement Agent (“Spartan Capital” or “Spartan”) a cash fee of 8.0% of the gross proceeds from the Offering, excluding proceeds received from our insiders, and reimbursed the Placement Agent for legal fees of $60,000. The engagement agreement with the Placement Agent requires us to indemnify the Placement Agent and certain of its affiliates against certain customary liabilities. On February 14, 2023, we amended our consulting agreement with Spartan originally entered into on August 24, 2022, extending the term of the consulting agreement until February 10, 2024. As compensation for services under the agreement, on April 17, 2023, we granted Spartan a warrantwarrants to purchase 3,160,130shares of our common stock with an exercise price of $1.02. The warrantwarrants will expire three yearsfrom the date of issuance and contains both call and cashless exercise provisions.

9

 

Note 3 - Stock-based Compensation

On June 19, 2019, our stockholders approved, and we adopted the Processa Pharmaceuticals Inc. 2019 Omnibus Equity Incentive Plan (the “2019 Plan”). The 2019 Plan allows us, under the direction of our Board of Directors or a committee thereof, to make grants of stock options, restricted and unrestricted stock and other stock-based awards to employees, including our executive officers, consultants and directors. The 2019 Plan provides for the aggregate issuance of 6,000,000 shares of our common stock. At March 31,September 30, 2023, we havehad 1,394,122467,735 shares available for future grants.grants under the 2019 Plan.

 

Stock Compensation Expense

 

We recorded stock-based compensation expense for the three monthand nine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023 and 2022 as follows:

 Schedule of Stock-based Compensation Expense

 2023 2022 2023 2022 
 Three Months Ended
September 30,
 Nine Months Ended
September 30,
 
 2023 2022  2023 2022 2023 2022 
Research and development $99,621  $191,875  $76,626  $1,067,613  $286,152  $1,945,113 
General and administrative  241,883   637,022   66,268   2,146,202   517,369   4,106,968 
Total $341,504  $828,897  $142,894  $3,213,815  $803,521  $6,052,081 

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At March 31,

During the nine months ended September 30, 2023, we also recorded an expense and related accrued liability of $1.3 million related to the warrantwarrants we issued to Spartan (see Note 2), which is not included in the table above.above. No tax benefits were attributed to the stock-based compensation expense because a valuation allowance was maintained for all net deferred tax assets relating to this expense.

 

Stock Options

 

During the threenine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023, stock options to purchase 36,885 shares of common stock expired and there were no exercises or grants of stock options. At March 31,September 30, 2023, we had outstanding and exercisable options for the purchase of 141,611 shares with a weighted average exercise price of $18.22, a weighted average remaining contractual life of 2.92.4 years. At March 31,September 30, 2023, we did not have any unrecognized stock-based compensation expense related to our granted stock options.

 

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Restricted Stock Awards

 

Activity with respect to our Restricted Stock Awards (RSAs) during the threenine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023 was as follows:

 Schedule of Restricted Stock Awards (“RSAs”) Activity

 

Number of

shares

 Weighted-
average
grant-date fair
value per share
  Number of
shares
 Weighted-
average
grant-date
fair
value per
share
 
Outstanding at January 1, 2023  61,888  $4.72   61,888  $4.72 
Granted  90,000   1.10   215,000   0.73 
Forfeited  (25,000)  6.65 
Cancelled  (26,118)  1.72   (26,118)  1.72 
Issued  (150,770)  1.35 
                
Outstanding and unvested at March 31, 2023  125,770  $2.75 
Outstanding and unvested at September 30, 2023  75,000  $0.46 

 

On January 1, 2023, we granted RSAs totaling 90,000 shares of common stock to three directors for their service for the six monthsix-month period ending June 30, 2023 in order to align their compensation plan with their service period and changechanged the annual service period to begin and end on the date of respective Annual Meetings rather than the calendar year. Our directors are compensated through a combination of cash and equity. On March 8, 2023, the directors increased the cash component and decreased the equity component of their compensation by equal amounts on a retroactive basis, to the beginning of their respective service periods. Accordingly, we cancelled RSAs representing 26,118 shares of previously issued, but unvested common stock.

 

AtOn July 14, 2023, we granted RSAs totaling 125,000 shares of common stock to a consultant (of which 50,000 have been issued as of September 30, 2023) for services to be provided through March 18, 2024. The remaining RSAs are subject to vesting restrictions. On August 31, 2023, in connection with the totalresignation of our Chief Operating Officer (COO), unvested RSAs representing 25,000 shares of common stock were forfeited and we reversed previously recognized expense of $73,000.

At September 30, 2023, unrecognized stock-based compensation expense related to the outstanding and unvestedof $30,000 for RSAs was $representing 163,10075,000 , whichshares of common stock is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of 0.50.41 years. The weighted-average grant-date fair value of RSAs granted during the nine months ended September 30, 2022 was $7.74.

 

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Restricted Stock Units

 

Activity with respect to our Restricted Stock Units (“RSUs”) during the threenine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023 was as follows:

 Schedule of Restricted Stock Units (“RSUs”) Activity

 

Number of

shares

 Weighted-
average
grant-date fair
value per share
  Number of
shares
 Weighted-
average
grant-date
fair
value per
share
 
Outstanding at January 1, 2023  2,713,977  $3.69   2,713,977  $3.69 
Granted  966,503   1.10   2,273,328   0.72 
        
Outstanding at March 31, 2023  3,680,480   3.01 
Forfeited  (144,478)  1.48 
Cancelled  (335,960)  3.57 
Outstanding at September 30, 2023  4,506,867   2.30 
Vested and unissued  2,585,247   3.50   2,291,923   3.58 
                
Unvested at March 31, 2023  1,095,233  $1.86 
Unvested at September 30, 2023  2,214,944  $0.97 

 

On August 8, 2023, Mr. George Ng was appointed as our Chief Executive Officer and as a Board Director. In addition to cash compensation, the Compensation Committee awarded 800,000 restricted stock units (“RSUs”) to Mr. Ng. Vesting for 400,000 RSUs occurs ratably over a three-year period. The remaining 400,000 RSUs will vest on the achievement of certain performance metrics, with the first 200,000 performance-based RSUs vesting when gross proceeds of $10,000,000 is raised, and the second 200,000 performance-based RSUs vesting when additional gross proceeds of $10,000,000 is raised. On August 31, 2023, in connection with the termination of our COO, vested and unvested RSUs representing 436,043 shares of common stock were forfeited and/or cancelled and we reversed previously recognized expense of $38,000.

At March 31,September 30, 2023, unrecognized stock-based compensation expense of $1.21.1 million for RSUs is expected to be fully recognized over a weighted average period of 2.11.4 years. The unrecognized expense excludes $322,000441,000 of expense related to certain RSUs with a performance milestone that is not probable of occurring at this time. The weighted-average grant-date fair value of RSUs granted during the nine months ended September 30, 2022 was $3.11.

 

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Holders of our vested RSUs have our promise to issue shares of our common stock upon meeting the distribution restrictions contained in their Restricted Stock Unit Award Agreement. The distribution restrictions are different (longer) than the vesting schedule, imposing an additional restriction on the holder. Unlike RSAs, while certain employees may hold fully vested RSUs, the individual does not hold any shares or have any rights of a shareholder until the distribution restrictions are met. Upon distribution to the employee, each RSU converts into one share of our common stock. The RSUs contain dividend equivalent rights.

 

Warrants

 

During the threenine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023, we agreed to grant a warrantgranted warrants to purchase a total of 3,160,130 shares of our common stock as compensation for services provided under an amended consulting agreement with Spartan, the placement agent for the Offering described in Note 2. The warrant waswarrants were issued and exercisable on April 17, 2023 with an exercise price of $1.02 and expiration date of April 17, 2026. The warrant containswarrants contain both call and cashless exercise provisions. We recorded $1,310,875 as a general and administrative expense and related accrued liability representing the fair value of this warrantthese warrants on February 14, 2023, the date we amended the consulting agreement since there were no contingent conditions on that date through April 17, 2023.

2023, the date of issuance. At March 31,September 30, 2023, we had outstanding and exercisable stock purchase warrants including the warrant issued on April 17, 2023, for the purchase of 3,366,480 shares with a weighted average exercise price of $1.61 and a weighted average remaining contractual life of 2.82.3 years. Stock purchase warrants for the purchase of 206,350 shares were exercisable at March 31, 2023 and the remaining outstanding stock purchase warrants will be exercisable in the second quarter of 2023.

 

At March 31,September 30, 2023, we did not have any unrecognized stock-based compensation expense related to our granted stock purchase warrants.

Note 4 – Net Loss per Share of Common Stock

 

Net Loss Per Share

 

Basic net loss per share is computed by dividing our net loss available to common shareholders by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding (which excludes unvested RSAs and includes vested RSUs) during the period. Diluted loss per share is computed by dividing our net loss available to common shareholders by the diluted weighted average number of shares of common stock (which includes the potentially dilutive effect of stock options, unvested RSAs, unvested RSUs and warrants) during the period. Since we experienced a net loss for bothall periods presented, basic and diluted net loss per share are the same. As such, diluted loss per share for the three monthsthree- and nine-month periods ended March 31,September 30, 2023 and 2022 excludes the impact of potentially dilutive common shares since those shares would have an anti-dilutive effect on net loss per share.

 

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The computation of net loss per share for the three monthsthree- and nine-month periods ended March 31,September 30, 2023 and 2022 was as follows:

Schedule of Net Loss Per Share Basic and DiluteDiluted

 2023  2022  2023 2022 2023 2022 
 

Three months ended

March 31,

  Three Months Ended
September 30,
 Nine Months Ended
September 30,
 
 2023  2022  2023 2022 2023 2022 
Basic and diluted net loss per share:                        
Net loss available to common stockholders $(4,022,073) $(3,227,131) $(2,081,951) $(6,020,410) $(8,716,589) $(14,411,909)
Weighted average number of common shares-basic and diluted  22,770,789   15,831,118   27,002,908   16,200,222   25,585,222   15,991,653 
                        
Basic and diluted net loss per share $(0.18) $(0.20) $(0.08) $(0.37) $(0.34) $(0.90)

 

Our diluted net loss per share for the three monthsthree- and nine-month periods ended March 31,September 30, 2023 and 2022 excluded 4,729,0945,798,035 (including the committed warrant to purchase 3,160,130 shares of common stock) and 795,3422,760,527 of potentially dilutive common shares, respectively, related to outstanding stock options, stock purchase warrants and unvested restricted stock since those shares would have had an anti-dilutive effect on net loss per share during the periods then ended.

12

 

Note 5 – Operating Leases

 

We lease our office space under an operating lease agreement. This lease does not have significant rent escalation, concessions, leasehold improvement incentives, or other build-out clauses. Further, the lease does not contain contingent rent provisions. Our office space lease includes both lease (e.g., fixed payments including rent, taxes, and insurance costs) and non-lease components (e.g., common-area or other maintenance costs), which are accounted for as a single lease component as we have elected the practical expedient to group lease and non-lease components for all leases. We also lease office equipment under an operating lease. Our leases do not provide an implicit rate and, as such, we have used our incremental borrowing rate of 8% in determiningto determine the present value of the lease payments based on the information available at the lease commencement date.

 

Lease costs included in our condensed consolidated statements of operations totaled $22,46124,000 and $21,918 for the three monthsboth three-month periods ended March 31,September 30, 2023 and 2022 respectively.and approximately $73,000 for both nine-month periods ended September 30, 2023 and 2022. The weighted average remaining lease terms and discount rate for our operating leases were as follows at March 31,September 30, 2023:

 

Schedule of Weighted Average Remaining Lease Terms and Discount Rate for Operating Leases

Remaining lease term (years) for our facility lease2.52.0
Remaining lease term (years) for our equipment lease1.00.5
Weighted average remaining lease term (years) for our facility and equipment leases2.52.0
Weighted average discount rate for our facility and equipment leases8.08.0%

 

Annual lease liabilities for all operating leases were as follows at March 31,September 30, 2023:

 

Schedule of Annual Lease Liabilities for all Operating Leases

     
2023 $70,600 
2024  92,356 
2025  70,040 
Total lease payments  232,996 
Less: Interest  (22,472)
Present value of lease liabilities  210,524 
Less: current maturities  (81,166)
Non-current lease liability $129,358 

     
2023 $24,109 
2024  92,356 
2025  70,040 
Total lease payments  186,505 
Less: Interest  (14,984)
Present value of lease liabilities  171,521 
Less: current maturities  (82,744)
Non-current lease liability $88,777 

 

Note 6 – Related Party Transactions

 

CorLyst, LLC (“CorLyst”) reimburses us for shared costs related to payroll, health insurance and rent based on actual costs incurred, which are recognized as a reduction of our general and administrative operating expenses being reimbursed in our condensed consolidated statementstatements of operations. We recorded $30,20589,980 and $31,26294,642 ofin reimbursements during the threenine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023 and March 31, 2022, respectively. No amounts were due from CorLyst at March 31,September 30, 2023 or 2022. Our CEOPresident, Research and Development is also the CEO of CorLyst, and CorLyst is a shareholder.

 

Note 7 – Commitments and Contingencies

 

Purchase Obligations

 

We enter into contracts in the normal course of business with contract research organizations (CROs) and subcontractors to further develop our products. The contracts are cancelable,cancellable, with varying provisions regarding termination. If we terminated a cancelablecancellable contract with a specific vendor, we would only be obligated for products or services that we received atas of the effective date of the termination and any applicable cancellation fees. At March 31,As of September 30, 2023, we are contractually obligated to pay up to approximately $3.01.8 million of future services under the agreements with the CROs. OurCROs, but our actual contractual obligations will also vary depending on the progress and results of the remaining clinical trials.

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Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operation

 

Forward Looking Statements

This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q contains “forward-looking statements” that reflect, when made, the Company’s expectations or beliefs concerning future events that involve risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements frequently are identified by the words “believe,” “anticipate,” “expect,” “estimate,” “intend,” “project,” “will be,” “will continue,” “will likely result,” or other similar words and phrases. Similarly, statements herein that describe the Company’s objectives, plans or goals also are forward-looking statements. Actual results could differ materially from those projected, implied or anticipated by the Company’s forward-looking statements. Some of the factors that could cause actual results to differ include: our limited operating history, limited cash and history of losses; our ability to achieve profitability; our ability to obtain adequate financing to fund our business operations in the future; the impact of the global pandemic caused by COVID-19, including its impact on our ability to obtain financing or complete clinical trials; our ability to secure required FDA or other governmental approvals for our product candidates and the breadth of the indication sought; the impact of competitive or alternative products, technologies and pricing; whether we are successful in developing and commercializing our technology, including through licensing; the adequacy of protections afforded to us and/or our licensorslicensor by the anticipated patents that we own or license and the cost to us of maintaining, enforcing and defending those patents; our and our licensors’licensor’s ability to protect non-patented intellectual property rights; our exposure to and ability to defend third-party claims and challenges to our and our licensors’licensor’s anticipated patents and other intellectual property rights; and our ability to continue as a going concern. For a discussion of these and all other known risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements, see “Risk Factors” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022, which is available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.www.sec.gov. All forward-looking statements are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement, and the Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof.

For purposes of this Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, references to the “Company,” “we,” “us” or “our” refer to the operations of Processa Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and its direct and indirect subsidiaries for the periods described herein.

 

Overview

 

We are a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company focused on utilizing our Regulatory Science Approach, including the principles associated with FDA’s Project Optimus Oncology initiative and the related FDA Draft Guidance, in the development of Next Generation Chemotherapy (NGC) oncology drug products. Our mission is to provide better treatment options than those that presently exist by extending a patient’s survival and/or improving a patient’s quality of life. This is achieved by improving upon FDA-approved, widely used oncology drugs or the cancer-killing metabolites of these drugs by altering how they are metabolized and/or distributed in the body, including how they are distributed to the actual cancer cells.

 

Regulatory science was conceived in the early 1990s when the founders of Processa and other faculty at the University of Maryland worked with the FDA to develop multiple FDA Guidance documents.Guidances. Regulatory science is the science of developing new tools, standards, and approaches to assess the safety, efficacy, quality, and performance of all FDA-regulated products. Over the last 30 years, two of our founders, Dr. David Young and Dr. Sian Bigora, have expanded the original regulatory science concept by including the pre-clinical and clinical studies to include other factors, such asjustify the benefit-risk assessment required for FDA approval when designing the development programs of new drug products.

The Processa Regulatory Science Approach defines the scientific information that the FDA requires to determine if the benefit outweighs the risk of a drug in a specific population of patients and at a specific dosage regimen for a specific drug product. The studies are designed to obtain the necessary scientific information to support the regulatory decision.

The FDA has more recently taken steps to define some of the regulatory science required for the FDA approval of oncology products. Through the FDA’s Project Optimus Oncology Initiative and the related Draft Guidance on determining the “optimal” dosage regimen for an oncology drug, the FDA has chosen to make the development of oncology drugs more science-based than in the past. Since the principles of Project Optimus, which can affect the risk-benefit analyses that FDA conducts for every FDA drug approval. In fact, the principles of FDA’s Project Optimus and the related Draft Guidance have been used by Drs. Young and Bigora to identify and justify an “optimal” dosage regimen forour Regulatory Science Approach in a number of non-oncology FDA-approved drugs. Our Regulatory Science Approach anddrugs, our past experience with the principles of Project Optimus differentiates us from other biotechnology companies by focusing us not only on the clinical science, but also on the equally important regulatory process. We believe utilizing our Regulatory Science Approach provides us with three distinct advantages:

 

 greater efficiencies (e.g., the right trial design and trial readouts);
 greater possibility of drug approval by the FDA or other regulatory authorities; and
 improvement overgreater ability to evaluate the benefit-risk of a drug compared to existing therapy, with greater acceptance by patients/prescribers.which allows prescribers to provide better treatment options for each patient.

 

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In January 2023, we announced our strategic prioritization to advance our pipeline of Next Generation ChemotherapyNGC proprietary small molecule oncology drugs. ByThe NGC products are new chemical entities, but they work by changing either the metabolism, distribution and/or elimination of already FDA-approved cancer drugs or their active metabolites while maintaining the mechanism of how the drug kills cancer cells, wecells. We believe our NGC treatments will provide improved safety-efficacy profiles when compared to their currently marketed counterparts - capecitabine, gemcitabine, and irinotecan. All future studies of these drugs are subject to availability of capital to conduct the trials.

 

The three NGC treatments in our pipeline are as follows:

 

 NGC-Capecitabine (NGC-Cap) is a combination of PCS6422 and capecitabine. NGC-Capecitabine alterscapecitabine, capecitabine being the metabolismoral prodrug of capecitabinethe cancer drug 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). PCS6422, without having any clinically meaningful biological effect itself.itself, alters the metabolism of 5-FU, resulting in more 5-FU distribution to the cancer cells. In clinical trials, NGC-CapecitabineNGC-Cap has shown a safety profile different than capecitabine when administered alone. Side effects such as Hand-Foot Syndrome (HFS) and cardiotoxicity that typically occur in up to 50-70% of patients treated with capecitabine and are caused by specific capecitabine metabolites that are not formed to the same extent with NGC-Capecitabine, do not appear to be side effects associated with NGC-Capecitabine.metabolites. These types of toxicities frequently result in decreased doses, interrupted doses, or discontinuation of treatment with capecitabine. Since a much smaller amount of these metabolites are formed with NGC-Cap, these side effects appear in less patients and are less severe when they do occur. In addition, NGC-CapecitabineNGC-Cap has been found to be up to 50 times more potent than capecitabine based on the systemic exposure of the capecitabine metabolite 5-FU, which is metabolized to the cancer-killing metabolites. Like capecitabine, NGC-CapecitabineNGC-Cap could be used to treat patients with various cancers, such as metastatic colorectal, gastrointestinal, breast, and pancreatic. We plan on meeting with the FDA to further discuss the Phase 2 study, which we plan to initiate in 2024. We estimate at least 200,000 patients in the United States were newly diagnosed in 2022 with metastatic colorectal, gastrointestinal, breast, and pancreatic cancers.

 

 PCS3117, also referred to as NGC-Gemcitabine also identified as PCS3117,(NGC-Gem), is an oral analog of gemcitabine that is converted to its active metabolite by a different enzyme system than gemcitabine resulting in a positive response in gemcitabine patients as well as some gemcitabine treatment-resistant patients. Like gemcitabine, NGC-GemcitabineNGC-Gem could be used to treat patients with various cancers such as pancreatic, biliary tract, lung, ovarian, and breast. We estimate at leastmore than 275,000 patients in the United States were newly diagnosed in 2022 with pancreatic, biliary tract, lung, ovarian, and breast cancer. We plan to meet with the FDA in 2023 to discuss potential study designs including implementation of the Project Optimus initiative as part of the design, and then submit thea Phase 2B2 study protocol to theour existing Investigational New Drug (IND Application)(IND) in the second half of 2023.2024.
   
 PCS11T, also referred to as NGC-Irinotecan also identified as PCS11T,(NGC-Iri), is a prodrug of the active metabolite of irinotecan (SN-38). The chemical structure of NGC-IrinotecanNGC-Iri influences the uptake of the drug into cancer cells, resulting in more NGC-IrinotecanNGC-Iri entering cancer cells than normal cells in mice. These levels were significantly greater than those seen with irinotecan, resulting in lower doses of NGC-IrinotecanNGC-Iri having greater efficacy than irinotecan and improved safety in animal models. Like irinotecan, NGC-IrinotecanNGC-Iri could be used to treat patients with various cancers such as lung, colorectal, gastrointestinal, and pancreatic cancer. We estimate at least 200,000 patients in the United States were newly diagnosed in 2022 with lung, colorectal, gastrointestinal, and pancreatic cancer. We plan to conduct IND-enabling and toxicology studies in 2023 and 2024.

 

DueWe have completed our Phase 2A trial for PCS12852 in gastroparesis patients with positive results. Additionally, due primarily to the inability to identify and enroll patients since the beginning ofin our rare disease Phase 2 trial for PCS499 in ulcerative Necrobiosis Lipoidica (uNL), we decided to cease further enrollment in the PCS499 trial in February 2023. In addition, we have completed our Phase 2A trial for PCS12852 in gastroparesis patients with positive results.2023 and terminated the trial. We did not experience any safety concerns during the conduct of either the PCS12852 or PCS499 trial. We are currently evaluating options to monetize PCS12852 and PCS499.these non-core drug assets, which may include out-licensing or partnering these assets with one or more third parties.

 

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Our shift in prioritization to NGC oncology drugs does not change our mission. We continue to be focused on drug products that improve the survival and/or quality of life for patients by improving the safety and/or efficacy of the drug in a targeted patient population, while providing a more efficient and probable path to FDA approval and differentiating our drugs from those on the market or are currently being developed.

 

Historically, much of oncology drug development has searched for novel or different ways to treat cancer. Our de-risked approach is to take three current FDA-approved cancer drugs and modify and improve three different and well-known, currently approved, and successfully used chemotherapy treatments so thathow the human body metabolizes and/or distributes these NGC treatments differently thancompared to their presently approved counterpart drugs while maintaining the cancer-killing mechanism of action. FDA’s newly issued Project Optimus Oncology initiative and draft guidance onaction; thus, our reason for calling our drugs Next Generation Chemotherapy (or NGC) treatments. Part of the development includes determining the optimal dose for oncology drugs recommends that the dose-response (both safety and efficacy) relationships be evaluated for all oncology drugs. Our Regulatory Science Approach, developed over the last 30 years, is very well aligned with the principles of Project Optimus and draft guidance where the objective is to identify the optimal dosage regimen rather thanbased on the old approach of identifyingdose-response relationship as described in the maximum tolerated dose (MTD)FDA’s Project Optimus Initiative and adjust dosing accordingly.Draft Optimal Dosage Regimen Oncology Guidance. To date, we have data that suggests our NGC treatments are likely to have a better safety-efficacy profile than the current widely used marketed counterpart drugs, not only potentially making the development and approval process more efficient, but also clearly differentiating our NGC treatments from the existing treatment. We believe our NGC treatments have the potential to extend the survival and/or quality of life for more patients diagnosed with cancer while decreasing the number of patients who are required to dose-adjust or discontinue treatment because of side effects or lack of response.

 

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Our Strategy

Our strategy is to develop our pipeline of Next Generation Chemotherapy (NGC) proprietary small molecule oncology drugs using our Regulatory Science approach, encompassing the principles of the FDA’s recent Project Optimus initiative and draft guidance on determiningApproach to determine the optimal dosage regimen of our oncology drugs.

 

By changing either the metabolism, distribution, and/or elimination of already FDA-approved cancer drugs (e.g., capecitabine, gemcitabine, and irinotecan) or their active metabolites, we believe that our three new oncology drugs represent the next generation of chemotherapy with an improved safety profile, improved efficacy profile and/or potentially benefiting more patients while maintaining the mechanism of how the drug kills cancer cells, we believe our three NGC treatments will provide improved safety-efficacy profiles when compared to their currently marketed counterparts - capecitabine, gemcitabine, and irinotecan.cells. By combining these modified approved cancer treatments with our Regulatory Science Approach and our experience using the principles of FDA’s Project Optimus initiative, we anticipate that we will be able to increase the probability of FDA approval, improve the safety-efficacy profile over theirthe existing counterparts of our NGC drugs, which is important to patients and prescribers, and to more efficiently develop each drug.

 

Our pipeline of NGCs (i) already has data demonstrating the desired pharmacological activity in humans or appropriate animal models and is able to provide improved safety and/or efficacy by some modification in the formation and/or distribution of the active moieties associated with the drug and (ii) targets cancers for which a single positive pivotal trial demonstrating efficacy might provide enough evidence that the clinical benefits of the drug and its approval outweighs the risks associated with the drug.

 

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Our Drug Pipeline

Our pipeline currently consists of NGC-Capecitabine, NGC-GemcitabineNGC-Cap, NGC-Gem and NGC-IrinotecanNGC-Iri (also identified as PCS6422, PCS3117 and PCS11T, respectively) and two non-oncology drugs (PCS12852 and PCS499). A timeline and summary of each drug is provided below.

  

Key:

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Next Generation Chemotherapy Pipeline

 

 

Next Generation Capecitabine (NGC-Capecitabine)(NGC-Cap), also identified as PCS6422, is a combination of PCS6422 and a lower dose of the FDA-approved cancer drug capecitabine. PCS6422 is an orally administered irreversible inhibitor of the enzyme dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD). DPD metabolizes 5-Fluorouracil (5-FU), the major metabolite of capecitabine and widely used itself as an intravenous chemotherapeutic agent in many types of cancer, to multiple metabolites classified as catabolites. These catabolites do not have any cancer-killing properties but frequently cause dose-limiting side effects that may require dose adjustments or discontinuation of therapy.

When combining capecitabine with PCS6422 in NGC-Capecitabine, PCS6422 significantly changesCapecitabine, as presently prescribed and FDA-approved, forms the metabolism and distribution of 5-FU. After formation from capecitabine,cancer drug 5-FU which is then further metabolized to anabolites (which kill both cancer cells and normal duplicating cells) and catabolites (which cause side effects and have no cancer killing properties). When capecitabine is given in combination with PCS6422 in NGC-Cap, PCS6422 significantly changes the metabolism of 5-FU, which results in a change in the distribution of 5-FU within the body. Due to this change in metabolism of capecitabine and the change in the overall metabolite profile of anabolites and catabolites, the side effect and efficacy profile of NGC-CapecitabineNGC-Cap has been found to be different than the existing FDA-approved capecitabine.from capecitabine given without PCS6422. Since the potency of NGC-CapecitabineNGC-Cap is also more potentgreater than FDA-approved capecitabine based on the 5-FU systemic exposure per mg of capecitabine administered, the amount of capecitabine anabolites formed from 1 mg of capecitabine administered in NGC-CapecitabineNGC-Cap will, therefore, be much greater than formed from the administration of 1 mg of existing capecitabine.

 

On August 2, 2021, we enrolled the first patient in our Phase 1B dose-escalation maximum tolerated dose trial in patients with advanced refractory gastrointestinal (GI) tract tumors. Our interim analysis of Cohorts 1 and 2A of the ongoing clinical trial found no dose-limiting toxicities (DLTs), no drug-related adverse events greater than Grade 1, and no adverse events associated with the catabolites of 5-FU such as HFS. In this Phase 1B trial, it was demonstrated that the irreversible inhibition of DPD by PCS6422 could alter the metabolism, distribution and elimination of 5-FU, making NGC-CapecitabineNGC-Cap significantly more potent than capecitabine alone (50(up to 50 times more potent) and potentially leading to higher levels of anabolites which can kill replicating cancer and normal cells. By administering NGC-CapecitabineNGC-Cap to cancer patients, the balance between anabolites and catabolites changes depending on the dosage regimens of PCS6422 and capecitabine used, making the efficacy-safety profile of NGC-CapecitabineNGC-Cap different than that of FDA-approved capecitabine and requiring further evaluation of the PCS6422 and capecitabine regimens to determine the optimal NGC-CapecitabineNGC-Cap regimens for patients.

 

In order for NGC-CapecitabineNGC-Cap to provide a safer and more efficacious profile for cancer patients compared to existing chemotherapy, understanding how the different regimens of PCS6422 and capecitabine may affect the systemic and tumor exposure to the anabolites, as well as the systemic exposure to the catabolites, is required. This can be achieved by following the timeline of DPD irreversible inhibition and the formation of new DPD using the plasma concentrations of 5-FU and its catabolites.

 

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In an effort to better estimate the timeline of DPD inhibition and formation of new DPD, we modified the protocol for the Phase 1B trial and began enrolling patients in the amended Phase 1B trial in April 2022. On November 1, 2022, we announced that data from the Phase 1B trial identified multiple dosage regimens with potentially better safety and efficacy profiles than currently existing chemotherapy regimens. Since 5-FU exposure is dependent on both the PCS6422 regimen and the capecitabine regimen, safe regimens were identified as well as regimens that cause DLTs. One of the regimens in the Phase 1B trial did cause DLTs in two patients, one of whom died. The Phase 1B trial is continuing to enroll patients and is expected to complete enrollment inby the end of 2023. The next trial will be a Phase 2 trial to determine which regimens provide an improved efficacy-safety profile over present therapy using the principles of the FDA’s Project Optimus initiative to help guide the design of the trial. This FDA initiative requires us to consider NGC regimens that are not at the maximum tolerated dose or exposure level.

Discussions with the FDA in April 2023 have clarified that the major goal for the next Phase 2 trial will be to evaluate and understand the dose- and exposure-response relationship for anti-tumor activity safety and tolerability.safety. The specific dosage regimens for the trial will be defined following the determination of the MTD from our ongoing Phase 1B trial. AsWe recently completed Cohort 3 in the Phase 1B trial, which dosed patients with PCS6422 in combination with capecitabine at 150 mg BID (twice a result,day), with no dose-limiting toxicities. Enrollment in Cohort 4 is currently ongoing, as it has been expanded to include six patients to further evaluate the safety at this dose. To date, no DLTs have been observed in this Cohort, but safety evaluation for this Cohort is still ongoing. Once the Cohort is fully enrolled and the safety evaluation is complete, the need for any additional cohorts will be further evaluated. Based on the data from the Phase 1B study and ongoing discussions with the FDA, we have begun Phase 2 trial preparation tasks and will collaborate with the FDA to further define the Phase 2 dosage regimens and final design prior to the trial. WeThe trial is planned for 2024, but we will need to obtain additional funding before we can conduct this trial.

Our license agreement with Elion Oncology, Inc. (“Elion”) for NGC-Cap requires us to use commercially reasonable efforts, at our sole cost and expense, to research, develop and commercialize products in one or more countries, including meeting specific diligence milestones that include dosing a first patient with a product in a Phase 2 or 3 clinical trial on or before October 2, 2024. We are currently conducting pre-trial activities and planning to dose the first patient in our Phase 2 trial in the summer of 2024.

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NGC-Gemcitabine, also identified as

PCS3117 is a cytidine analog similar to gemcitabine (Gemzar®), but different enough in chemical structure that some patients are more likely to respond to PCS3117 than gemcitabine. The difference in response occurs because NGC-GemcitabineNGC-Gem is metabolized to its active metabolite through a different enzyme system than gemcitabine. We continue to evaluate the potential use of NGC-GemcitabineNGC-Gem in patients with pancreatic cancer and other potential cancers and to evaluate ways to identify patients who are more likely to respond to NGC-GemcitabineNGC-Gem than gemcitabine. We plan to meet with the FDA in 20232024 to discuss potential trial designs including implementation of the Project Optimus initiative as part of the design and then submit the Phase 2B2 protocol to the IND. Similar to NGC-Cap, we will need to obtain additional funding before we can begin the Phase 2 trial for NGC-Gem.

Our license agreement with Ocuphire Pharma, Inc. (“Ocuphire”) for NGC-Gem requires us to use  commercially reasonable efforts, at our sole cost and expense to oversee such commercialization efforts, to research, develop and commercialize products in one or more countries, including meeting specific diligence milestones that consist of: (i) dosing a patient in a clinical trial prior to June 16, 2024; and (ii) dosing a patient in a pivotal clinical trial or in a clinical trial for a second indication of the drug prior to June 16, 2026. We are currently negotiating with Ocuphire to extend these deadlines.

   
 NGC-Irinotecan, also identified as PCS11T is an analog of SN38 (SN38 is the active metabolite of irinotecan) and should have an improved safety/efficacy profile in every type of cancer that irinotecan is presently used. The manufacturing process and sites for drug substance and drug product are presently being evaluated and IND-enabling toxicology studies will then be initiated. In addition, we are defining the potential paths to approval, which include defining the targeted patient population and the type of cancer. We plan to conduct IND enabling and toxicology studies in 2023 and 2024, subject to available funding.

 

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Non-Oncology Pipeline for Out-licensing or Partnership

 

 PCS12852 is a highly specific and potent 5HT4 agonist that has already been evaluated in clinical studies in South Korea for gastric emptying and gastrointestinal motility in healthy volunteers and volunteers with a history of constipation. In October 2021, the FDA cleared our IND application to proceed with a Phase 2A trial for the treatment of gastroparesis. We enrolled our first patient on April 5, 2022 and completed enrollment of the trial on September 2, 2022. Results from this Phase 2A trial, which included 25 patients with moderate to severe gastroparesis, demonstrated improvements in gastric emptying in patients receiving 0.5 mg of PCS12852 as compared to placebo. The results indicated that for the patients in the PCS12852 group, the mean time for 50% of the gastric contents to empty (t50) compared to their baseline value (±SD) decreased by -31.90 min (±50.53) (compared to the change seen in the placebo group of only -9.36 min (±42.43). Significant gastric emptying differences were not observed between the placebo and the 0.1 mg dose. Adverse events associated with the administration of PCS12852 were generally mild to moderate as expected, limited in duration, and quickly resolved without any sequelae. There were no cardiovascular safety events or serious adverse events reported during the trial. Additionally, the 0.5 mg of PCS12852 showed a greater improvement than placebo in the gastroparesis symptomology scales (including both total scores in the scales, as well as sub-scores such as nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain) used in the trial. With the trial now complete, we have the data necessary to finalize the development plan for the treatment of diabetic gastroparesis patients. We plan to monetizeare exploring options for PCS12852, by looking forwhich may include licensing, partnering and/or partneringcollaborating opportunities.

 

 PCS499 is an oral tablet of the deuterated analog of one of the major metabolites of pentoxifylline (PTX or Trental®). PCS499 is a drug that can be used to treat unmet medical need conditions caused by multiple pathophysiological changes. We completed a Phase 2A trial for PCS499 in patients with ulcerative and non-ulcerative necrobiosis lipoidica (uNL and NL, respectively) in late 2020, and in May 2021, we enrolled the first patient in our Phase 2B trial for the treatment of uNL. Although we initiated several recruitment programs to increase the enrollment of patients in this trial, we were only able to recruit four patients. We have experienced extremely slow enrollment in the trial given the extreme rarity of the condition (rarer than reported in the literature), the impact of COVID-19, and the reluctance of patients to be in a clinical trial. We will completecompleted the Phase 2B uNL trial for those currently enrolled but will halthalted further efforts to enroll new patients in the trial and have terminated the trial. There have beenwere no safety concerns during the conduct of the trial. Although we believe that PCS499 can be effective in treating uNL, we received preliminary data in late February 2023 that indicated that the placebo response iswas likely to be much greater than the literature and clinical experts believe; thus, a much larger sample size would be required in a pivotal trial for an indication where it was extremely difficult to enroll even 10four patients. We are also evaluating other, less rare indicationsexploring options for PCS499. As with PCS12852, we plan to monetize PCS499, by looking forwhich may include licensing, partnering and/or partnershipcollaborating opportunities.

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Recent Developments

 

DuringThrough the three months ended March 31, 2023,date of this Form 10-Q, we raised gross proceeds of $7.0 million (net proceeds of $6.4 million) from the sale of 8,432,192 shares of our common stock throughhad the following transactions:significant developments:

On August 8, 2023, Mr. George Ng was appointed as our Chief Executive Officer and as a Board Director. Mr. Ng is a seasoned life sciences industry executive with significant experience successfully leading small-cap public companies including through product development and fundraising activities. In connection with his employment, Mr. Ng will be paid an annual base salary of $400,000 and will be eligible to receive bonus compensation of up to $100,000 contingent on Mr. Ng. meeting certain performance milestones during 2023 and 2024. In addition, the Compensation Committee awarded 800,000 restricted stock units (“RSUs”) to Mr. Ng. Vesting for 400,000 RSUs occurs ratably over a three-year period. The remaining 400,000 RSUs will vest on the achievement of certain performance metrics, with the first 200,000 performance-based RSUs vesting when gross proceeds of $10,000,000 is raised, and the second 200,000 performance-based RSUs vesting when additional gross proceeds of $10,000,000 is raised. He will also be eligible for other benefits as described in the Employment Agreement.

Given his oncology and drug development expertise, Dr. David Young transitioned to be our President, Research and Development, concentrating his fulltime effort to drug development of our NGC drugs. By mutual agreement, Mr. R. Michael Floyd resigned as Chief Operating Officer of the Company, effective August 31, 2023.

19

We raised gross proceeds of $7.0 million (net proceeds of $6.4 million) from the sale of 8,432,192 shares of our common stock through the following transactions to strengthen our balance sheet and allow us to prepare for our next trial for NGC-Cap:

 

 In January 2023, we sold 50,000 shares at an average price of $1.08 per share for an aggregate gross proceeds of $54,000 through the Purchase Agreement we entered into with Lincoln Park Capital in March 2022, under which we have the right, but not the obligation, to sell to Lincoln Park, and Lincoln Park is obligated to purchase up to $15.0 million of our shares of common stock, subject to the terms and conditions in the Purchase Agreement.
 On February 3, 2023, we sold 569,648 shares at an average price of $1.22 per share for an aggregate gross proceeds of $693,000 (net proceeds of $672,000) prior to deducting sales commissions, pursuant to our Sales Agreement with Oppenheimer & Co. Inc., under which we may issue and sell in a registered “at-the-market” offering shares of our common stock having an aggregate offering price of up to $30.0 million from time to time.

 On February 14, 2023, we closed a registered direct offering for the sale of 7,812,544 shares of our common stock at a purchase price of $0.80 per share to accredited investors for gross proceeds of $6.3 million. Net proceeds from the offering were $5.6 million.

Termination of PCS499 Trial

Due to enrollment difficulties that we experienced in our rare disease Phase 2 trial for PCS499 in uNL, we decided to cease further enrollment in the PCS499 trial in February 2023 and terminated the trial. There were no safety concerns noted during the trial.

 

Due to enrollment difficulties that we have experienced since the beginning of our rare disease trial for PCS499 in uNL, we decided to cease further enrollment in the PCS499 trial in February 2023. There were no safety concerns noted during the trial.

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Results of Operations

 

Comparison of the three and nine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023 and 2022

 

The following table summarizes our net lossoperations during the periods indicated:

 

  Three months ended    
  March 31,    
  2023  2022  Change 
Operating Expenses            
Research and development expenses $1,627,480  $2,043,984  $(416,504)
General and administrative expenses  2,478,055   1,184,730   1,293,325 
             
Operating Loss  (4,105,535)  (3,228,714)    
             
Other Income (Expense), net  83,462  1,583  81,879 
             
Net Operating Loss Before Income Tax Benefit  (4,022,073)  (3,227,131)  (794,942)
Income Tax Benefit  -   -   - 
             
Net Loss $(4,022,073) $(3,227,131)    

  Three Months Ended September 30,  Nine Months Ended September 30, 
  2023  2022  Change  2023  2022  Change 
Operating Expenses                        
Research and development $1,151,740  $3,136,838  $(1,985,098) $4,478,793  $8,319,907  $(3,841,114)
General and administrative  1,015,872   2,920,280   (1,904,408)  4,508,818   6,137,674   (1,628,856)
                         
Operating Loss  (2,167,612)  (6,057,118)      (8,987,611)  (14,457,581)    
                         
Other Income (Expense)                        
Interest income, net  85,661   36,708   48,953   271,022   45,672   225,350 
                         
Net Loss $(2,081,951) $(6,020,410)     $(8,716,589) $(14,411,909)    

 

Revenues.

 

We do not currently have any revenue under contract or any immediate sales prospects.

 

Research and Development Expensesdevelopment expenses

 

Our research and development costs are expensed as incurred. Research and development expenses includeinclude: (i) internal research and development staff related salaries and other payroll costs including stock-based compensation, payroll taxes and employee benefits and (ii) program and testing related expenses, including external consulting and professional fees related to the product testing and our development activitiesactivities. In 2022, we also had expenses related to the amortization of the exclusive PCS499 license intangible asset. Non-refundable advance payments for goods and (ii) internalservices to be used in future research and development staff salariesactivities are recorded as prepaid expenses and other payroll costs including stock-based compensation, payroll taxesexpensed when the research and employee benefits.development activities are performed.

 

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During the three months ended March 31, 2023, our

Our research and development expenses decreased by $416,504during both the three- and nine-month periods ended September 30, 2023 when compared to $1,627,480 from $2,043,984 for the three months ended March 31, 2022. Costs for the three months ended March 31, 2023 andsame periods in 2022 were as follows:shown below.

 

  Three months ended
March 31,
 
  2023  2022 
Amortization of intangible assets $-  $197,124 
Research and development salaries and benefits  518,803   526,616 
Preclinical, clinical trial and other costs  1,108,677   1,320,244 
Total $1,627,480  $2,043,984 

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  Three Months Ended
September 30,
  Nine Months Ended
September 30,
 
  2023  2022  2023  2022 
Amortization of intangible assets $-  $197,124  $-  $591,372 
Research and development salaries and benefits  448,071   1,502,065   1,480,909   3,068,241 
Preclinical, clinical trial and other costs  703,669   1,437,649   2,997,884   4,660,294 
Total $1,151,740  $3,136,838  $4,478,793  $8,319,907 

 

The decrease in research and development expenses, excluding amortization, was primarily due to a decrease in preclinical, clinical trial and other costs during the three and nine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023 when compared to the same period in 2022. This decrease2022 was attributable to the completion of our clinical trial for PCS12852 and the early termination of our clinical trial for PCS499. We also did not have any amortization expense in 2023, as we fully impaired our intangible asset at December 31, 2022. During the same periodthree- and nine-month periods in 2022, we had three active clinical trials and amortization expense for our intangible asset.

During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, when compared to the same period in 2022, we also experienced decreases in stock-based compensation of $991,000 and $1.7 million, respectively, as a result of a reduction in stock awards granted. During the three months ended September 30, 2023, we experienced a decrease in payroll and related costs of $63,000 while during the nine months ended September 30, 2023, we experienced an increase in payroll and related costs of $72,000. While we have promoted and/or increased salary rates for some personnel, we have fewer full-time R&D employees in 2023 than 2022.

 

Until we begin our next clinical trial, we anticipate our research and development costs to remain consistent as we continue incurring costs in our clinical trial for NGC-Cap (PCS6422) and we close out and receive final reports related to our clinical trials for PCS499 and PCS12852. We will, however, continueare also incurring costs in preparation for our clinicalplanned Phase 2 trial for NGC-Capecitabine,NGC-Cap, including the cost of having drug product manufactured and other pre-trial tasks, necessary for the Phase 2 clinical trial, as well as costs necessary to submitwe may incur in connection with the submission of any Phase 2B protocol for NGC-Gemcitabine.NGC-Gem.

 

The funding necessary to bring a drug candidate to market is subject to numerous uncertainties. Once a drug candidate is identified, the further development of that drug candidate may be halted or abandoned at any time due to a number of factors. These factors include, but are not limited to, funding constraints, safety or a change in market demand. For each of our drug candidate programs, we periodically assess the scientific progress and merits of the programs to determine if continued research and development is economically viable. Some programs may be terminated due to the lack of scientific progress and lack of prospects for ultimate commercialization.

 

Our clinical trial cost accruals are based on estimates of patient enrollment and related costs at clinical investigator sites, as well as estimates for the services received and efforts expended pursuant to contracts with multiple research institutions and CROs that conduct and manage clinical trials on our behalf.

 

We estimate preclinical and clinical trial expenses based on the services performed, pursuant to contracts with research institutions and clinical research organizations that conduct and manage preclinical studies and clinical trials on our behalf. In accruing service fees, we estimate the time period over which services will be performed and the level of patient enrollment and activity expended in each period. If the actual timing of the performance of services or the level of effort varies from the estimate, we will adjust the accrual accordingly. Payments made to third parties under these arrangements in advance of the receipt of the related services are recorded as prepaid expenses and expensed when the services are rendered.

 

General and Administrative Expenses.

 

Our general and administrative expenses for the three months ended March 31,September 30, 2023 increaseddecreased by $1,293,325approximately $1.9 million to $2,478,055$1.0 million from $1,184,730$2.9 million for the three months ended March 31,September 30, 2022. This increasedecrease is primarily attributable to a decrease in employee stock-based compensation of $1.9 million due to a reduction in stock awards granted. Reimbursements from CorLyst totaled $26,000 for rent and other costs during the fair valuethree months ended September 30, 2023, approximately $5,300 less than reimbursements received during the same period in 2022.

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During the nine months ended September 30, 2023, our general and administrative expenses decreased by $1.6 million to $4.5 million from $6.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2022. We experienced decreases in employee stock-based compensation of $1,310,875$3.3 million due to a reduction in stock awards granted. This decrease was offset primarily by net increases in professional fees of $1.3 million related to the stock purchase warrant grantedwarrants we issued to Spartan underCapital and in payroll and related costs of $430,000 related to our new CEO and the amended consulting agreement (see Note 2 totermination of our COO. Reimbursements from CorLyst totaled $90,000 for rent and other costs during the condensed consolidated financial statements), which was primarily offset by a decreasenine months ended September 30, 2023, approximately $4,700 less than reimbursements received during the same period in taxes.

2022.

 

Other Income

 

Other income represents interest income of $83,462$86,000 and $1,583$37,000 for the three months ended March 31,September 30, 2023 and 2022, respectively, and $271,000 and $46,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Income Tax Benefit.

 

We did not recognize any income tax benefit for the three or nine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023 or 2022.

 

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Cash Flows

 

The following table sets forth our sources and uses of cash and cash equivalents for the threenine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023 and 2022:

 

 Three months ended  Nine months ended 
 March 31,  September 30, 
 2023 2022  2023 2022 
Net cash (used in) provided by:                
Operating activities $(2,114,070) $(1,802,926) $(5,939,478) $(7,107,758)
Investing activities  (2,776)  - 
Financing activities  6,352,077   (300,000)  6,299,331   (335,247)
Net increase (decrease) in cash $4,238,077  $(2,102,926)
Net (decrease) increase in cash $357,077  $(7,443,005)

 

Net cash used in operating activities

 

We used net cash in our operating activities of $2,144,070$5,939,478 and $1,802,926$7,107,758 during the threenine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023 and 2022, respectively. The increase in cash used in operating activities during the first quarter of 2023 compared to the same period in 2022 was primarily related to increased cash compensation to our executive team and directors.

 

As we continue our clinical trial for NGC-CapecitabineNGC-Cap and evaluate the other NGC drugs in our portfolio, we anticipate our research and development efforts and ongoing general and administrative costs will continue to generate negative cash flows from operating activities for the foreseeable future. These amountsUntil we raise additional funds and begin a new clinical trial, we anticipate clinical trial costs will begin to decrease when compared to prior periods duesince we are currently only conducting one clinical trial for NGC-Cap.

Net cash used in investing activities

We used net cash in our investing activities of $2,776 during the nine months ended September 30, 2023 to our current cash balances unless we raise enough funds to conduct future clinical trials.purchase property and equipment. We did not have a similar expense during the same period in 2022.

 

Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities

 

During the threenine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023, we raised net proceeds of $6.4 million from the sale of 8,432,192 shares of our common stock. We used net cash in financing activities during the threenine months ended March 31,September 30, 2022 of $300,000 to purchase 100,000 shares of our common stock from a licensee.licensee and $35,247 to pay income taxes owed on vested stock-based compensation.

 

LiquidityGoing Concern and Management’s Plans

 

At March 31, 2023 we had $10.7 million in cash and cash equivalents.

We have incurred losses and net cash used in our operating activities during the three months ended March 31, 2023, which we expect to continue for the foreseeable future. We have no sales. We have incurred losses since our inception, devoting substantially all of our efforts toward research and development, and have an accumulated deficit of $68.3$73.0 million at March 31,September 30, 2023. During the threenine months ended March 31,September 30, 2023, we generated a net loss of $4.0$8.7 million and used $5.9 million in net cash for operating activities from continuing operations. We expect continued operating losses and negative cash flow from operations for the foreseeable future.

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During the nine months ended September 30, 2023, we raised gross proceeds of $7.0 million (net proceeds of $6.4 million) from the sale of 8,432,192 shares of our common stock, as described in Note 2 to the condensed consolidated financial statements. We are using the net proceeds from these financings to prepare for future clinical trials, and on research and development expenses, working capital and other general corporate purposes.

Our condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared using U.S. GAAP and are based on the assumption that we will continue as a going concern, which $1.7 millioncontemplates the realization of assets and liquidation of liabilities in the normal course of business. We face certain risks and uncertainties that are non-cash expenses.present in many emerging pharmaceutical companies regarding product development, limited working capital, recurring losses and negative cash flow from operations, future profitability, ability to obtain future capital, protection of patents, technologies and property rights, competition, rapid technological change, navigating the domestic and major foreign markets’ regulatory and clinical environment, recruiting and retaining key personnel, dependence on third party manufacturing organizations, third party collaboration and licensing agreements, lack of sales and marketing activities. We currently have no customers or pharmaceutical products to sell or distribute. These risks and other factors raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.

At September 30, 2023, we had cash and cash equivalents totaling $6.9 million. Based on our current plans, we believe our current cash balance is adequatebalances will enable us to complete our current clinical trial in NGC-Cap, prepare for at leasta Phase 2 trial for NGC-Cap, and fund our administrative costs through the next twelve months without considering amounts available from the Purchase Agreement with Lincoln Park.second quarter of 2024. Our ability to execute our longer-term operating plans, including future clinical trials for our portfolio ofNGC drugs, will depend on our ability to obtain additional funding from the sale of equity and/or debt securities, a strategic transaction or other funding transactions. We plan to continue to actively pursue financing alternatives, including out-licensing and/or entering into partnerships on any of our non-core assets, but there can be no assurance that we will obtain the necessary funding in the future when needed.necessary.

 

We had no revenue during the nine months ended September 30, 2023 and do not have any revenue under contract or any immediate sales prospects. Our estimateprimary uses of future cash needs is based on assumptions that may proveare to be wrong, and we could utilize our available cash sooner than we currently expect. Our ultimate success depends on the outcome offund our planned clinical trials, and our research and development activities, as disclosed above. We expectexpenditures and for operating expenses. Cash used to incur additional losses infund operating expenses is impacted by the future, and we will need to raise additional capital to fully implement our business plan if the coststiming of our clinical trials are greater than we expect or they take longer than anticipated. We also expect to incur increased general and administrative expenses in the future. In addition, there may be costswhen we incur as we developand pay these drug products that we do not currently anticipate, requiring us to need additional capital sooner than currently expected.expenses.

 

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We are hoping to raise additional funds in late 2023 or early 2024 but will only do so if terms are acceptable to us. Additional funding may not be available to us on acceptable terms, or at all. If we are unable to obtain adequate financing when needed, we may have to delay, reduce the scope of, or suspend our current or planned future clinical trial plans, or research and development programs. This may also cause us to not meet diligence obligations contained in certain of our license agreements and put these assets at risk. We may seek to raise any necessary additional capital through a combination of public or private equity offerings, debt financings, collaborations, strategic alliances, licensing arrangements and other marketing and distribution arrangements. To the extent that we raise additional capital through marketing and distribution arrangements or other collaborations, strategic alliances or licensing arrangements with third parties, we may have to relinquish valuable rights to our product candidates, future revenue streams, research programs or product candidates or to grant licenses on terms that may not be favorable to us. If we raise additional capital through public or private equity offerings, the ownership interest of our existing stockholders will be diluted, and the terms of these securities may include liquidation or other preferences that adversely affect our stockholders’ rights. If we raise additional capital through debt financing, we may be subject to covenants limiting or restricting our ability to take specific actions, such as incurring additional debt, making capital expenditures or declaring dividends.

Our future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including:

 

 the cost of our current Phase 1B and planned Phase 2 clinical trials andtrial for NGC-Cap along with the cost of third-party drug manufacturing;
 the initiation, progress, timing, costs and results of drug manufacturing, pre-clinical studies, and any clinical trials of PCS3117 and PCS11T, as well as any other future product candidates;for NGC-Gem or NGC-Iri;
 the number and characteristics of product candidates that we pursue;
 the outcome, timing, and costs of seeking regulatory approvals;
 the costs associated with hiring additional personnel and consultants for our pre-clinical and clinical activities;
 the emergence of competing therapies and other adverse market developments;
 the costs involved in preparing, filing, prosecuting, maintaining, expanding, defending, and enforcing patent claims, including litigation costs and the outcome of such litigation;
 the extent to which we in-license or acquire other products and technologies; and
 the costs of operating as a public company.

 

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Until such time as we can generate substantial product revenues to support our capital requirements, if ever, we expect to finance our cash needs through a combination of public or private equity offerings, debt financings, collaborations and licensing arrangements or other capital sources. We currently have an effective S-3 shelf registration statement on file with the SEC, which provides us flexibility and optionality to raise capital, including pursuant to a Purchase Agreement with Lincoln Park Capital or a future at-the-market offering, but there can be no assurance that capital will continue to be available to us on acceptable terms, won’t be limited, or be available at all. To the extent that we raise additional capital through the sale of equity or convertible debt securities, the ownership interest of our stockholders will or could be diluted, and the terms of these securities may include liquidation or other preferences that adversely affect the rights of our common stockholders.

 

Uncertainty concerning our ability to continue as a going concern may hinder our ability to obtain future financing. Continued operations and our ability to continue as a going concern are dependent on our ability to obtain additional funding in the future and thereafter, and no assurances can be given that such funding will be available at all, in a sufficient amount, or on reasonable terms. Without additional funds from debt or equity financing, sales of assets, sales or out-licenses of intellectual property or technologies, or other transactions providing funds, we will rapidly exhaust our resources, be unable to meet diligence obligations in license agreements and be unable to continue operations. Absent additional funding, we believe that our cash and cash equivalents will not be sufficient to fund our operations for a period of one year or more after the date that these condensed consolidated financial statements are available to be issued based on the timing and amount of our projected net loss from continuing operations and cash to be used in operating activities during that period of time.

As a result, substantial doubt exists about our ability to continue as a going concern within one year after the date that these condensed consolidated financial statements are available to be issued. The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments to reflect the possible future effects on the recoverability and classification of recorded assets, or the amounts and classification of liabilities that might be different should we be unable to continue as a going concern based on the outcome of these uncertainties described above.

Our estimate of future cash needs is based on assumptions that may prove to be wrong, and we could utilize our available cash sooner than we currently expect. Our ultimate success depends on the outcome of our planned clinical trials and our research and development activities, as disclosed above. We expect to incur additional losses in the future, and we will need to raise additional capital to fully implement our business plan if the costs of our clinical trials are greater than we expect or they take longer than anticipated. We also expect to incur increased general and administrative expenses in the future. In addition, there may be costs we incur as we develop these drug products that we do not currently anticipate, requiring us to need additional capital sooner than currently expected.

Contractual Obligations and Commitments

 

There have been no significant changes to the contractual obligations reported in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022.

Off Balance Sheet Arrangements

 

At March 31,September 30, 2023, we did not have any off-balance sheet arrangements.

 

Critical Accounting Policies and Use of Estimates

 

Our discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations are based upon our unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements,Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements, which have been prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The preparation of these financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses and related disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities.

 

We believe that the estimates, assumptions, and judgments involved in the accounting policies described in the “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” section of our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K have the greatest potential impact on our financial statements, so we consider these to be our critical accounting policies. Actual results could differ from the estimates we use in applying our critical accounting policies. We are not currently aware of any reasonably likely events or circumstances that would result in materially different amounts being reported.

 

There have been no changes in our critical accounting policies fromsince our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K.

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Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements

 

We have evaluated recently issued accounting pronouncements and determined that there is no material impact on our financial position or results of operations.

Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk

 

Item 3 is not applicable to us as a smaller reporting company and has been omitted.

Item 4. Controls and Procedures

At March As of September 3031,, 2023, management, with the participation of the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures, as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act. Based on the evaluation of its disclosure controls and procedures, the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective at March as of September 3031,, 2023 to provide reasonable assurance that information required to be disclosed in our reports under the Exchange Act is (i) recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms and (ii) accumulated and communicated to our management, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. In designing and evaluating our disclosure controls and procedures, management recognizes that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable assurance of achieving their objectives, and management necessarily applies its judgment in evaluating the benefits of possible controls and procedures relative to their costs.

 

Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting

 

There were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting during the quarter ended March 31,September 30, 2023 that have materially affected or are reasonably likely to materially affect the Company’sour internal control over financial reporting.

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PartPART II. Other InformationOTHER INFORMATION

Item 1. Legal Proceedings

 

We are currently not a party to any material legal proceedings.

 

Item 1A. Risk Factors

In addition to the information set forth in this report, you should carefully consider the risk factors discussed in Item 1A. of Part I of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022.

Our financial statements contain a statement regarding a substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern.

We had no revenue during the nine months ended September 30, 2023 and do not have any revenue under contract or any immediate sales prospects. Our primary uses of cash are to fund our planned clinical trials, research and development expenditures and for operating expenses. Cash used to fund operating expenses is impacted by the timing of when we incur and pay these expenses using U.S. GAAP, and are based on the assumption that we will continue as a going concern, which contemplates the realization of assets and liquidation of liabilities in the normal course of business. We face certain risks and uncertainties that are present in many emerging pharmaceutical companies regarding product development, limited working capital, recurring losses and negative cash flow from operations, future profitability, ability to obtain future capital, protection of patents, technologies and property rights, competition, rapid technological change, navigating the domestic and major foreign markets’ regulatory and clinical environment, recruiting and retaining key personnel, dependence on third party manufacturing organizations, third party collaboration and licensing agreements, lack of sales and marketing activities. We currently have no customers or pharmaceutical products to sell or distribute. These risks and other factors raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.

Our ability to continue as a going concern is dependent on our ability to obtain the necessary financing to meet our obligations and repay our liabilities arising from the ordinary course of business operations when they become due. The substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern may affect the price of our common stock, may impact our relationship with third parties with whom we do business, may impact our ability to raise additional capital and may impact our ability to comply going forward with covenants in our debt agreements.

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If our information technology systems or data, or those of third parties upon which we rely, are or were compromised, we could experience adverse consequences resulting from such compromise, including but not limited to regulatory investigations or actions, interruptions or disruptions to operations or clinical trials, reputational harm, litigation, fines and penalties.

In the ordinary course of our business, we, or the third parties upon which we rely, process, collect, receive, store, use, transmit, transfer, make accessible, protect, secure, dispose of, disclose and share proprietary, confidential, and sensitive data, including personal data (such as health-related data), intellectual property, and trade secrets.

Cyberattacks, malicious internet-based activity, online and offline fraud and other similar activities threaten the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of our sensitive information and information technology systems, and those of the third parties upon which we rely.

We and the third parties upon which we rely are subject to a variety of evolving threats, including but not limited to, social engineering attacks (including through phishing attacks), malicious code (such as viruses and worms), malware (including as a result of advanced persistent threat intrusions), denial-of-service attacks (such as credential stuffing), personnel misconduct or error, ransomware attacks, supply-chain attacks, software bugs, server malfunction, software or hardware failures, loss of data or other information technology assets, adware, telecommunications failures, earthquakes, fire, flood, and other similar threats.

We rely on third-party service providers and technologies to operate critical business systems to process sensitive information in a variety of contexts, including, without limitation, cloud-based infrastructure, drug suppliers, data center facilities, encryption and authentication technology, employee email, content delivery to customers, and other functions. Our ability to monitor these third parties’ information security practices is limited, and these third parties may not have adequate information security measures in place.

Any of the previously identified or similar threats could cause a security incident or other interruption that could result in unauthorized, unlawful, or accidental acquisition, modification, destruction, loss, alteration, encryption, disclosure of, or access to our sensitive information or our information technology systems, or those of the third parties upon whom we rely. A security incident or other interruption could disrupt our ability (and that of third parties upon whom we rely) to perform our research and development activities.

There have been no other material changes to our risk factors as described in Item 1A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022.

 

Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds

 

None.(a) Recent Sale of Unregistered Securities

There were no sales of unregistered securities during the three months ended September 30, 2023.

 

(b) Use of Proceeds from Public Offering of Common Stock

None.

 

(c) Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities

 

None.

 

Item 3. Defaults Upon Senior Securities

 

None.

 

Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures

 

Not applicable.

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Item 5. Other Information

 

None.During the three months ended September 30, 2023, there were no modifications, adoptions or terminationsby any directors or officers to any contract, instruction or written plan for the purchase or sale of securities of the Company that is intended to satisfy the affirmative defense conditions of Rule 10b5-1(c) or non-Rule 10b5-1 trading agreements.

 

Item 6. Exhibits

 

SEC Ref. No.Title of Document
3.1Fourth Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Heatwurx, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to Form S-1/A filed on September 30, 2020)
3.2Amendment to Fourth Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Heatwurx, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1.1 to Form S-1/A filed on September 30, 2020)
3.3Certificate of Amendment to the Fourth Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1.2 to Form S-1/A filed on September 30, 2020)
3.4Certificate of Amendment to the Fourth Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1.3 to Form S-1/A filed on September 30, 2020)
3.5Amendment to Fourth Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Processa Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1.4 to Form S-1/A filed on September 30, 2020)
3.6Certificate of Amendment to Fourth Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation dated June 27, 2023 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to Form 8-K filed on June 29, 2023)
31.1*Rule 153-14(a) Certification by Principal Executive Officer
31.2*Rule 153-14(a) Certification by Principal Financial Officer
32.1*++Section 1350 Certification of Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer
99.1XBRL Files
101.INSInline XBRL Instance Document
101.SCHInline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document
101.CALInline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document
101.DEFInline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document
101.LABInline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document
101.PREInline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document
104Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document)

 

* Filed herewith.

 

++ This certification is being furnished solely to accompany this Quarterly Report pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350 and are not being filed for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and are not to be incorporated by reference into any filing of the Company, whether made before or after the date hereof, regardless of any general incorporation language in such filing herewith.

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SIGNATURES

 

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

 

 PROCESSA PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.

 By:/s/ David YoungGeorge Ng
  David YoungGeorge Ng
  Chief Executive Officer
  (Principal Executive Officer)
 Dated:Dated: May 15,November 13, 2023
   
 By:/s/ James Stanker
  James Stanker
  Chief Financial Officer
  (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)
 Dated:Dated: May 15,November 13, 2023

 

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