UNITED STATES


SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION


Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-Q

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

For the Quarterly Period Ended March 31, 2021
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 333-88480

 

FORM 10-QNEUBASE THERAPEUTICS, INC.

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

For the quarterly period ended December 31, 2017

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: 333-88480

OHR PHARMACEUTICAL, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)



Delaware

46-5622433

(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization)(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.)

 

800 Third Avenue, 11th Floor

New York, NY 10022

350 Technology Drive, Pittsburgh, PA 15219
(Address of principal executive offices)offices and zip code)

(212) 682-8452



(646) 450-1790
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

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

Title of each classTrading Symbol(s)Name of each exchange on which registered
Common Stock, $0.0001 par value per shareNBSEThe 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 and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this Chapter)chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).

Yes No

 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer”,filer,” “accelerated filer”filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “smaller reporting“emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

 

Large accelerated filerAccelerated filer
Non-accelerated filerSmaller reporting company
 
Do not check if smaller reportingEmerging 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

 

Indicate the numberAs of May 12, 2021, 32,716,827 shares outstanding of each of the issuer’s classes of common stock, aspar value $0.0001, of the latest practicable date: 56,466,428 shares of Common Stock outstanding as of February 13, 2018.registrant were outstanding.

 

 

 

 

OHR PHARMACEUTICAL, INC.

TABLE OF CONTENTSTable of Contents

 

PART IPage1
  
PART I FINANCIAL INFORMATIONITEM 1.3FINANCIAL STATEMENTS1
ITEM 2.MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS15
ITEM 3.QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK24
ITEM 4.CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES24
PART II26
  
ItemITEM 1. Financial Statements (Unaudited)3LEGAL PROCEEDINGS26
  
Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of OperationsITEM 1A.10RISK FACTORS27
  
Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative RiskITEM 2.12UNREGISTERED SALES OF EQUITY SECURITIES AND USE OF PROCEEDS27
  
Item 4. Controls and ProceduresITEM 3.12DEFAULTS UPON SENIOR SECURITIES27
  
PART II OTHER INFORMATIONITEM 4.13MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES27
  
Item 1. Legal ProceedingsITEM 5.13OTHER INFORMATION27
  
Item 1A Risk FactorsITEM 6.13EXHIBITS28
  
Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of ProceedsSIGNATURES26
Item 3. Defaults Upon Senior Securities2926
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures26
Item 5. Other Information26
Item 6. Exhibits26


Part IFINANCIAL INFORMATION

-i-

 

Item 1.Financial Statements.

 

TABLE OF CONTENTSPAGE
Unaudited Consolidated Balance Sheets as of December 31, 2017 and September 30, 20174
Unaudited Consolidated Statements of Operations for the three months ended December 31, 2017 and 20165
Unaudited Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the three months ended December 31, 2017 and 20166
Notes to Unaudited Consolidated Financial Statements7

PART I.

 


OHR PHARMACEUTICAL, INC.ITEM 1. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. and Subsidiaries

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets

(Unaudited)

 

  December 31,  September 30, 
  2017  2017 
ASSETS
CURRENT ASSETS        
Cash and Cash Equivalents $8,724,057  $12,801,085 
Prepaid expenses and other current assets  100,722   223,278 
Total Current Assets  8,824,779   13,024,363 
         
EQUIPMENT, net  60,890   63,757 
         
OTHER ASSETS        
Security deposit     12,243 
Intangible assets, net  13,805,484   14,087,602 
Goodwill  740,912   740,912 
TOTAL ASSETS $23,432,065  $27,928,877 
         
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
CURRENT LIABILITIES        
Accounts payable and accrued expenses $3,598,471  $4,827,525 
Notes payable     106,387 
Total Current Liabilities  3,598,471   4,933,912 
Long-term liabilities  150,000   150,000 
         
TOTAL LIABILITIES  3,748,471   5,083,912 
         
STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY        
Preferred stock, Series B; 6,000,000 shares authorized, $0.0001 par value, 0 shares issued and outstanding, respectively      
Common stock; 180,000,000 shares authorized, $0.0001 par value, 56,421,428 and 56,196,428 shares issued and outstanding, respectively  5,642   5,619 
Additional paid-in capital  131,917,917   130,927,953 
Accumulated deficit  (112,239,965)  (108,088,607)
         
Total Stockholders’ Equity  19,683,594   22,844,965 
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY $23,432,065  $27,928,877 
  March 31,  September 30, 
  2021  2020 
ASSETS        
CURRENT ASSETS        
Cash and cash equivalents $24,246,752  $31,992,283 
Prepaid insurance  256,985   521,617 
Other prepaid expenses and current assets  436,394   294,640 
Total current assets  24,940,131   32,808,540 
         
EQUIPMENT, net  1,652,510   1,166,934 
         
OTHER ASSETS        
Investment  578,742   323,557 
Long-term prepaid insurance  48,416   145,250 
Security deposit  253,565   - 
Total other assets  880,723   468,807 
         
TOTAL ASSETS $27,473,364  $34,444,281 
         
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY        
CURRENT LIABILITIES        
Accounts payable $2,175,792  $1,505,042 
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities  1,130,343   555,883 
Warrant liabilities  229,442   950,151 
Insurance note payable  -   138,557 
Total liabilities  3,535,577   3,149,633 
         
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES        
         
STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY��       
Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value; 10,000,000 shares authorized; no shares issued and outstanding as of March 31, 2021 and September 30, 2020  -   - 
Common stock, $0.0001 par value; 250,000,000 shares authorized; 23,180,024 and 23,154,084 shares issued and outstanding as of March 31, 2021 and September 30, 2020, respectively  2,317   2,315 
Additional paid-in capital  77,082,072   74,850,935 
Accumulated deficit  (53,146,602)  (43,558,602)
Total stockholders’ equity  23,937,787   31,294,648 
         
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY $27,473,364  $34,444,281 

 

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

 


1

OHR PHARMACEUTICAL, INC.NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. and Subsidiaries

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations

(Unaudited)

(Unaudited)

       
  For the Three Months Ended
December 31,
 
  2017  2016 
OPERATING EXPENSES        
         
General and administrative $1,510,032  $1,746,356 
Research and development  2,387,731   4,931,144 
Depreciation and amortization  284,986   298,435 
TOTAL OPERATING LOSS  4,182,749   6,975,935 
         
OTHER INCOME (EXPENSE)        
Other income (expense)  31,391   281 
Total Other Income (Expense)  31,391   281 
         
LOSS FROM OPERATIONS BEFORE        
INCOME TAXES  (4,151,358)  (6,975,654)
         
PROVISION FOR INCOME TAXES      
         
NET LOSS $(4,151,358) $(6,975,654)
         
BASIC AND DILUTED LOSS PER SHARE  (in dollars per share) $(0.07) $(0.21)
         
WEIGHTED AVERAGE NUMBER OF SHARES OUTSTANDING:        
BASIC AND DILUTED  56,203,765   32,836,505 
  Three Months ended March 31,  Six Months ended March 31, 
  2021  2020  2021  2020 
OPERATING EXPENSES                
General and administrative $2,721,640  $2,739,021  $5,363,110  $5,293,701 
Research and development  3,174,129   1,616,009   5,194,053   2,843,695 
TOTAL OPERATING EXPENSES  5,895,769   4,355,030   10,557,163   8,137,396 
                 
LOSS FROM OPERATIONS  (5,895,769)  (4,355,030)  (10,557,163)  (8,137,396)
                 
OTHER INCOME (EXPENSE)                
Interest expense  (6,460)  (342)  (16,197)  (1,653)
Interest income  9,466   -   9,466   - 
Change in fair value of warrant liabilities  90,597   69,944   720,709   (624,190)
Equity in losses on equity method investment  (36,127)  (92,842)  (61,539)  (117,351)
Other income (expense)  316,724   -   316,724   (3,230)
Total other income (expense), net  374,200   (23,240)  969,163   (746,424)
                 
NET LOSS $(5,521,569) $(4,378,270) $(9,588,000) $(8,883,820)
                 
BASIC AND DILUTED LOSS PER SHARE $(0.24) $(0.26) $(0.41) $(0.52)
                 
WEIGHTED AVERAGE SHARES OUTSTANDING:                
BASIC AND DILUTED  23,179,646   17,075,875   23,176,877   17,073,765 

 

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

 


2

OHR PHARMACEUTICAL, INC.NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. and Subsidiaries

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash FlowsStockholders’ Equity

For the Three and Six Months Ended March 31, 2021 and 2020

(Unaudited)

       
  For the Three Months Ended
December 31,
 
  2017  2016 
OPERATING ACTIVITIES        
Net loss $(4,151,358) $(6,975,654)
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used by operating activities:        
Common stock issued for services  135,701   440,052 
Stock option expense  629,286   566,573 
Depreciation  2,867   15,736 
Amortization of intangible assets  282,118   282,699 
Changes in operating assets and liabilities        
Prepaid expenses and deposits  122,556   247,926 
Accounts payable and accrued expenses  (1,229,054)  (507,793)
Security Deposit used  12,243    
         
Net Cash Used in Operating Activities  (4,195,641)  (5,930,461)
         
INVESTING ACTIVITIES        
Purchase of property and equipment     (4,833)
Net Cash Provided by/ (Used in) Investing Activities     (4,833)
         
FINANCING ACTIVITIES        
Proceeds for issuance of common stock for cash     6,846,483 
Proceeds from warrants exercised for cash  225,000   118,801 
Repayments of short-term notes payable  (106,387)  (87,798)
Net Cash Provided by/ (Used in) Financing Activities  118,613   6,877,486 
         
NET CHANGE IN CASH  (4,077,028)  942,192 
CASH AT BEGINNING OF PERIOD  12,801,085   12,546,890 
         
CASH AT END OF PERIOD $8,724,057  $13,489,082 
         
SUPPLEMENTAL DISCLOSURES OF CASH FLOW INFORMATION        
CASH PAID FOR:        
Interest $1,770  $1,320 

  Common Stock  Additional     Total 
  Shares  Amount  Paid-In
Capital
  Accumulated
Deficit
  Stockholders’
Equity
 
Balance as of December 31, 2020  23,177,591  $2,317  $76,139,964  $(47,625,033) $28,517,248 
Stock-based compensation expense  -   -   942,108   -   942,108 
Issuance of restricted stock for services  2,433   -   -   -   - 
Net loss  -   -   -   (5,521,569)  (5,521,569)
Balance as of March 31, 2021  23,180,024  $2,317  $77,082,072  $(53,146,602) $23,937,787 

                
  Common Stock  Additional     Total 
  Shares  Amount  Paid-In
Capital
  Accumulated
Deficit
  Stockholders’
Equity
 
Balance as of September 30, 2020  23,154,084  $2,315  $74,850,935  $(43,558,602) $31,294,648 
Stock-based compensation expense  -   -   2,118,693   -   2,118,693 
Issuance of restricted stock for services  4,364   -   -   -   - 
Exercise of stock options  21,576   2   112,444   -   112,446 
Net loss  -   -   -   (9,588,000)  (9,588,000)
Balance as of March 31, 2021  23,180,024  $2,317  $77,082,072  $(53,146,602) $23,937,787 

                
  Common Stock  Additional     Total 
  Shares  Amount  Paid-In
Capital
  Accumulated
Deficit
  Stockholders’
Equity
 
Balance as of December 31, 2019  17,077,873  $1,708  $37,705,984  $(30,679,632) $7,028,060 
Stock-based compensation expense  -   -   1,339,410   -   1,339,410 
Issuance of restricted stock for services  2,752   -   -   -   - 
Net loss  -   -   -   (4,378,270)  (4,378,270)
Balance as of March 31, 2020  17,080,625  $1,708  $39,045,394  $(35,057,902) $3,989,200 

  Common Stock  Additional     Total 
  Shares  Amount  Paid-In
Capital
  Accumulated
Deficit
  Stockholders’
Equity
 
Balance as of September 30, 2019  17,077,873  $1,708  $36,201,758  $(26,174,082) $10,029,384 
Stock-based compensation expense  -   -   2,843,636   -   2,843,636 
Issuance of restricted stock for services  2,752   -   -   -   - 
Net loss  -   -   -   (8,883,820)  (8,883,820)
Balance as of March 31, 2020  17,080,625  $1,708  $39,045,394  $(35,057,902) $3,989,200 

 

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

3

 


OHR PHARMACEUTICAL, INC.NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. and Subsidiaries

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows

(Unaudited)

  Six Months ended March 31, 
  2021  2020 
Cash flows from operating activities        
     Net loss $(9,588,000) $(8,883,820)
     Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities        
   Stock-based compensation  2,118,693   2,843,636 
   Change in fair value of warrant liabilities  (720,709)  624,190 
Depreciation and amortization  151,418   199,500 
Loss on marketable security  15,006   - 
Loss on disposal of fixed asset  -   3,230 
Equity in losses on equity method investment  61,539   117,351 
Gain on sale of intellectual property  (316,724)  - 
Changes in operating assets and liabilities        
Prepaid insurance, other prepaid expenses and current assets  122,878   214,698 
Long-term prepaid insurance  96,834   96,833 
Security deposit  (253,565)  - 
Accounts payable  436,646   186,911 
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities  574,460   340,288 
  Net cash used in operating activities  (7,301,524)  (4,257,183)
Cash flows from investing activities        
Purchase of laboratory and office equipment  (402,890)  (161,916)
Purchase of marketable securities  (29,996,904)  - 
Sale of marketable securities  29,981,898   - 
 Net cash used in investing activities  (417,896)  (161,916)
Cash flows from financing activities        
Principal payment of financed insurance  (138,557)  (122,919)
Proceeds from exercise of stock options  112,446   - 
 Net cash used in financing activities  (26,111)  (122,919)
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents  (7,745,531)  (4,542,018)
Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period  31,992,283   10,313,966 
Cash and cash equivalents, end of period $24,246,752  $5,771,948 
         
Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information:        
   Cash paid for interest $10,400  $1,668 
         
Non-cash investing and financing activities:        
Deferred offering costs, accrued but not yet paid $-  $196,724 
Purchases of laboratory and office equipment in accounts payable $234,104  $- 
Preferred shares in DepYmed received as consideration for sale of intellectual property $316,724  $- 

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

4

NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Notes to UnauditedCondensed Consolidated Financial Statements
(Unaudited)

1. Organization and Description of Business

NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. and subsidiaries (the “Company” or “NeuBase”) is developing a modular peptide-nucleic acid (“PNA”) antisense oligo (“PATrOL™”) platform to address genetic diseases, with a single, cohesive approach. The PATrOL™-enabled anti-gene therapies are designed to improve upon current genetic medicine strategies by combining the advantages of synthetic approaches with the precision of antisense technologies. NeuBase plans to use its platform to address diseases which have a genetic source, with an initial focus on Myotonic Dystrophy Type 1 (“DM1”) and Huntington’s Disease (“HD”), as well as other genetic disorders and cancer.

NeuBase is a pre-clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company and continues to develop its clinical and regulatory strategy with its internal research and development team with a view toward prioritizing market introduction as quickly as possible. NeuBase’s lead programs are NT0100 and NT0200.

The NT0100 program is a PATrOL™-enabled therapeutic program being developed to target the mutant expansion in the HD messenger ribonucleic acid (“mRNA”). The NT0100 program includes proprietary PNAs which have the potential to be highly selective for the mutant transcript vs. the wild-type transcribed allele and the expectation to be applicable for all HD patients as it directly targets the expansion itself, and has the potential to be delivered systemically. PATrOL™-enabled drugs also have the unique ability to open RNA secondary structures and bind to either the primary nucleotide sequences or the secondary and/or tertiary structures. NeuBase believes the NT0100 program addresses an unmet need for a disease which currently has no effective therapeutics that target the core etiology of the condition. NeuBase believes there is a large opportunity in the U.S. and European markets for drugs in this space.

The NT0200 program is a PATrOL™-enabled therapeutic program being developed to target the mutant expansion in the DM1 disease mRNA. The NT0200 program includes several proprietary PNAs which have the potential to be highly selective for the mutant transcript versus the wild-type transcribed allele and the expectation to be effective for nearly all DM1 patients as it directly targets the expansion itself. NeuBase believes the NT0200 program addresses an unmet need for a disease which currently has no effective therapeutics that target the core etiology of the condition. NeuBase believes there is a large opportunity in the U.S. and European markets for drugs in this space.

December 31, 20172. Significant Accounting Policies

 

NOTE 1 – BASIS OF PRESENTATIONBasis of Presentation

 

The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited financial statements and notes thereto as of and for the year ended September 30, 2020 included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K (the “Annual Report”) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on December 23, 2020. The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc.the Company and its subsidiaries (the “Company”).wholly owned subsidiaries. All intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated during the consolidation process. The Company manages its operations as a single segment for the purposes of assessing performance and making operating decisions. The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared by the Company in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”) for interim financial information and in accordance with the instructions to Form 10-Q and Rule 10-01Article 8 of Regulation S-X related to interim period financial statements.S-X. Accordingly, these consolidated financial statements do not include certain information and footnotes required byfootnote disclosures normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP for complete financial statements. However, inhave been condensed or omitted. In the opinion of management, the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements for the periods presented reflect all adjustments, (which includeconsisting of only normal, recurring adjustments)adjustments, necessary to present fairly state the Company’s financial position, results of operations and cash flows at December 31, 2017, and for all periods presented herein, have been made.

It is suggested that theseflows. The unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2017. The results of operations for the quarterlyinterim periods ended December 31, 2017 and 2016 are not necessarily indicative of the operating results for the full years.year. The preparation of these unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements requires the Company to make estimates and judgments that affect the amounts reported in the financial statements and the accompanying notes. The Company’s actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.

5

NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements
(Unaudited)

 

NOTE 2 – SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES AND GOING CONCERN

Use of Estimates

 

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. The most significant estimates in the Company’s unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements relate to the valuation of stock-based compensation, the fair value of warrant liabilities and the valuation allowance of deferred tax assets resulting from net operating losses. These estimates and assumptions are based on current facts, historical experience and various other factors believed to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities and the recording of expenses that are not readily apparent from other sources.

The Company assesses and updates estimates each period to reflect current information, such as the economic considerations related to the impact that the novel coronavirus disease (“COVID-19”) could have on its significant accounting estimates (see Part II, Item 1A – Risk Factors—“Our operations may be adversely affected by the coronavirus outbreak, and we face risks that could impact our business” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2020 for further discussion of the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Company’s operations). Actual results couldmay differ materially and adversely from thosethese estimates. Estimates subject to change inTo the near term include impairment (if any)extent there are material differences between the estimates and actual results, the Company’s future results of long-lived assets.operations will be affected.

 

Fair Value Measurements

Fair value measurements are based on the premise that fair value is an exit price representing the amount that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants. As such, fair value is a market-based measurement that should be determined based on assumptions that market participants would use in pricing an asset or liability. As a basis for considering such assumptions, the following three-tier fair value hierarchy has been used in determining the inputs used in measuring fair value:

Level 1 – Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities on the reporting date.

Level 2 – Pricing inputs are based on quoted prices for similar instruments in active markets, quoted prices for identical or similar instruments in markets that are not active and model-based valuation techniques for which all significant assumptions are observable in the market or can be corroborated by observable market data for substantially the full term of the assets or liabilities.

Level 3 – Pricing inputs are generally unobservable and include situations where there is little, if any, market activity for the investment. The inputs into the determination of fair value require management’s judgment or estimation of assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the assets or liabilities. The fair values are therefore determined using factors that involve considerable judgment and interpretations, including but not limited to private and public comparables, third-party appraisals, discounted cash flow models, and fund manager estimates.

Financial Instrumentsinstruments measured at fair value are classified in their entirety based on the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value measurement. Management’s assessment of the significance of a particular input to the fair value measurement in its entirety requires judgment and considers factors specific to the asset or liability. The use of different assumptions and/or estimation methodologies may have a material effect on estimated fair values. Accordingly, the fair value estimates disclosed or initial amounts recorded may not be indicative of the amount that the Company or holders of the instruments could realize in a current market exchange.

6

NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements
(Unaudited)

Marketable Securities

Marketable securities are classified as trading and are carried at fair value. The Company’s marketable securities consist of corporate bonds and highly liquid mutual funds and exchange-traded & closed-end funds which are valued at quoted market prices. The Company had no marketable securities as of March 31, 2021 and September 30, 2020.

Net Loss Per Share

Basic net loss per share is computed by dividing net loss applicable to common stockholders by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during each period. Diluted net loss per share includes the dilutive effect, if any, from the potential exercise or conversion of securities, such as convertible debt, warrants and stock options that would result in the issuance of incremental shares of common stock. In computing the basic and diluted net loss per share applicable to common stockholders, the weighted average number of shares remains the same for both calculations due to the fact that when a net loss exists, dilutive shares are not included in the calculation as the impact is anti-dilutive.

The following potentially dilutive securities outstanding as of March 31, 2021 and 2020 have been excluded from the computation of diluted weighted average shares outstanding, as they would be anti-dilutive:

  As of March 31, 
  2021  2020 
Common stock purchase options  6,552,884   6,506,966 
Unvested restricted stock  -   3,125 
Common stock purchase warrants  820,939   715,939 
   7,373,823   7,226,030 

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

 

In accordanceDecember 2019, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2019-12, “Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes” (“ASU 2019-12”), which is intended to simplify various aspects related to accounting for income taxes. ASU 2019-12 removes certain exceptions to the general principles in Topic 740 and also clarifies and amends existing guidance to improve consistent application. This guidance is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2020, with ASC 820,early adoption permitted. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of this standard on its consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.

In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU No. 2016-13, “Financial Instruments- Credit Losses (Topic 326): Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments” (“ASU 2016-13”). This guidance introduces a new model for recognizing credit losses on financial instruments based on an estimate of current expected credit losses. ASU 2016-13 also provides updated guidance regarding the impairment of available-for-sale debt securities and includes additional disclosure requirements. The new guidance is effective for public business entities that meet the definition of a Smaller Reporting Company as defined by the Securities and Exchange Commission for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2022. Early adoption is permitted. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of this standard on its consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.

7

NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements
(Unaudited)

3. Liquidity

The Company expects to continue to incur significant operating losses for the foreseeable future and may never become profitable. As a result, the Company will likely need to raise additional capital through one or more of the following: issuance of additional debt or equity, or complete a licensing transaction for one or more of the Company’s pipeline assets. Management believes that it has sufficient working capital on hand to fund operations through at least the next twelve months from the date these unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements were available to be issued. There can be no assurance that the Company will be successful in acquiring additional funding, that the Company’s projections of its future working capital needs will prove accurate, or that any additional funding would be sufficient to continue operations in future years.

4. Other Prepaid Expenses and Other Current Assets

The Company’s prepaid expenses and other current assets consisted of the following:

  As of March 31,  As of September 30, 
  2021  2020 
Prepaid research and development expense $29,422  $205,641 
Prepaid rent  301,481   - 
Other prepaid expenses and other current assets  105,491   88,999 
Total $436,394  $294,640 

5. Equipment

The Company’s equipment consisted of the following:

  As of March 31,  As of September 30, 
  2021  2020 
Laboratory equipment $1,825,393  $1,319,123 
Office equipment  137,201   6,477 
Total  1,962,594   1,325,600 
Accumulated depreciation  (310,084)  (158,666)
Property, plant and equipment, net $1,652,510  $1,166,934 

Depreciation expense for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020 was approximately $0.08 million and $0.03 million, respectively. Depreciation expense for the six months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020 was approximately $0.15 million and $0.05 million, respectively. 

8

NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements
(Unaudited)

6. Investment

The Company owns common and preferred shares of DepYmed, Inc. (“DepYmed”), which in aggregate represents approximately 13% ownership of DepYmed. In addition, the Company is entitled to hold one of the six seats on DepYmed’s board of directors.

In February 2021, the Company sold certain intellectual property to DepYmed in exchange for shares of Series A-4 preferred stock. The Company recognized a gain of $0.3 million related to the sale, which was recorded in Other income (expense) on the Company’s unaudited condensed consolidated statement of operations for the three and six months ended March 31, 2021.

The Company accounts for its investment in DepYmed common shares using the equity method of accounting and records its proportionate share of DepYmed’s net income and losses in the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated statements of operations. Equity in losses for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020 were approximately $0.04 million and $0.1 million, respectively. Equity in losses for the six months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020 were approximately $0.06 million and $0.1 million, respectively.

The Company accounts for its investment in preferred shares of DepYmed at cost, less any impairment, as the Company determined the preferred stock did not have a readily determinable fair value.

As of March 31, 2021 and September 30, 2020, the carrying amount of the Company’s aggregate investment in DepYmed was $0.6 million and $0.3 million, respectively.

7. Accrued Expenses and Other Current Liabilities

The Company’s accrued expenses and other current liabilities consisted of the following:

  As of March 31,  As of September 30, 
  2021  2020 
Accrued compensation and benefits $153,688  $88,527 
Accrued consulting settlement  250,000   - 
Accrued professional fees  167,829   241,755 
Accrued research and development  217,701   41,313 
Accrued franchise tax  79,088   155,865 
Accrued patent expenses  258,331   24,716 
Other accrued expenses  3,706   3,707 
Total $1,130,343  $555,883 

8. Fair Value

The following tables present the Company’s fair value hierarchy for its warrant liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis at March 31, 2021 and September 30, 2020:

  Fair Value Measurements
as of March 31, 2021
 
  (Level 1)  (Level 2)  (Level 3)  Total 
Liabilities            
Warrant liabilities $-   -   229,442  $229,442 

  Fair Value Measurements
as of September 30, 2020
 
  (Level 1)  (Level 2)  (Level 3)  Total 
Liabilities                
Warrant liabilities $-   -   950,151  $950,151 

9

NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements
(Unaudited)

The fair value of the warrant liabilities were determined using the Black-Scholes option pricing model. The following assumptions were used in determining the fair value of the warrant liabilities:

  As of March 31, 
  2021  2020 
Remaining contractual term (years)   0.7 - 1.0    1.7 - 2.0 
Common stock price volatility   69.5% - 71.4%    89.6% - 92.5%* 
Risk-free interest rate  0.07%  0.23%
Expected dividend yield  -   - 

*The Company was historically a private company and lacked company-specific historical and implied volatility information, therefore the Company estimated its expected stock volatility based on the historical volatility of a set of publicly traded peer companies.

During the three and six months ended March 31, 2021, the Company utilized its historical volatility in the valuation of warrant liabilities as it had sufficient trading history.

The change in fair value of the warrant liabilities for the three and six months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020 is as follows:

Fair value as of September 30, 2020 $950,151 
Change in fair value  (630,112)
Fair value as of December 31, 2020  320,039 
Change in fair value  (90,597)
Fair value as of March 31, 2021 $229,442 

Fair value as of September 30, 2019 $496,343 
Change in fair value  694,134 
Fair value as of December 31, 2019  1,190,477 
Change in fair value  (69,944)
Fair value as of March 31, 2020 $1,120,533 

As of March 31, 2021 and September 30, 2020, the carrying value of cash and cash equivalents, accounts payable and notesthe insurance note payable approximatesapproximate fair value due to the short-term maturitynature of these instruments. ASC 820 clarifies the definition of fair value, prescribes methods for measuring fair value, and establishes a fair value hierarchy to classify the inputs used in measuring fair value as follows:

Level 1 - Inputs are unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities available at the measurement date.

Level 2 - Inputs are unadjusted quoted prices for similar assets and liabilities in active markets, quoted prices for identical or similar assets and liabilities in markets that are not active, inputs other than quoted prices that are observable, and inputs derived from or corroborated by observable market data.

Level 3 - Unobservable inputs, where there is little or no market activity for the asset or liability. These inputs reflect the reporting entity’s own beliefs about the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability, based on the best information available in the circumstances.

There are no assets and liabilities that are measured and recognized at fair value as of December 31, 2017 and September 30, 2017, on a recurring basis.

 

Recent Accounting Pronouncements9. Stockholders’ Equity

Warrants

Below is a summary of the Company’s issued and outstanding warrants as of March 31, 2021:

Expiration date Exercise Price  Warrants Outstanding 
December 13, 2021 $55.00   20,627 
April 10, 2022  20.00   695,312 
July 6, 2023  8.73   105,000 
       820,939 

10

NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements
(Unaudited)

  Warrants  Weighted
Average
Exercise
Price
  Weighted
Average
Remaining
Contractual Life
(in years)
 
Outstanding as of September 30, 2020  820,939  $19.44     
Outstanding as of March 31, 2021  820,939   19.44   1.2 
Exercisable as of March 31, 2021  820,939   19.44   1.2 

10. Stock-Based Compensation

 

The Company has implemented all new relevant accounting pronouncements that are in effect through the date of these financial statements. The pronouncements did not have any material impact on the financial statements unless otherwise disclosed, and the Company does not believe that there are any other new accounting pronouncements that have been issued that might have a material impact on its consolidated financial position or results of operations.

Going Concern

To date, the Company has no revenue from product sales and management expects continuing operating losses and negative cash outflows in the future. These factors raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis, which contemplates the realization of assets and satisfaction of liabilities in the ordinary course of business. Management expects to seek additional funds through equity or debt financings or through collaboration, licensing transactions or other sources. The Company may be unable to obtain equity or debt financings or enter into collaboration or licensing transactions. The consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments relating to the recoverability and classification of recorded asset amounts or the amounts and classification of liabilities that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.

NOTE 3 – INTANGIBLE ASSETS

Intangible assets at December 31, 2017 and September 30, 2017:

  December 31, September 30,
  2017 2017
License Rights $17,712,991  $17,712,991 
Patent Costs  200,000   200,000 
   17,912,991   17,912,991 
Accumulated Amortization  (4,107,507)  (3,825,389)
Total Intangible Assets $13,805,484  $14,087,602 


During the three month period ended December 31, 2017, the Company recognized $282,118 in amortization expense on the patents and license rights.

NOTE 4 – NOTES PAYABLE

On February 28, 2017, the Company entered into a premium financing arrangement for its directors’ and officers’ insurance policy in the amount of $261,326. The financing arrangement bears interest at 7.5% per annum. As of DecemberMarch 31, 2017, the Company had repaid the note in full in the amount2021, an aggregate of $261,326 of principal and had paid total interest of $9,067.

NOTE 5 – EQUITY

Common Stock Warrants

In December 2017, 225,0004,709,277 shares of common stock were issued in connection withauthorized under the exerciseCompany’s 2019 Stock Incentive Plan (the “2019 Plan”), subject to an “evergreen” provision that will automatically increase the maximum number of warrants issued and sold to various purchasers as part of a registered offering that closed on April 10, 2017. The warrants were exercised at a price of $1.00 per share, and $225,000 in cash was received during the quarter ended December 31, 2017.

Below is a table summarizing the warrants issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2017 (“Price” reflects the weighted average exercise price per share):

  Warrants  Price 
Outstanding at September 30, 2017  16,178,110  $1.23 
Granted        
Investor warrants      
Stock-based compensation warrants  250,000   1.00 
Exercised        
Investor warrants  (225,000)  1.00 
Stock-based compensation warrants      
Forfeited or expired        
Investor warrants      
Stock-based compensation warrants      
Outstanding at December 31, 2017  16,203,110  $1.23 
Exercisable at December 31, 2017  16,078,108  $1.23 

As of December 31, 2017, the warrants have a weighted average remaining term of 4.19 years and have an intrinsic value of $12,212,051.

Stock Based Compensation

The Company’s Consolidated 2016 Stock Plan (“the Plan”) provides for granting stock options and restricted stock awards to employees, directors and consultants of the Company. The Company uses the Black-Scholes pricing model for determining the fair value of stock options and warrants granted as share based compensation.

The following assumptions were used to calculate the fair value of the Company's warrants and options issued during the three months ended December 31, 2017:

  Warrants Options
Expected term  2 years   3.25 to 5 years 
Expected volatility  73%   101%
Expected dividends  0%  0%
Risk-free rates  1.73%   1.68%

Warrants.In October 2017, the Company issued a warrant to purchase 250,000 shares of common stock to a consultant for services tothat may be rendered. The warrant vests in six equal consecutive monthly amounts atissued under the end of each calendar month starting October 31, 2017, at an exercise price of $1.00 per share, for a term of two years from the date2019 Plan. As of issuance.

DuringMarch 31, 2021, 1,294,956 common shares were available for future grants under the three month period ended December2019 Plan. As of March 31, 2017, the Company recognized $152,192 of expense related to warrants granted as stock based compensation. Unamortized expense as of December 31, 2017 for outstanding warrants issued as stock based compensation amounted to $73,569. Refer to the Common Stock Warrants table within this note for information regarding all outstanding warrants.

Options.In October 2017, the Company granted nonqualified stock options to purchase an aggregate of 1,640,0002021, 291,667 shares of common stock to certain directors, employees, executive officers and key consultants. Other than the issuance of a stock option to purchase 80,000 shares of common stock issued to one key consultant, one third of the shares of common stock subject to the stock options became exercisable immediately, and one third of the shares of common stock subject to the stock options will become exercisable on each of October 16, 2018 and October 16, 2019. With respect to the stock option to purchase 80,000 shares of common stock issued to one key consultant, one quarter of the shares of common stock subject to the stock option vested immediately, and the remaining three quarters of the shares of common stock subject to the stock option are exercisable upon the achievements of certain milestones in connection withwere authorized under the Company’s MAKO clinical study. All but one milestone has been achieved. As such,2016 Consolidated Stock Incentive Plan (the “2016 Plan”) and 147,041 common shares were available for future grants under the 20,000 shares of common stock associated with this unmet performance condition have been accounted for as forfeitures and 60,000 shares have vested as of December 31, 2017. The stock options have an exercise price of $0.67 per share and expire on October 15, 2022.


During the three month period ended December 31, 2017, the Company recognized $477,094 of expense related to options granted. Unamortized option expense as of December 31, 2017 for all options outstanding amounted to $599,557. The Company expects to recognize this compensation cost over a weighted-average period of 1.48 years.2016 Plan.

 

Below is a table summarizingThe Company recorded stock-based compensation expense in the Company’s activityfollowing expense categories of its unaudited condensed consolidated statements of operations for the three month periodand six months ended DecemberMarch 31, 2017 (“Price” reflects the weighted average exercise price per share):2021 and 2020:

 

  Options  Price 
Outstanding at September 30, 2017  2,250,500  $5.58 
Granted  1,640,000  $0.67 
Exercised      
Forfeited or expired  (210,666) $6.38 
Outstanding at December 31, 2017  3,679,834  $3.34 
Exercisable at December 31, 2017  2,174,576  $4.51 

As of December 31, 2017, the outstanding options have a weighted average remaining term of 4.25 years and an intrinsic value of $2,532,800.

  Three Months ended March 31,  Six Months ended March 31, 
  2021  2020  2021  2020 
General and administrative $448,880  $954,241  $1,291,159  $2,067,352 
Research and development  493,228   385,169   827,534   776,284 
Total $942,108  $1,339,410  $2,118,693  $2,843,636 

 

Restricted Stock.Stock Options During the three month period ended December 31, 2017, the Company recognized $135,701 of expense related to restricted stock awards. As of December 31, 2017, there was $59,400 of unamortized expense. The Company expects to recognize this compensation cost over a weighted-average period of .03 years.

 

Below is a table summarizing the options issued and outstanding as of and for the six months ended March 31, 2021:

  Stock Options  Weighted
Average
Exercise
Price
  Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Life (in years)  Total Aggregate Intrinsic Value 
Outstanding at September 30, 2020  6,190,790  $2.76         
Granted  534,340   7.59         
Exercised  (21,576)  5.21         
Forfeited  (150,670)  5.68         
Outstanding at March 31, 2021  6,552,884   3.08   8.1  $29,219,357 
Exercisable as of March 31, 2021  4,575,375   1.65   7.7  $26,884,291 

11

NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements
(Unaudited)

As of March 31, 2021, unrecognized compensation costs associated with the stock options of $4.8 million will be recognized over an estimated weighted-average amortization period of 1.3 years.

The weighted average grant date fair value of options granted during the six months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020 was $5.32 and $4.78, respectively.

Key assumptions used to estimate the fair value of the stock options granted during the six months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020 included:

  Six Months ended March 31, 
  2021  2020 
Expected term of options (years)   5.5 - 7.0   7.0 
Expected common stock price volatility   83% - 83.3%   78% - 83.5%
Risk-free interest rate   0.6% - 1.3%   0.9% - 1.8%
Expected dividend yield  -   - 

During the six months ended March 31, 2021, the Company granted a stock option to purchase 225,000 shares to a consultant in recognition of future service to the Company as an employee. The exercisability and vesting of the stock options are subject to the consultant’s effective date of employment with the Company, which has not yet occurred as of March 31, 2021, and as a result, the grant-date of such option has not occurred under GAAP. Therefore, the number and fair value of the shares subject to this option are not reflected in the table summarizing the options issued and outstanding as of and for the six months ended March 31, 2021 and did not have an impact on unrecognized compensation costs or the estimated weighted-average amortization period above as of March 31, 2021.

Restricted Stock

A summary of the changes in the unvested restricted stock during the six months ended March 31, 2021 is as follows:

  Unvested Restricted Stock  Weighted Average
Grant Date
Fair Value
Price
 
Unvested as of September 30, 2020  -  $- 
Granted  4,364   9.17 
Vested  (4,364)  9.17 
Unvested as of March 31, 2021  -   - 

11. Commitments and Contingencies

Operating Leases

In October 2020, the Company entered into a ten-year lease agreement with annual escalating rental payments for approximately 14,189 square feet of office and laboratory space in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The first and second amendments to the lease agreement were executed in December 2020 and April 2021, respectively (collectively with the lease agreement, referred to herein as the “Lease”). The leased premises will serve as the Company’s activityheadquarters upon the commencement of the lease. The initial term of the Lease commenced on May 1, 2021. On such date, the Company is obligated to begin making rental payments, provided that the Company may be entitled to a rental credit for certain periods based on the date the Landlord delivers possession of the office space and biology lab within the leased premises to the Company and the date the landlord substantially completes tenant improvements. The initial term of the Lease will extend approximately ten years from delivery of the leased premises to the Company, unless earlier terminated in accordance with the lease. The Company has the right to extend the term of the Lease for an additional five-year term. The Company will pay an escalating base rent over the life of the Lease of approximately $71,000 to $78,000 per month, and the Company will pay its pro rata portion of property expenses and operating expenses for the property. The Company will measure and recognize the right-of-use (“ROU”) asset and operating lease liability upon lease commencement. During the six months ended March 31, 2021, the Company prepaid rent of $0.3 million and paid a security deposit of $0.3 million for this Lease.

12

NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements
(Unaudited)

The Company currently leases its existing office and operating space under operating leases with original terms of less than 12 months and which expire at various dates through November 2021; therefore, the Company’s operating leases are not recognized as ROU assets on the unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheet as of March 31, 2021.

Rent expense under the Company’s operating leases totaled approximately $0.03 million and $0.02 million for the three months ended DecemberMarch 31, 2017:

  Shares  Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value 
Nonvested at September 30, 2017  270,179  $4.53 
Granted      
Vested      
Forfeited      
Nonvested at December 31, 2017  270,179  $4.53 

NOTE 6 – COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES

Legal Proceedings2021 and 2020, respectively. Rent expense under the Company’s operating leases totaled approximately $0.06 million and $0.04 million for the six months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively.

 

The Company continues to operate under its current operating lease in Pittsburgh on a month-to-month basis and will continue to operate under the lease until the Company completes the move into its new headquarters and laboratory space, which is expected to occur in June 2021. All terms and conditions remain the same from the current lease.

In November 2020, the Company extended the term of its rental of office space in New York until November 2021.

Litigation

The Company has become involved in certain legal proceedings and claims which arise in the normal course of business. The Company believes that an adverse outcome is unlikely, and it cannot reasonably estimate the potential loss at this point. If an unfavorable ruling were to occur, there exists the possibility of a material adverse impact on the Company’s results of operations, prospects, cash flows, financial position and brand.

On February 14, 2018, plaintiff Jeevesh Khanna, commenced an action in the Southern District of New York, against Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc. (“Ohr”) (which was the name of the Company prior to the completion of the merger with NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“Legacy NeuBase”), in accordance with the terms of the Agreement and Plan of Merger and Reorganization entered into on January 2, 2019, as amended, pursuant to which (i) Ohr Acquisition Corp., a subsidiary of Ohr, merged with and into Legacy NeuBase, with Legacy NeuBase (renamed as “NeuBase Corporation”) continuing as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ohr and the surviving corporation of the merger and (ii) Ohr was renamed as “NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc.” (the “Merger”)) and several current and former officers and directors, alleging that they violated federal securities laws between June 24, 2014 and January 4, 2018. On August 7, 2018, the lead plaintiffs, now George Lehman and Insured Benefit Plans, Inc., filed an amended complaint, stating the class period to be April 8, 2014 through January 4, 2018. The plaintiffs did not quantify any alleged damages in their complaint but, in addition to attorneys’ fees and costs, they seek to maintain the action as a class action and to recover damages on behalf of themselves and other persons who purchased or otherwise acquired Ohr common stock during the putative class period and purportedly suffered financial harm as a result. We and the individuals dispute these claims and intend to defend the matter vigorously. On September 17, 2018, Ohr filed a motion to dismiss the complaint. On September 20, 2019, the district court entered an order granting the defendants’ motion to dismiss. On October 23, 2019, the plaintiffs filed a notice of appeal of that order dismissing the action and other related orders by the district court. After full briefing and oral argument, on October 9, 2020, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued a summary order affirming the district court’s order granting the motion to dismiss and remanding the action to the district court to make a determination on the record related to plaintiffs’ request for leave to file an amended complaint. On October 16, 2020, the district court requested the parties’ positions as to how they proposed to proceed in light of the Second Circuit’s decision. After letter briefing on this issue and plaintiffs’ alternative request for leave to file a second amended complaint, on November 16, 2020, the district court denied plaintiffs’ request to amend and dismissed with prejudice plaintiffs’ claims. On December 16, 2020, plaintiffs filed a notice of appeal of that order denying plaintiffs leave to amend. Briefing on the appeal is currently due in the first half of 2021. This litigation could result in substantial costs and a diversion of management’s resources and attention, which could harm the Company’s business and the value of the Company’s common stock.

On May 3, 2018, plaintiff Adele J. Barke, derivatively on behalf of Ohr, commenced an action against certain former directors of Ohr, including Michael Ferguson, Orin Hirschman, Thomas M. Riedhammer, June Almenoff and Jason S. Slakter in the Supreme Court, State of New York, alleging that the action was brought in the right and for the benefit of Ohr seeking to remedy their “breach of fiduciary duties, corporate waste and unjust enrichment that occurred between June 24, 2014 and the present.” It does not quantify any alleged damages. We and the individuals dispute these claims and intend to defend the matter vigorously. Such litigation has been stayed pursuant to a stipulation by the parties, which has been so ordered by the court, pending a decision in the Southern District case on the motion to dismiss, but that status could change. This litigation could result in substantial costs and a diversion of management’s resources and attention, which could harm our business and the value of our common stock.

13

NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements
(Unaudited)

On March 20, 2019, a putative class action lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for District of Delaware naming as defendants Ohr and its board of directors, Legacy NeuBase and Ohr Acquisition Corp., captioned Wheby v. Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc., et al., Case No. 1:19-cv-00541-UNA (the “Wheby Action”). The plaintiffs in the Wheby Action allege that the preliminary joint proxy/prospectus statement filed by Ohr with the SEC on March 8, 2019 contained false and misleading statements and omitted material information in violation of Section 14(a) of the Exchange Act and SEC Rule 14a-9 promulgated thereunder, and further that the individual defendants are liable for those alleged misstatements and omissions under Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act. The complaint in the Wheby Action has not been served on, nor was service waived by, any of the named defendants in that action. The action seeks, among other things, to rescind the Merger or an award of damages, and an award of attorneys’ and experts’ fees and expenses. The defendants dispute the claims raised in the Wheby Action. Management believes that the likelihood of an adverse decision from the sole remaining action is unlikely; however, the litigation could result in substantial costs and a diversion of management’s resources and attention, which could harm our business and the value of our common stock.

12. Subsequent Events

Common Stock Offering

On April 26, 2021, the Company closed an underwritten public offering of 9,200,000 shares of its common stock (inclusive of 1,200,000 shares that were sold pursuant to the underwriters’ full exercise of their option to purchase additional shares of the Company’s common stock), at a price to the public of $5.00 per share. The Company received net proceeds from the offering of approximately $42.6 million, after deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions and other estimated offering expenses payable by the Company.

Asset Purchase Agreement

On January 27, 2021, the Company entered into an Asset Purchase Agreement by and among the Company, NeuBase Corporation, its wholly owned subsidiary, and Vera Therapeutics, Inc. (“Vera”) as amended by the Amendment to Asset Purchase Agreement, dated as of April 20, 2021, by and between the Company and Vera (collectively, the “APA”) and the transaction closed on April 26, 2021. Pursuant to the terms of the APA, the Company acquired infrastructure, materials, and intellectual property for peptide-nucleic acid (“PNA”) scaffolds from Vera for total consideration of approximately $0.8 million in cash and 308,635 shares of common stock (of which 146,375 were to be issued to Vera and 162,260 will be held in escrow and released to Vera in accordance with the terms of an escrow agreement between NeuBase Corporation and Vera).

14

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

Disclosures Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

The following should be read in conjunction with the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements and the related notes that appear elsewhere in this report as well as in conjunction with the Risk Factors section in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2020 as filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on December 23, 2020. This report and our Form 10-K include forward-looking statements made based on current management expectations pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended.

This report includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 21E of the Exchange Act. Those statements include statements regarding the intent, belief or current expectations of the Company and its subsidiaries and our management team. Any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include but are not limited to those risks and uncertainties set forth in Part II, Item 1A – Risk Factors of this Quarterly Report and in Part I, Item 1A – Risk Factors of our Annual Report on Form 10-K. In light of the significant risks and uncertainties inherent in the forward-looking statements included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, the inclusion of such statements should not be regarded as a representation by us or any other person that our objectives and plans will be achieved. Further, these forward-looking statements reflect our view only as of the date of this report. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligations to update any forward-looking statements and we disclaim any intent to update forward-looking statements after the date of this report to reflect subsequent developments. Accordingly, you should also carefully consider the factors set forth in other reports or documents that we file from time to time with the SEC.

Overview

Recent Developments

December 2020 Announcement of Positive Preclinical Data

On December 16, 2020, we announced additional positive preclinical data on our platform and DM1 program. In vitro data highlights in DM1 patient-derived fibroblasts include activity of an anti-gene (Compound A) that targets the CUG repeat in DM1:

Compound A traffics to the nucleus, engages and normalizes DMPK mRNA.

Compound A begins induction of rescue of mis-splicing of two key DM1 dysregulated transcripts (MBNL1 and MBNL2) within two days after initial treatment. Notably, induction of rescue continues to improve through day 9, the latest time point analyzed.

Compound A significantly induces broad correction of global exon inclusion levels of mis-spliced transcripts.

Statistically significant improvement in global splicing as measured by the human differential splice inclusion (hDSI) statistic.

More than 175 dysregulated human transcripts achieved statistically significant improvement in splicing, many with completely normalized exon usage.

DMPK protein levels remain unchanged 5 days after a single Compound A dose, supporting the hypothesized mechanism of action maintaining DMPK.

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In vivo data highlights in the HSALR transgenic mouse model of DM1 that expresses high levels of mutant CUG-repeat-containing mRNA (ACTA1) in skeletal muscle:

A single intravenous (IV) injection of 29 mg/kg of Compound A traffics to the nucleus and engages ACTA1 mRNA within 24 hours in tibialis anterior (TA) skeletal muscle.

A single intravenous (IV) injection of Compound A significantly induces broad correction of global exon inclusion levels of mis-spliced transcripts in HSALR TA skeletal muscle at day 13.

Statistically significant improvement in global splicing as measured by the murine differential splice inclusion (mDSI) statistic.

More than 50 unique dysregulated murine transcripts achieved statistically significant improvement in splicing post-treatment, with many achieving complete normalization of appropriate exon usage.

Compound A was well tolerated after single dose administration at the dose demonstrating activity in vivo.

Description of the Company

We are a biotechnology company working towards accelerating the genetic revolution by developing a new class of synthetic medicines. Our modular peptide-nucleic acid antisense oligo (“PATrOL™”) platform which outputs “anti-gene” candidate therapies is designed to combine the specificity of genetic sequence-based target recognition with a modularity that enables use of various in vivo delivery technologies to enable broad and also selective tissue distribution capabilities. Given that every human disease may have a genetic component, we believe that our differentiated platform technology has the potential for broad impact by increasing, decreasing or changing gene function at either the DNA or RNA levels to resolve the progression to disease, as appropriate, in a particular indication. We plan to use our platform to address diseases driven by genetic variation and mutation, and we are initially focused on myotonic dystrophy type 1 (“DM1”) and Huntington’s disease (“HD”).

Globally, there are thousands of genetic diseases, most of which lack any therapeutic options. In addition, rare genetic diseases are often particularly severe, debilitating or fatal. Traditionally, therapeutic development for each rare genetic disorder has been approached with a unique strategy, which is inefficient, as there are thousands of diseases that need treatment solutions. The collective population of people with rare diseases stands to benefit profoundly from the emergence of a scalable and modular treatment development platform that allows for a more efficient discovery and delivery of drug product candidates to address these conditions cohesively.

Mutated proteins resulting from errors in deoxyribonucleic acid (“DNA”) sequences cause many rare genetic diseases and cancer. DNA in each cell of the body is transcribed into pre-RNA, which is then processed (spliced) into mRNA which is exported into the cytoplasm of the cell and translated into protein. This is termed the “central dogma” of biology. Therefore, when errors in a DNA sequence occur, they are propagated to RNAs and can become a damaging protein.

The field has learned that antisense oligonucleotides (“ASOs”) can inactivate target RNAs before they can produce harmful proteins by binding them in a sequence-specific manner, which can delay disease progression or even eliminate genetic disease symptoms. ASOs designed by others to target known disease-related mutant RNA sequences have been shown to be able to degrade these transcripts and have a positive clinical impact. Similarly, applications in modifying splicing of pre-RNA in the nucleus of the cell have been developed by others to exclude damaging exons from the final mRNA product and have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”). We plan to extend upon these conceptual breakthroughs by utilizing our first-in-class technology which produces investigational therapies which are similar in structure to ASOs in that they are comprised of a backbone onto which are tethered nucleobases that engage a genetic sequence of interest using complementary base-pairing, but which we believe have significant benefits in certain application areas to better resolve clinical disorders.

We are developing “anti-gene” therapies. Anti-genes are similar to, but distinct from, antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs). ASOs are short single strands of nucleic acids (traditionally thought of as single-stranded DNA molecules) which bind to defective RNA targets in cells and inhibit their ability to form defective proteins. We believe we are a leader in the discovery and development of anti-gene therapies, a new class of investigational therapies derived from peptide-nucleic acids (“PNAs”). The key differentiator between ASOs and anti-genes is that the scaffold is not derived from a natural sugar-phosphate nucleic acid backbone, rather is a synthetic polyamide which is charge-neutral and characterized by high binding affinity to a nucleic acid target, high sequence specificity, high stability, and is relatively immunologically inert. These features provide potential advantages over ASOs and other genetic therapies for modulating disease-causing genes including increased unique disease target opportunities, improved target specificity and a reduction in both sequence-dependent and independent toxicities. In addition, as these anti-genes are manufactured via standard peptide synthesis methods, they efficiently leverage the advancements in the synthetic peptide industry to enable modulation of pharmacophore delivery, pharmacokinetics, sub-cellular placement and endosomal escape.

In addition to the scaffold, we have a kit of natural nucleobases, chemically modified nucleobases which add further precision to a nucleic acid target of interest, and proprietary bi-specific nucleobases (“janus” nucleobases) which can be added to the scaffold to enable more precise target engagement. These bi-specific nucleobases, in particular, have been shown to enable accessing double stranded RNA targets comprised of secondary structures such as hairpins (double stranded RNA targets which are folded upon themselves). This allows us to potentially access regions of the target transcript which may be unique in secondary structure to allow enhanced selectivity for the target (mutant) RNA as compared to the normal RNA. Enhanced selectivity for mutant RNAs as compared to normal RNAs is often important as normal RNAs are often required for effective functioning of the cell.

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A third component of the modular platform is the ability to add delivery technology to the anti-gene pharmacophores so as to reach a desired cell or tissue upon in vivo administration. There is flexibility to append various delivery technologies to the pharmacophore to allow either broad tissue distribution or narrow cell and/or tissue targeting if so desired based on targets. One such technology is a chemical moiety that can be used to decorate the scaffold directly and allows the anti-genes to penetrate cell membranes and into subcellular compartments where they act as well as to distribute throughout the body when administered systemically.

Finally, in addition to the anti-gene scaffold, modified nucleobases and delivery technology, the platform toolkit also includes linker technology which, when added to both ends of the anti-genes, has been shown in early pre-clinical studies to allow cooperative binding between individual drug molecules once they are engaged with the nucleic acid target to form longer and more tightly bound drugs.

This toolkit of components forms the PATrOL™ platform and allows us to manufacture gene and transcript-specific anti-genes.

We are currently focused on therapeutic areas in which we believe our drugs will provide the greatest benefit with a significant market opportunity. We intend to utilize our technology to build a pipeline of custom designed therapeutics for additional high-value disease targets. We are developing several preclinical programs using our PATrOL™ platform, including the NT0100 program, targeted at Huntington’s disease, a repeat expansion disorder, and the NT0200 program, targeted at myotonic dystrophy, type 1, a second repeat expansion disorder. Preclinical studies are being conducted to evaluate the PATrOL™ platform technology and program candidates in the areas of pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics and tolerability, and we reported results from certain of those studies in the first calendar quarter of 2020 and have extended upon certain of those studies in the fourth calendar quarter of 2020 which illustrated that our anti-gene technology can be administered to human patient-derived cell lines and systemically (via intravenous (IV) administration) into animals with DM1 (a genetically modified model accepted as representative of the human disease in skeletal muscle) and can address the causal genetic defect. We expect to present additional results from ongoing preclinical studies evaluating the PATrOLTM platform and pipeline indications in June 2021. In addition, we believe that the emerging pipeline of other investigational therapies that target primary and secondary RNA structure and genomic DNA potentially allows a unique market advantage across a variety of rare diseases and oncology targets.

Overall, using our PATrOL™ platform, we believe we can create anti-gene therapies that may have distinct advantages over other chemical entities currently in the market or in development for genetic medicine applications to modulate mutant genes and improve a clinical trait or disorder. These potential advantages may differ by indication and can include, among others:

increased unique target opportunities, improved target specificity and a reduction in both sequence-dependent and independent toxicities by virtue of a synthetic polyamide scaffold which is charge-neutral and characterized by high binding affinity to a nucleic acid target, high sequence specificity, high stability, and is relatively immunologically inert;

potential long durability by nature of the relatively highly stable polyamide scaffold;

our anti-genes are manufactured via standard peptide synthesis methods and thus they efficiently leverage advances in the synthetic peptide industry to enable facile addition of known moieties enabling modulating pharmacophore delivery, pharmacokinetics, sub-cellular placement and endosomal escape; and

our anti-genes may be able to target double stranded structures in RNA, which may allow unique target opportunities that standard ASOs cannot access.

With these unique component parts and their advantages, we believe our PATrOL™ platform-enabled anti-gene therapies can potentially address a multitude of rare genetic diseases and cancer, among other indications.

We employ a rational approach to selecting disease targets, considering many scientific, technical, business and indication-specific factors before choosing each indication. We intend to build a diverse portfolio of therapies to treat a variety of health conditions, with an initial emphasis on rare genetic diseases and cancers. A key component of this strategy is continuing to improve the scientific understanding and optimization of our platform technology and programs, including how various components of our platform technology perform, and how our investigational therapies impact the biological processes of the target diseases, so that we can utilize this information to reduce risk in our future programs and indications. In addition, with our expertise in discovering and characterizing novel anti-gene investigational therapies, we believe that our scientists can optimize the properties of our PATrOL™-enabled drug candidates for use with particular targets that we determine to be of high value.

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We believe the depth of our knowledge and expertise with PNAs, engineered nucleotides, genetics and genomics and therapeutic development of first-in-class modalities provides potential flexibility to determine the optimal development and commercialization strategy to maximize the near and longer-term value of our therapeutic programs.

We plan to employ distinct partnering strategies based on the specific drug candidate, therapeutic area expertise and resources potential partners may bring to a collaboration. For some drug candidates, we may choose to develop and, if approved, commercialize them ourselves or through our affiliates. For other drug candidates, we may form single or multi-asset partnerships leveraging our partners’ global expertise and resources needed to support large commercial opportunities.

We believe the breadth of the PATrOL™ platform gives us the ability to potentially address a multitude of inherited genetic diseases. The technology may allow us to target and inactivate gain-of-function and change-of-function mutations, and address targets in recessive disease and haploinsufficiencies by altering splicing to remove damaging exons/mutations or increasing expression of wild-type alleles by various means.

Modified scaffolds, optimized versions of traditional PNA scaffolds which we utilize, have demonstrated preclinical in vivo efficacy in several applications which we believe can be translated across many targets and into humans. For example, in oncology such scaffolds have reduced expression of an activated oncogene (the epidermal growth factor receptor of the EGFR gene) and have modified gene regulation by targeting microRNA to slow tumor growth. Such scaffolds have also demonstrated in vivo engagement with the double-stranded genome in studies done by others to perform in vivo single-base genome editing.

Product Pipeline

NT0100 Program - PATrOL™ Enabled Anti-Gene for Huntington’s Disease

HD is a devastating rare neurodegenerative disorder. After onset, symptoms such as uncontrolled movements, cognitive impairments and emotional disturbances worsen over time. HD is caused by toxic aggregation of mutant huntingtin protein, leading to progressive neuron loss in the striatum and cortex of the brain. The wild-type huntingtin gene (HTT) has a region in which a three-base DNA sequence, CAG, is repeated many times. When the DNA sequence CAG is repeated 26 or fewer times in this region, the resulting protein behaves normally. While the normal or wild-type function of HTT protein is largely uncharacterized, it is known to be essential for normal brain development. When the DNA sequence CAG is repeated 40 times or more in this region, the resulting protein becomes toxic and causes HD. Every person has two copies, or alleles, of the HTT gene. Only one of the alleles (the “mutant” allele) needs to bear at least 40 CAG repeats for HD to occur. HD is one of many known repeat expansion disorders, which are a set of genetic disorders caused by a mutation that leads to a repeat of nucleotides exceeding the normal threshold. Current therapies for patients with HD can only manage individual symptoms. There is no approved therapy that has been shown to delay or halt disease progression. There are approximately 30,000 symptomatic patients in the U.S. and more than 200,000 at-risk of inheriting the disease globally.

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One especially important advantage of the PATrOL™ platform that makes it promising for the treatment of repeat expansion disorders like HD is the ability of our small anti-genes to potentially target the RNA hairpin. This allows our therapies to potentially inactivate mutant HTT mRNA before it can be translated into a harmful protein via selective binding to the expanded CAG repeats while leaving the normal HTT mRNA largely unbound to drug and producing functional protein. Achieving mutant allele selectivity would be a key advantage for any RNA-based approach aiming to treat HD. In March of 2020, we illustrated the ability of our anti-gene technology to enrich for translational inhibition and resultant reduction of mutant protein formation in human patient-derived cell lines versus wild-type protein production. We illustrated that our anti-genes can inhibit ribosomal elongation via high-affinity binding to a target RNA.

The PATrOL™-enabled NT0100 program is currently in preclinical development for the treatment of HD. We expect to initiate scale up and toxicology activities in calendar year 2022, with a target IND filing in calendar year 2023.

NT0200 Program- PATrOL™ Enabled Anti-Gene for Myotonic Dystrophy Type 1

Our pipeline also contains a second potentially transformative medicine, which we believe has significant potential for Myotonic dystrophy, type 1, a severe dominantly inherited genetic disease. DM1 is characterized clinically by myotonia (an inability to relax a muscle after contraction), muscle weakness and wasting, cardiac conduction defects and cognitive deficits. DM1 is caused by an expansion of a CUG trinucleotide repeat in the 3’ untranslated region (“UTR”), a noncoding region of the myotonic dystrophy protein kinase gene (DMPK) transcript. Diagnosis is confirmed by molecular genetic testing of the length of a trinucleotide repeat expansion. Repeat length exceeding 34 repeats is abnormal and often patients have hundreds or thousands of repeat units. Molecular genetic testing detects pathogenic variants in nearly 100% of affected individuals. It is estimated that the global prevalence of DM1 is approximately 1 in 20,000 individuals. Our recent data illustrates that we are able to systemically deliver our anti-genes intravenously in a DM1 genetic mouse model, engage the target in the skeletal muscles of the animals, and induce rescue of the causal splice defects.

The trinucleotide repeat expansion in the transcript causes disease by forming an aberrant hairpin structure in the nucleus of patient cells that captures and sequesters proteins that have critical functions in the nucleus related to appropriate splicing of hundreds of transcripts. These sequestered proteins cannot then fulfill their normal functions. In addition, it has been documented that sequestration of the mutant DMPK transcripts in the nucleus results in their inability to be translated and potentially results in haploinsufficiency, a situation where 50% of the protein in not enough to maintain normal function. Mice with both copies of their Dmpk gene knocked out manifest a cardiac conduction defect (Berul CI, Maguire CT, Aronovitz MJ, Greenwood J, Miller C, Gehrmann J, Housman D, Mendelsohn ME, Reddy S. Dpmk dosage alterations result in atrioventricular conduction abnormalities in a mouse myotonic dystrophy model. J Clin Invest. 1999 Feb;103(4):R1-7. doi: 10.1172/JCI5346. PMID: 10021468; PMCID: PMC408103.) and a CNS phenotype characterized by abnormal long-term potentiation (Schulz PE, McIntosh AD, Kasten MR, Wieringa B, Epstein HF. A role for myotonic dystrophy protein kinase in synaptic plasticity. J Neurophysiol. 2003 Mar;89(3):1177-86. doi: 10.1152/jn.00504.2002. Epub 2002 Nov 13. PMID: 12612014.) hypothesized to be due to inappropriate cytoskeletal remodeling. We propose that our mechanism of action is via direct engagement of our anti-gene with the expanded CUG repeat hairpin structure in the 3’ UTR of the mutant transcript, invasion and opening of the hairpin structure, and release of the sequestered CUG-repeat binding proteins. This release of sequestered proteins which are normally involved in developmentally appropriate pre-mRNA splicing in the nucleus resolves the generalized splice defect and thus the major causal event. Our DM1 anti-gene is designed to not specifically degrade the mutant transcript, rather to release these RNA-protein aggregates through steric displacement, which could also resolve any potential haploinsufficiency and as a result may improve endophenotypes of the clinical condition, such as in the heart and brain (contingent on delivering effective concentrations of anti-gene to these tissues).

The PATrOL™-enabled NT0200 program is currently in preclinical development for the treatment of DM1. We expect to initiate scale up and toxicology activities beginning in the middle of calendar year 2021, with an IND filing planned during calendar year 2022.

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Additional Indications

In addition, we are in the process of building an early stage pipeline of other therapies that focus on the unique advantages of our technology across a variety of diseases with an underlying genetic driver.

Critical Accounting Estimates and Policies

The preparation of financial statements in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles (“U.S. GAAP”) requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in our unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes. Management bases its estimates on historical experience, market and other conditions, and various other assumptions it believes to be reasonable. Although these estimates are based on management’s best knowledge of current events and actions that may impact us in the future, the estimation process is, by its nature, uncertain given that estimates depend on events over which we may not have control. If market and other conditions change from those that we anticipate, our unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements may be materially affected. In addition, if our assumptions change, we may need to revise our estimates, or take other corrective actions, either of which may also have a material effect in our unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements. We review our estimates, judgments, and assumptions used in our accounting practices periodically and reflect the effects of revisions in the period in which they are deemed to be necessary. We believe that these estimates are reasonable; however, our actual results may differ from these estimates.

Our critical accounting policies and estimates are discussed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2020 and there have been no material changes to such policies or estimates during the six months ended March 31, 2021.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Please refer to Note 2, Significant Accounting Policies—Recent Accounting Pronouncements, in Item 1, Financial Statements, for a discussion of recent accounting pronouncements.

Results of Operations

Results of operations for the quarter ended March 31, 2021 reflect the following changes from the quarter ended March 31, 2020:

  Three Months ended March 31,    
  2021  2020  Change 
OPERATING EXPENSES            
General and administrative $2,721,640  $2,739,021  $(17,381)
Research and development  3,174,129   1,616,009   1,558,120 
TOTAL OPERATING EXPENSES  5,895,769   4,355,030   1,540,739 
LOSS FROM OPERATIONS  (5,895,769)  (4,355,030)  (1,540,739)
OTHER INCOME (EXPENSE)            
Interest expense  (6,460)  (342)  (6,118)
Interest income  9,466   -   9,466 
Change in fair value of warrant liabilities  90,597   69,944   20,653 
Equity in losses on equity method investment  (36,127)  (92,842)  56,715 
Other income  316,724   -   316,724 
Total other expenses, net  374,200   (23,240)  397,440 
NET LOSS $(5,521,569) $(4,378,270) $(1,143,299)

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During the quarter ended March 31, 2021, our operating loss increased by $1.5 million compared to the quarter ended March 31, 2020. Our net loss increased by $1.1 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2021, as compared to the quarter ended March 31, 2020. Until we are able to generate revenue from product sales, our management expects to continue to incur net losses.

General and Administrative Expenses

General and administrative expenses consist primarily of legal and professional fees, wages, stock-based compensation and insurance. General and administrative expenses decreased by $0.02 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2021, as compared to the quarter ended March 31, 2020, primarily due to decreases in stock-based compensation expense, accounting and legal costs, offset by increases in patent fees, settlement costs, professional fees, and employee head count.

Research and Development Expenses

Research and development expenses consist primarily of professional fees, research, development, and manufacturing expenses, and wages and stock-based compensation. Research and development expenses increased by $1.6 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2021, as compared to the quarter ended March 31, 2020, primarily due to increases in manufacturing expenses, employee head count, the ramp up of research and development activities and professional fees.

Change in Fair Value of Warrant Liabilities

Change in fair value of warrant liabilities reflects the changes in the fair value of outstanding warrants which is primarily driven by changes in our stock price. We recognized a gain of $0.09 million from the change in fair value of warrant liabilities for the quarter ended March 31, 2021, as compared to a gain of $0.07 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2020.

Equity in Losses on Equity Method Investment

We account for our investment in DepYmed common shares using the equity method of accounting and record our proportionate share of DepYmed’s net income and losses. Equity in losses was $0.04 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2021, as compared to $0.09 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2020.

Other Income

We recognized other income of $0.3 million during the quarter ended March 31, 2021 related to the sale of certain intellectual property to DepYmed in exchange for shares of Series A-4 preferred stock. There was no other income recognized during the quarter ended March 31, 2020.

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Results of operations for the six months ended March 31, 2021 reflect the following changes from the six months ended March 31, 2020:

  Six Months ended March 31,    
  2021  2020  Change 
OPERATING EXPENSES            
General and administrative $5,363,110  $5,293,701  $69,409 
Research and development  5,194,053   2,843,695   2,350,358 
TOTAL OPERATING EXPENSES  10,557,163   8,137,396   2,419,767 
LOSS FROM OPERATIONS  (10,557,163)  (8,137,396)  (2,419,767)
OTHER INCOME (EXPENSE)            
Interest expense  (16,197)  (1,653)  (14,544)
Interest income  9,466   -   9,466 
Change in fair value of warrant liabilities  720,709   (624,190)  1,344,899 
Equity in losses on equity method investment  (61,539)  (117,351)  55,812 
Other income (expense)  316,724   (3,230)  319,954 
Total other expenses, net  969,163   (746,424)  1,715,587 
NET LOSS $(9,588,000)��$(8,883,820) $(704,180)

During the six months ended March 31, 2021, our operating loss increased by $2.4 million compared to the six months ended March 31, 2020. Our net loss increased by $0.7 million for the six months ended March 31, 2021, as compared to the six months ended March 31, 2020. Until we are able to generate revenue from product sales, our management expects to continue to incur net losses.

General and Administrative Expenses

General and administrative expenses consist primarily of legal and professional fees, wages, stock-based compensation and insurance. General and administrative expenses increased by $0.07 million for the six months ended March 31, 2021, as compared to the six months ended March 31, 2020, primarily due to increases in patent fees, professional fees, settlement costs, and employee head count, and mostly offset by decreases in stock-based compensation and accounting expenses.

Research and Development Expenses

Research and development expenses consist primarily of professional fees, research, development, and manufacturing expenses, and wages and stock-based compensation. Research and development expenses increased by $2.4 million for the six months ended March 31, 2021, as compared to the six months ended March 31, 2020, primarily due to increases in manufacturing expenses, employee head count, and the ramp up of research and development activities.

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Change in Fair Value of Warrant Liabilities

Change in fair value of warrant liabilities reflects the changes in the fair value of outstanding warrants which is primarily driven by changes in our stock price. We recognized a gain of $0.7 million from the change in fair value of warrant liabilities for the six months ended March 31, 2021, as compared to a loss of $0.6 million for the six months ended March 31, 2020.

Equity in Losses on Equity Method Investment

We account for our investment in DepYmed common shares using the equity method of accounting and record our proportionate share of DepYmed’s net income and losses. Equity in losses was $0.06 million for the six months ended March 31, 2021, as compared to $0.1 million for the six months ended March 31, 2020.

Other Income (Expense)

We recognized other income of $0.3 million during the six months ended March 31, 2021 related to the sale of certain intellectual property to DepYmed in exchange for shares of Series A-4 preferred stock. There was an immaterial amount of other expense recognized during the six months ended March 31, 2020.

Liquidity, Capital Resources and Financial Condition

We have had no revenues from product sales and have incurred operating losses since inception. As of March 31, 2021, we had an accumulated deficit of $53.1 million. We have historically funded our operations through the sale of common stock and the issuance of convertible notes and warrants. We received $33.3 million in net proceeds from our follow-on underwriting public offering of common stock in April 2020 and $42.6 million in net proceeds from our April 2021 follow-on underwriting public offering of common stock.

We expect to continue to incur significant operating losses for the foreseeable future and may never become profitable. As a result, we will likely need to raise additional capital through one or more of the following: the issuance of additional debt or equity or the completion of a licensing transaction for one or more of our pipeline assets.

Net working capital decreased from September 30, 2020 to March 31, 2021 by $8.3 million (to $21.4 million from $29.7 million). Our quarterly cash burn has increased compared to prior periods due to increased research and development and corporate activities and we expect it to continue to increase in future periods. We expect that our existing cash and cash equivalents, together with expected and committed cash from our existing collaboration, will be sufficient to fund our operations for at least the next twelve months and into calendar 2023. We have based this expectation on assumptions that may prove to be incorrect, and we may use our available capital resources sooner than we currently expect. In addition, we may elect to raise additional funds before we need them if the conditions for raising capital are favorable due to market conditions or strategic considerations, even if we expect we have sufficient funds for our current or future operating plans.

At present, we have no bank line of credit or other fixed source of capital reserves. Should we need additional capital in the future, we will be primarily reliant upon a private or public placement of our equity or debt securities, or a strategic transaction, for which there can be no warranty or assurance that we may be successful in such efforts. If we are unable to maintain sufficient financial resources, our business, financial condition and results of operations will be materially and adversely affected. This could affect future development and business activities and potential future clinical studies and/or other future ventures. Failure to obtain additional equity or debt financing will have a material, adverse impact on our business operations. There can be no assurance that we will be able to obtain the needed financing to achieve our goals on acceptable terms or at all.

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Cash Flow Summary

The following table summarizes selected items in our unaudited condensed consolidated statements of cash flows:

  Six Months ended March 31, 
  2021  2020 
Net cash used in operating activities $(7,301,524) $(4,257,183)
Net cash used in investing activities  (417,896)  (161,916)
Net cash used in financing activities  (26,111)  (122,919)
Net decrease in cash and cash equivalents $(7,745,531) $(4,542,018)

Operating Activities

Net cash used in operating activities was approximately $7.3 million for the six months ended March 31, 2021, as compared to approximately $4.3 million for the six months ended March 31, 2020. Net cash used in operating activities in the six months ended March 31, 2021 was primarily the result of our net loss, the change in the fair value of warrant liabilities, gain on sale of intellectual property and cash used for the security deposit and prepayment of rent under our new operating lease for office and laboratory space, offset by our stock-based compensation expense and increases in accounts payable and accrued expenses. Net cash used in operating activities in the six months ended March 31, 2020 was primarily the result of our net loss, offset by our stock-based compensation expense and the change in fair value of warrant liabilities.

Investing Activities

Net cash used in investing activities was approximately $0.4 million for the six months ended March 31, 2021, as compared to $0.2 million for the six months ended March 31, 2020. Net cash used in investing activities for both periods was primarily the result of purchases of laboratory equipment.

Financing Activities

Net cash used in financing activities was approximately $0.03 million for the six months ended March 31, 2021, as compared to $0.1 million for the six months ended March 31, 2020. Net cash used in financing activities for the six months ended March 31, 2021 reflects the principal payments of financed insurance, and net proceeds from the exercise of stock options. Net cash used in financing activities for the six months ended March 31, 2021 reflects the principal payments of financed insurance.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

As of March 31, 2021, we did not have any off-balance sheet arrangements as defined in Item 303(a)(4)(ii) of Regulation S-K.

ITEM 3. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

We are a smaller reporting company, as defined by Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and are not required to provide the information required under this item.

ITEM 4. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

Our management, with the participation of our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, has evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act) as of March 31, 2021. Based on that evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer have concluded that as of March 31, 2021, our disclosure controls and procedures were effective to provide reasonable assurance that the information required to be disclosed in the reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to management as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

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Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting

There have been no changes in our internal control over financial reporting that materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting during the quarterly period ended March 31, 2021.

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PART II.

ITEM 1. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

We have become involved in certain legal proceedings and claims which arise in the normal course of business. If an unfavorable ruling were to occur, there exists the possibility of a material adverse impact on the Company’sour results of operations, prospects, cash flows, financial position and brand.

On February 14, 2018, plaintiff Jeevesh Khanna, commenced an action in the Southern District of New York, alleging thatagainst Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc. (“Ohr”) (which was the name of the Company prior to the completion of the merger with NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“Legacy NeuBase”), in accordance with the terms of the Agreement and Plan of Merger and Reorganization entered into on January 2, 2019, as amended, pursuant to which (i) Ohr Acquisition Corp., a subsidiary of Ohr, merged with and into Legacy NeuBase, with Legacy NeuBase (renamed as “NeuBase Corporation”) continuing as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ohr and the surviving corporation of the merger and (ii) Ohr was renamed as “NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc.” (the “Merger”)) and several current and former officers and directors, alleging that they violated federal securities laws between June 24, 2014 and January 4, 2018. On August 7, 2018, the lead plaintiffs, now George Lehman and Insured Benefit Plans, Inc., filed an amended complaint, stating the class period to be April 8, 2014 through January 4, 2018. The plaintiffs did not quantify any alleged damages in their complaint but, in addition to attorneys'attorneys’ fees and costs, they seek to maintain the action as a class action and to recover damages on behalf of themselves and other persons who purchased or otherwise acquired ourOhr common stock during the putative class period and purportedly suffered financial harm as a result. We and the individuals dispute these claims and intend to defend the matter vigorously.

Severance Pay

As On September 17, 2018, Ohr filed a motion to dismiss the complaint. On September 20, 2019, the district court entered an order granting the defendants’ motion to dismiss. On October 23, 2019, the plaintiffs filed a notice of appeal of that order dismissing the action and other related orders by the district court. After full briefing and oral argument, on October 9, 2020, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued a summary order affirming the district court’s order granting the motion to dismiss and remanding the action to the district court to make a determination on the record related to plaintiffs’ request for leave to file an amended complaint. On October 16, 2020, the district court requested the parties’ positions as to how they proposed to proceed in light of the Second Circuit’s decision. After letter briefing on this issue and plaintiffs’ alternative request for leave to file a second amended complaint, on November 16, 2020, the district court denied plaintiffs’ request to amend and dismissed with prejudice plaintiffs’ claims. On December 31, 2017,16, 2020, plaintiffs filed a notice of appeal of that order denying plaintiffs leave to amend. Briefing on the Company agreed to pay a former director severance payappeal is currently due in the amountfirst half of $250,000 over a five year period. The non-current portion of the liability is reported as long-term liability in the amount of $150,000 in the consolidated balance sheets.

NOTE 7 – RELATED PARTY TRANSACTION

The Contract Research Organization (“CRO”) that ran our clinical trial contracted with Jason S. Slakter, M.D., P.C., d/b/a Digital Angiography Reading Center (“DARC”), a well-known digital reading center, which is owned by Dr. Jason Slakter, Ohr’s CEO, pursuant to our related party transactions policy, with the review and approval of the Audit Committee, to provide digital reading and imaging services in connection with the clinical study. During the three months ended December 31, 2017, and 2016, the Company’s CRO was invoiced or accrued $731,832 and $152,405 from DARC.


NOTE 8 – SUBSEQUENT EVENTS

On January 5, 2018, the Company reported topline data from the MAKO study which did not meet its primary efficacy endpoint. The MAKO study evaluated the efficacy and safety of topically administered squalamine in combination with monthly Lucentis® injections for the treatment of wet age-related macular degeneration (“wet-AMD”). The primary efficacy endpoint was the mean visual acuity gain at nine months, using a mixed-effects model for repeated measures (MMRM) analysis. Subjects receiving squalamine combination therapy (n=119) achieved a mean gain of 8.33 letters from baseline versus 10.58 letters from baseline with Lucentis® monotherapy (n=118). There were no differences in the safety profile between the two treatment groups. Based on these results, we have discontinued further development of squalamine and are evaluating strategic alternatives to maximize shareholder value.

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

Our discussion and analysis of the business and subsequent discussion of financial conditions may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Statements that are not historical in nature, including statements about beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “estimates,” “predicts,” “believes,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “expects,” “intends” and similar expressions are intended to identify these forward-looking statements, but are not the exclusive means of identifying such statements. Such statements are based on currently available operating, financial and competitive information and are subject to various risks and uncertainties as described in greater detail in Item IA, Part II, our “Risk Factors” beginning on page 13 of this Report. You are cautioned that these forward-looking statements reflect management’s estimates only as of the date hereof, and we assume no obligation to update these statements, even if new information becomes available or other events occur in the future, except as required by law. Actual future results, events and trends may differ materially from those expressed in or implied by such statements depending on a variety of factors, including, but not limited to those set forth in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). Specifically, and not in limitation of these factors, we may alter our plans, strategies, objectives or business.

Company Overview

Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc. (“we,” “us,” “our,” “Ohr,” or the “Company”) is a pharmaceutical company focused on the development of novel therapeutics and delivery technologies for the treatment of ocular disease.

Recent Developments

On January 5, 2018, the Company reported topline data from the MAKO study which did not meet its primary efficacy endpoint. The MAKO study evaluated the efficacy and safety of topically administered squalamine in combination with monthly Lucentis® injections for the treatment of wet-AMD. The primary efficacy endpoint was the mean visual acuity gain at nine months, using a mixed-effects model for repeated measures (MMRM) analysis. Subjects receiving squalamine combination therapy (n=119) achieved a mean gain of 8.33 letters from baseline versus 10.58 letters from baseline with Lucentis® monotherapy (n=118). There were no differences in the safety profile between the two treatment groups. Based on these results, we have discontinued further development of squalamine and are evaluating strategic alternatives to maximize shareholder value.

The Board of Directors has engaged Roth Capital Markets, LLC, to advise the Board of Directors and management, and to assist in pursuing a range of strategic alternatives including some of the following: License, divestiture, or other monetization of current assets; license or acquisition of additional assets; merger, joint venture, partnership, or other business combination with another entity, public or private. The Board has not set a definitive timetable for completion of this process. There can be no assurance that this process will result in a strategic alternative of any kind. The Company does not intend to disclose developments or provide updates on the progress or status of this process unless it deems further disclosure is appropriate or required.

Corporate and Historical Information

We are a Delaware corporation that was organized on August 4, 2009, as successor to BBM Holdings, Inc. (formerly Prime Resource, Inc., which was organized March 29, 2002 as a Utah corporation) pursuant to a reincorporation merger. On August 4, 2009, we reincorporated in Delaware as Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc.

On May 30, 2014, we completed the ophthalmology assets acquisition (the “SKS Acquisition”) of the privately held SKS Ocular LLC and its affiliate, SKS Ocular 1 LLC (“SKS”). Under the terms of the acquisition agreement, in exchange for substantially all the assets of SKS, Ohr made an upfront payment of $3.5 million in cash and issued 1,194,862 shares of Ohr common stock to SKS. In addition, SKS is eligible to receive up to an aggregate of 1,493,577 additional shares of Ohr common stock in three contingent milestone payments, each milestone resulting in the issuance of 497,859 shares of Ohr common stock. Milestone 1 required Ohr to demonstrate a consistent long-term release of a therapeutic agent above threshold therapeutic levels in the targeted ocular tissues of an animal model. Ohr met this milestone in December 2015. Milestone 2 required the completion of a pharmacodynamic study in an animal model showing clinically relevant efficacy from a drug substance released from SKS microparticles within 24 months of the date of the closing of the SKS Acquisition. Ohr achieved the study results in May 2016, and the Board reviewed and approved Milestone 2 in July 2016. Milestone 3 requires, among other things, the approval of an Investigational New Drug Application (“IND”) within three years of the date of the closing of the SKS Acquisition. We did not achieve Milestone 3.


Simultaneous with the SKS Acquisition, Ohr completed a holding company reorganization in which Ohr merged with a wholly-owned subsidiary and a new parent corporation succeeded Ohr as a public holding company under the same name. The business operations of Ohr did not change as a result of the reorganization. The new holding company retained the name “Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc.” Outstanding shares of the capital stock of the former Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc. were automatically converted, on a share for share basis, into identical shares of common stock of the new holding company.

PRODUCT PIPELINE

(a)SQUALAMINE LACTATE OPHTHALMIC SOLUTION 0.2%

Squalamine Lactate Ophthalmic Solution 0.2% (“Squalamine”, also known as OHR-102)

Squalamine lactate is a small molecule anti-angiogenic drug with a novel intracellular mechanism of action. The drug acts against the development of aberrant neovascularization by inhibiting multiple protein growth factors of angiogenesis, including vascular endothelial growth factor (“VEGF”), platelet-derived growth factor (“PDGF”) and basic fibroblast growth factor (“bFGF”).

In April 2016, we commenced enrollment in the MAKO study. The study was a multi-center, randomized, double-masked, placebo-controlled clinical trial to evaluate the efficacy and safety of squalamine combination therapy for the treatment of wet-AMD. Subjects were randomized 1:1 to receive topical squalamine lactate ophthalmic solution, 0.2%, (“squalamine”) twice daily (“BID”) and monthly Lucentis® injections (“squalamine combination”) or topical placebo BID and monthly Lucentis® injections (“Lucentis monotherapy”). Eligibility criteria for the study eye included: newly diagnosed with wet-AMD and no previous treatment, occult neovascularization, if present, measured less than 10mm2 as assessed by fluorescein angiography, and visual acuity between 20/40 and 20/320. A total of 237 subjects were randomized. Visual acuity was measured monthly using the Early Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy Study (ETDRS) eye chart. The primary efficacy endpoint was the mean visual acuity gain at nine months, using a mixed-effects model for repeated measures (MMRM) analysis.

On January 5, 2018, the Company reported topline data from the study which did not meet its primary efficacy endpoint. The study evaluated the efficacy and safety of topically administered squalamine in combination with monthly Lucentis® injections for the treatment of wet-AMD. The primary efficacy endpoint was the mean visual acuity gain at nine months, using a mixed-effects model for repeated measures (MMRM) analysis. Subjects receiving squalamine combination therapy (n=119) achieved a mean gain of 8.33 letters from baseline versus 10.58 letters from baseline with Lucentis® monotherapy (n=118). There were no differences in the safety profile between the two treatment groups. Based on the results of the study, we are no longer moving squalamine forward in clinical development.

(b)SKS SUSTAINED RELEASE OCULAR DRUG DELIVERY PLATFORM TECHNOLOGY

The SKS sustained release technology was designed to develop best-in-class drug formulations for ocular disease. The technology employs micro fabrication techniques to create nano, micro and macroparticle drug formulations that can provide sustained and predictable release of a therapeutic drug over a 3-6 month period. The versatility of this delivery technology makes it well suited to potentially deliver hydrophilic or hydrophobic small molecules, as well as proteins with complex structures.

In February 2017, the Company suspended activities at its lab facility in San Diego, CA where research regarding the SKS sustained release technology had been conducted. However, the Company continues to explore applications of its sustained release technology and potential avenues to monetize it.

(c)ANIMAL MODEL FOR DRY-AMD

As part of the SKS acquisition, we acquired the exclusive rights to an animal model for dry-AMD whereby mice are immunized with a carboxyethylpyrrole (“CEP”) which is bound to mouse serum albumin (“MSA”) as well as the rights to produce and use CEP for research and clinical applications. CEP is produced following the oxidation of docosahexaenoic acid, which is abundant in the photoreceptor outer segments that are phagocytosed by the retinal pigment epithelium (“RPE”). A number of CEP-adducted proteins have been identified in proteomic studies examining the composition of drusen and other subretinal deposits found in the eyes of patients with dry-AMD. Studies have shown that immunization of CEP-MSA can lead to an ophthalmic phenotype very similar to dry-AMD, including deposition of complement in the RPE, thickening of the Bruch’s membrane, upregulation of inflammatory cytokines, and immune cell influx into the eye. Upon immunization with CEP, a marked decrease in contrast sensitivity which precedes a loss of visual acuity, was observed, similar to what occurs in many patients with dry AMD. A collaborator of the Company is currently conducting research on the CEP target to understand its role in undisclosed ocular diseases and potential for use as a diagnostic agent. The Company has not yet monetized this technology.

(d)NON-OPHTHALMOLOGY ASSETS

Ohr also owns various other compounds in earlier stages of development, including the PTP1b inhibitor trodusquemine and related analogs. On February 26, 2014, we entered into a Joint Venture Agreement and related agreements with Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (“CSHL”) pursuant to which a joint venture, DepYmed Inc. (“DepYmed”), was formed to further preclinical and clinical development of Ohr’s trodusquemine and analogues as PTP1B inhibitors for oncology and other undisclosed indications. DepYmed licenses research from CSHL and intellectual property from us. Ohr is a passive joint venturer in DepYmed.

Liquidity and Sources of Capital

The Company has limited working capital reserves with which to continue development of its pharmaceutical products and continuing operations. The Company is reliant, at present, upon its capital reserves for ongoing operations and has no revenues.


Net working capital reserves decreased from the end of the Company’s 2017 fiscal year to the end of the first quarter in fiscal year 2018 by $2,864,143 (to $5,226,308 from $8,090,451) primarily due to costs related to the clinical trial. We expect our cash burn to significantly decrease in the remainder of fiscal 2018 as compared to the same periods in 2017 as a result of the completion of the MAKO study. Management has concluded that due to the conditions described above, there is substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. The Company does not have a bank line of credit or other fixed source of capital reserves. When it will need additional capital in the future, the Company will be primarily reliant upon private or public placement of its equity or debt securities, or a transaction with a partner, but presently there can be no assurance that the Company will be successful in such efforts. In April 2017, the Company closed a public offering for net proceeds of approximately $12.7 million, and management believes the Company has sufficient capital to meet its planned operating needs through the end of calendar 2018.

Results of Operations

Three Months Ended December 31, 2017 Compared to Three Months Ended December 31, 2016

Results of operations for the three months ended December 31, 2017 (“2017”) reflect the following changes from the prior period (“2016”).

  2017  2016  Change 
General and administrative $1,510,032  $1,746,356  $(236,324)
Research and development  2,387,731   4,931,144   (2,543,413)
Depreciation and amortization  284,986   298,435   (13,449)
Total Operating Expenses  4,182,749   6,975,935   (2,793,186)
             
Operating Loss  (4,182,749)  (6,975,935)  2,793,186 
             
Other income (expense)  31,391   281   31,110 
Net Loss $(4,151,358) $(6,975,654) $2,824,296 

The Company had no net revenues from operations in 2016 or 2017. Accordingly, the Company had no cost of revenue from operations in 2016 or 2017.

General and administrative expenses from operations remained relatively flat, with a $236,324 decrease when comparing 2017 to 2016.

The Company incurred $2,387,731 in research and development expenses in 2017 compared to $4,931,144 in 2016. The decrease is a result of significant upfront costs paid in 2016 related to the MAKO study in wet-AMD.

Depreciation and amortization expense remained relatively stable with $298,435 in 2016 and $284,986 in 2017.

For the three months ended December 31, 2017, the Company recognized a net loss of $4,151,358 compared to a net loss of $6,975,654 for the same period in 2016. The decrease in net loss is primarily a result of significant upfront costs paid in 2016 that were related to the MAKO study in wet-AMD. Until the Company is able to generate revenues, management expects to continue to incur net losses.

Item 3.Quantitative and Qualitative Risk.

Market risk represents the risk of loss arising from adverse changes in interest rates and foreign exchange rates. The Company does not have any material exposure to interest rate or exchange rate risk.

Item 4.Controls and Procedures.

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

The Company, under the supervision and with the participation of its management, including the Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Financial Officer, evaluated the effectiveness of the design and operation of the Company’s “disclosure controls and procedures” (as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended) as of the end of the period covered by this Report. Based on that evaluation, the Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Financial Officer concluded the Company’s disclosure controls were effective. In designing and evaluating the disclosure controls and procedures, our management, including the Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Financial Officer, recognized that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can only provide reasonable assurance of achieving the desired control objectives, and management was required to apply its judgment in evaluating the cost-benefit relationship of possible controls and procedures. Our disclosure controls and procedures are designed to provide a reasonable level of assurance of reaching our desired disclosure controls objectives.


Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting

During the period covered by this Report there has been no change in our internal control over financial reporting that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

PART IIOTHER INFORMATION

Item 1.Legal Proceedings.

On February 14, 2018, plaintiff, Jeevesh Khanna, commenced an action in the Southern District of New York, alleging that several current and former officers violated federal securities laws between June 24, 2014 and January 4, 2018. The plaintiffs did not quantify any alleged damages in their complaint but, in addition to attorneys' fees and costs, they seek to recover damages on behalf of themselves and other persons who purchased or otherwise acquired our stock during the putative class period and purportedly suffered financial harm as a result. We dispute these claims and intend to defend the matter vigorously.

Item 1A.Risk Factors. 

You should carefully consider the following factors which may affect future results of operations. If any of the adverse events described below actually occur, our business, financial condition and operating results could be materially adversely affected and you may lose part or all of the value of your investment. If you choose to invest in our securities, you should be able to bear a complete loss of your investment.

Risks Relating to Our Financial Position and Need for Capital

Our business was substantially dependent on the success of squalamine, which recently failed to meet its primary efficacy endpoint in the MAKO Study. We are unable to identify a viable path forward for continued development of this product candidate.

To date, we have devoted a substantial portion of our research, development, clinical efforts and financial resources toward the development of squalamine for the treatment of wet-AMD. Squalamine was our lead product candidate. On January 5, 2018, we announced topline results from our MAKO Study which did not meet its primary efficacy endpoint. We are unable to identify a viable plan for continued clinical development of this product candidate. Because our business was substantially dependent on the success of squalamine, we have curtailed all of our activities on this program and may be required to liquidate, dissolve or otherwise wind down our operations if we are unable to consummate a strategic alternative.

We may not be able to monetize the non squalamine assets, including the SKS sustained release ocular drug delivery platform technology or the non-ophthalmology assets.

We may not be able to monetize any or some of the non-squalamine assets, including the SKS sustained release ocular drug delivery platform technology, the animal model for dry AMD or the non-ophthalmology assets, including the PTP1b inhibitor trodusquemine and related analogs. In that event, we may be constrained to write off those assets, in whole or in part.

We are subject to securities class action litigation.

As a result of our announcement of negative results from the MAKO Study, our stock price declined substantially. On February 14, 2018, a securities class action litigation was brought against us.2021. This litigation could result in substantial costs and a diversion of management’s resources and attention, which could harm our business and the value of our common stock.

 

If we failOn May 3, 2018, plaintiff Adele J. Barke, derivatively on behalf of Ohr, commenced an action against certain former directors of Ohr, including Michael Ferguson, Orin Hirschman, Thomas M. Riedhammer, June Almenoff and Jason S. Slakter in the Supreme Court, State of New York, alleging that the action was brought in the right and for the benefit of Ohr seeking to continue to meet all applicable Nasdaq Capital Market requirementsremedy their “breach of fiduciary duties, corporate waste and Nasdaq determines to delist our common stock, the delisting could adversely affect the market liquidity of our common stockunjust enrichment that occurred between June 24, 2014 and the market price of our common stock could decrease.

Our common stock is listedpresent.” It does not quantify any alleged damages. We and the individuals dispute these claims and intend to defend the matter vigorously. Such litigation has been stayed pursuant to a stipulation by the parties, which has been so ordered by the court, pending a decision in the Southern District case on the Nasdaq Capital Market. In ordermotion to maintain our listing, we must meet minimum financial and other requirements, including requirements for a minimum amount of capital, a minimum price per share and continued business operations sodismiss, but that we are not characterized as a “public shell company.” If we are unable to comply with Nasdaq’s listing standards, Nasdaq may determine to delist our common stock from the Nasdaq Capital Market. In the event that our common stock is delisted from the Nasdaq Capital Market and is not eligible for quotation or listing on another market or exchange, trading of our common stockstatus could be conducted only in the over-the-counter market or on an electronic bulletin board established for unlisted securities such as the Pink Sheets or the OTC Markets. In such event, it could become more difficult to dispose of, or obtain accurate price quotations for, our common stock, and there would likely also be a reduction in our coverage by securities analysts and the news media, which could cause the price of our common stock to decline further. Also, it may be difficult for us to raise additional capital if we are not listed on a major exchange.

On April 6, 2017, we received a notification letter from Nasdaq indicating that the bid price of our common stock for the last 30 consecutive business days had closed below the minimum $1.00 per share required for continued listing under Nasdaq Listing Rule 5550(a). We were provided a period of 180 calendar days, or until October 3, 2017, to regain compliance. At the end of September 2017, the Company determined that it would not be in compliance with the minimum closing bid price requirement by October 3, 2017, which would subject the Company’s common stock to delisting from Nasdaq. As a result, the Company notified Nasdaq and applied for an extension of the cure period, as permitted under the original notification. In the application, the Company indicated that it met the continued listing requirement for market value of publicly-held shares and all other initial listing standards for the Nasdaq Capital Market, with the exception of the minimum closing bid price, and provided written notice of its intention to cure the deficiency during the second compliance period of an additional 180 days. On October 4, 2017, we received a written notice from Nasdaq that we were granted an additional 180 calendar days, or until April 2, 2018, to regain compliance with the minimum $1.00 bid price per share requirement of the Listing Rules of Nasdaq. On December 15, 2017, the Company received notice from Nasdaq confirming that for the last 10 consecutive business days, from December 1, 2017 to December 14, 2017, the closing bid price of the Company’s common stock had been at $1.00 per share or greater. Accordingly, Nasdaq determined that the Company had regained compliance with Nasdaq Listing Rule 5550(a)(2). Although we have regained Nasdaq compliance, there can be no assurance that we will be able to maintain compliance with the requirements for listing our common stock on the Nasdaq. The failure to maintain our listing on the Nasdaq could have an adverse effect on the market price and liquidity of our shares of common stock.


There is no certainty that we will be able to execute on any strategic alternatives to maximize shareholder value. If we are unable to identify and execute such strategic alternatives, we may be forced to cease operations.

Based on the results of the MAKO study, we began a comprehensive review of strategic alternatives to maximize shareholder value. We have retained Roth Capital Markets, LLC, to advise and assist us in this review. The strategic alternatives that we are exploring, may include some or all of the following: license, divestiture, or monetization of current assets; license or acquisition of additional assets; merger, joint venture, partnership, or other business combination with another entity, public or private. There can be no assurance that this review process will result in a transaction, or that if a transaction does occur, that it will successfully enhance stockholder value. Our expected cash position, net of all liabilities, limits our attractiveness to potential merger candidates and the value that we may receive in such merger, joint venture, partnership, or other business combination scenarios may be less than the current market value of the Company.

We have incurred significant losses and anticipate that we will incur additional losses. We might never achieve or sustain revenues.

We have experienced significant net losses since our inception. As of December 31, 2017, we had an accumulated deficit of approximately $112 million. We expect to continue to incur net losses. We do not expect to receive, for at least the next several years, any revenues from the commercialization of our product candidates.

The report of our independent registered public accounting firm expresses substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. Such “going concern” opinion could impair our ability to obtain financing.

Our auditors, MaloneBailey, LLP, have indicated in their report on the Company’s financial statements for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2017 that conditions exist that raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern due to our recurring losses from operations. A “going concern” opinion could impair our ability to finance our operations through the sale of equity, incurring debt, or other financing alternatives. Our ability to continue as a going concern will depend upon the availability and terms of future funding. If we are unable to achieve this goal, our business would be jeopardized and the Company may not be able to continue. If we ceased operations, it is likely that all of our investors would lose their investment.

As a result of the negative results from the MAKO Study and our limited financial resources, we may not be successful in retaining key employees.

Our cash conservation activities may yield unintended consequences, such as reduced employee morale and unwanted attrition. Competition among biotechnology companies for qualified employees is intense, and the ability to retain our key employees is critical to our ability to effectively manage our resources while we seek to identify and implement strategic alternatives. Loss of any of our key employees could have a material adverse effect on our business.

Risks Related to Our Business and Industry

We currently do not have, and may never have, any products that generate revenues.

We are a development stage pharmaceutical company and currently do not have, and may never have, any products that generate revenues. Investment in pharmaceutical product development is highly speculative because it entails substantial upfront capital expenditures and significant risk that any potential product candidate will fail to demonstrate adequate effect or an acceptable safety profile, gain regulatory approval and become commercially viable. To date, we have not generated any product revenues from our product candidates. We cannot guarantee that any of our product candidates will ever become marketable products.

We are highly dependent upon our ability to raise additional capital. Raising additional capital may cause dilution to our stockholders, restrict our operations or require us to relinquish rights to our technologies or product candidates.

Until such time, if ever, as we can generate substantial product revenues, we expect to finance our cash needs through a combination of equity offerings, debt financings, and partnerships. We do not have any committed external source of funds. To the extent that we raise additional capital through the sale of equity or convertible debt securities, our stockholders’ ownership interest will be diluted, and the terms of these securities may include liquidation or other preferences that adversely affect our stockholders’ rights as holders of our common stock. Debt financing and preferred equity financing, if available, may involve agreements that include covenants limiting or restricting our ability to take specific actions, such as incurring additional debt, making capital expenditures or declaring dividends.

If we raise capital through a partnership, we may have to relinquish valuable rights to our technologies, future revenue streams, research programs or product candidates or grant licenses on terms that may not be favorable to us. If we are unable to raise additional funds through equity or debt financings when needed, we may be required to delay, limit, reduce or terminate our product development or future commercialization efforts or grant rights to develop and market products or product candidates that we would otherwise prefer to develop and market ourselves, or cease operations and liquidate.


We are highly dependent upon our ability to enter into agreements with collaborative partners to develop, commercialize, and market our products.

Our strategy is to seek a strategic commercial partner, or partners, such as large pharmaceutical companies, with extensive experience in the development, commercialization, and marketing of ophthalmic and non-ophthalmic products. To date, we have not entered into any strategic partnerships for any of our products. We face significant competition in seeking appropriate strategic partners, and these strategic partnerships can be intricate and time consuming to negotiate and document. We may not be able to negotiate strategic partnerships on acceptable terms, or at all. We are unable to predict when, if ever, we will enter into any strategic partnerships because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with establishing strategic partnerships.

While our strategy is to partner with an appropriate party, no assurance can be given that any third party would be interested in partnering with us. We currently lack the resources to conduct clinical trials, to manufacture any of our product candidates on a large scale, and we have no sales, marketing or distribution capabilities. In the event we are not able to enter into a collaborative agreement with a partner or partners, on commercially reasonable terms, or at all, we may be unable to conduct clinical trials, or to commercialize our products, which would have a material adverse effect upon our business, prospects, financial condition, and results of operations.

Even if we succeed in securing a partner, the partner collaborators may fail to develop or effectively commercialize products using our product candidates or technologies. A partnership involving our product candidates pose a number of risks, including the following:

partners may not have sufficient resources or decide not to devote the necessary resources due to internal constraints such as budget limitations, lack of human resources, or a change in strategic focus;

collaborators may believe our intellectual property or the product candidate infringes on the intellectual property rights of others;

partners may dispute their responsibility to conduct development and commercialization activities pursuant to the applicable collaboration, including the payment of related costs or the division of any revenues;

partners may decide to pursue a competitive product developed outside of the partnership arrangement;

partners may not be able to obtain, or believe they cannot obtain, the necessary regulatory approvals;

partners may delay the development or commercialization of our product candidates in favor of developing or commercializing another party’s product candidate; or

partners may decide to terminate or not to renew the collaboration for these or other reasons.

Thus, should the Company be successful in entering into a partnership agreement, the agreements may not lead to development or commercialization of product candidates in the most efficient manner or at all. Partnership agreements are generally terminable without cause on short notice. We also face competition in seeking out collaborators. If we are unable to secure new partners that achieve the partner’s objectives and meet our expectations, we may be unable to advance our product candidates and may not generate meaningful revenues.

If we are ever in a position to commercialize our product candidates, of which there can be no assurance, we have no experience selling, marketing or distributing products and no internal capability to do so.

We currently have no sales, marketing or distribution capabilities and no experience in building a sales force and distribution capabilities. If we are ever in a position to commercialize our product candidates, of which there can be no assurance, we must develop internal sales, marketing and distribution capabilities, which will be expensive and time consuming, or make arrangements with third parties to perform these services. If we decide to market any of our products directly, we must commit significant financial and managerial resources to develop a marketing and sales force with technical expertise and with supporting distribution capabilities. Building an in-house marketing and sales force with technical expertise and distribution capabilities will require significant expenditures, management resources and time. Factors that may inhibit our efforts to commercialize our products directly and without strategic partners include:

our inability to recruit and retain adequate numbers of effective sales and marketing personnel;

the inability of sales personnel to obtain access to or persuade adequate numbers of physicians to prescribe our products;

the lack of complementary products to be offered by sales personnel, which may put us at a competitive disadvantage relative to companies with more extensive product lines; and

unforeseen costs and expenses associated with creating and sustaining an independent sales and marketing organization.

We may not be successful in recruiting the sales and marketing personnel necessary to sell our products and even if we do build a sales force, they may not be successful in marketing our products, which would have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.


We rely, and expect that we will continue to rely, on third parties to conduct any future clinical trials for us. If such third parties do not successfully carry out their duties or if we lose our relationships with such third parties, our drug development efforts could be delayed.

We are dependent on contract research organizations, third-party vendors and independent investigators for preclinical testing, and clinical trials related to our drug discovery and development efforts, and we will likely continue to depend on them to assist in our future discovery and development efforts. These parties are not our employees, and we cannot control the amount or timing of resources that they devote to our programs. If they fail to devote sufficient time and resources to our drug development programs or if their performance is substandard, it will delay the development and commercialization of our product candidates. The parties with which we contract for execution of our clinical trials will play a significant role in the conduct of the trials and the subsequent collection and analysis of data. Their failure to achieve their research goals or otherwise meet their obligations on a timely basis could adversely affect clinical development of our product candidates.

Communicating with outside parties can also be challenging, potentially leading to mistakes as well as difficulties in coordinating activities. Outside parties may:

have staffing difficulties;

fail to comply with contractual obligations;

experience regulatory compliance issues;

undergo changes in priorities or become financially distressed; or

form relationships with other parties, some of which may be our competitors.

These factors may materially adversely affect the willingness or ability of third parties to conduct our clinical trials and may subject us to unexpected cost increases that are beyond our control. Nevertheless, we are responsible for ensuring that each of our studies is conducted in accordance with the applicable protocol, legal, regulatory and scientific standards, and our reliance on contract research organizations does not relieve us of our regulatory responsibilities. We and our contract research organizations are required to comply with applicable current Good Laboratory Practice (“CGLP”), current Good Manufacturing Practice (“CGMP”), and current Good Clinical Practice (“CGCP”) regulations and guidelines enforced by the FDA and comparable foreign regulatory authorities for any products in clinical development. The FDA enforces these CGCP regulations through periodic inspections of clinical trial sponsors, principal investigators and trial sites. If we or our contract research organizations fail to comply with applicable CGCP, the clinical data generated in our clinical trials may be deemed unreliable and the FDA or comparable foreign regulatory authorities may require us to perform additional clinical trials before approving our marketing applications. We cannot assure that, upon inspection, the FDA or any comparable foreign regulatory authority will determine that any of our clinical trials comply with CGCP. In addition, our clinical trials must be conducted with product produced under current CGMP, regulations and will require a large number of test subjects. Our failure or the failure of our contract research organizations to comply with these regulations may require us to repeat clinical trials, which would delay the regulatory approval process and could also subject us to enforcement action up to and including civil and criminal penalties.

If our contract research organizations do not successfully carry out their duties or if we were to lose relationships with contract research organizations, our drug development efforts could be delayed or terminated.

If we were to lose relationships with any one or more of these parties, we could experience a significant delay in both identifying another comparable provider and then contracting for its services. We may be unable to retain an alternative provider on reasonable terms, if at all. Even if we locate an alternative provider, it is likely that this provider may need additional time to respond to our needs and may not provide the same type or level of service as the original provider. In addition, any provider that we retain will be subject to current CGLP and CGCP, other regulatory standards, and similar foreign standards, and we do not have control over compliance with these regulations by these providers. Consequently, if these practices and standards are not adhered to by these providers, the development and commercialization of our product candidates could be delayed, and have a material adverse effect on our business.

Our product candidates may not gain acceptance among physicians, patients, or the medical community, thereby limiting our potential to generate revenues, which will undermine our future growth prospects.

Even if our product candidates are approved for commercial sale by the FDA or other regulatory authorities, including foreign regulatory authorities, the degree of market acceptance of any approved product candidate by physicians, healthcare professionals and third-party payors, and our profitability and growth will depend on a number of factors, including:

the ability to provide acceptable evidence of safety and efficacy;

pricing and cost effectiveness, which may be subject to regulatory control;

our ability to obtain sufficient third-party insurance coverage or reimbursement;


effectiveness of our or our collaborators’ sales and marketing strategy;

relative convenience and ease of administration;

the prevalence and severity of any adverse side effects; and

availability of alternative treatments.

If any product candidate that we develop does not provide a treatment regimen that is at least as beneficial as the current standard of care or otherwise does not provide some additional patient benefit over the current standard of care, that product will not achieve market acceptance and we will not generate sufficient revenues to achieve profitability.

We may not be able to continue or fully exploit our partnerships with outside scientific and clinical advisors, which could impair the progress of clinical trials and our research and development efforts.

We work with scientific and clinical advisors who are experts in the field of ocular disorders. They advise us with respect to our programs. These advisors are not our employees and may have other commitments that would limit their future availability to us. If a conflict of interest arises between their work for us and their work for another entity, we may lose their services, which may impair our reputation in the industry and delay the development or commercialization of our product candidates.

We rely completely on third-party manufacturers which may result in delays in clinical trials, regulatory approvals and product introductions.

We have no manufacturing facilities and do not have extensive experience in the manufacturing of drugs or in designing drug manufacturing processes. We will have to contract with third-party manufacturers to produce, in collaboration with us, our product candidates for clinical trials. If any of our product candidates are approved by the FDA or other regulatory agencies, including foreign regulatory agencies for commercial sale, we may need to amend our contract with the manufacturer or contract with another third party to manufacture them in larger quantities. If we need to enter into alternative arrangements, it could delay our product development activities. Our reliance on these third parties for development activities will reduce our control over these activities but will not relieve us of our responsibility to ensure compliance with all required regulations and study and trial protocols. If these third parties do not successfully carry out their contractual duties, meet expected deadlines or conduct our studies in accordance with regulatory requirements or our stated study and trial plans and protocols, or if there are disagreements between us and these third parties, we will not be able to initiate, or complete, or may be delayed in completing, the clinical trials required to support future approval of our product candidates. In some such cases, we may need to locate an appropriate replacement third-party relationship, which may not be readily available or with acceptable terms, which would cause additional delay with respect to the approval of our product candidates and would thereby have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

We have not entered into long-term agreements with third-party manufacturers or with any alternate suppliers. Although we intend to do so prior to any commercial launch of a product that is approved by the FDA or any comparable foreign regulatory authorities in order to ensure that we maintain adequate supplies of commercial drug product, we may be unable to enter into such agreements or do so on commercially reasonable terms, which could delay a product launch or subject our commercialization efforts to significant supply risk. In addition, reliance on third-party manufacturers entails risks to which we would not be subject to if we manufactured the product candidates ourselves, including:

the inability to negotiate manufacturing agreements with third parties under commercially reasonable terms;

reduced control as a result of using third-party manufacturers for all aspects of manufacturing activities;

termination or nonrenewal of manufacturing agreements with third parties in a manner or at a time that is costly or damaging to us; and

disruptions to the operations of manufacturers or suppliers of products and services that are vital to our clinical program caused by conditions unrelated to our business or operations, including regulatory enforcement actions, and bankruptcy of the manufacturer or supplier.

Any of these events could lead to clinical trial delays or failure to obtain regulatory approval or impact our ability to successfully commercialize future product candidates. Some of these events could be the basis for FDA or any comparable foreign regulatory authority action, including injunction, recall, seizure or total or partial suspension of product manufacture.

Contract manufacturers are subject to significant regulatory oversight with respect to manufacturing products. The manufacturing facilities on which we rely may not continue to meet regulatory requirements and may have limited capacity.

Any manufacturers of our product candidates are obliged to operate in accordance with FDA-mandated CGMPs. In addition, the facilities that would be used by contract manufacturers or other third party manufacturers to manufacture our product candidates must be approved by the FDA or other foreign regulatory authority pursuant to inspections that will be conducted after we request regulatory approval from the FDA or other foreign regulatory authority. A failure of any contract manufacturers to establish and follow CGMPs and to document their adherence to such practices may lead to significant delays in clinical trials or in obtaining regulatory approval of product candidates or the ultimate launch of products based on our product candidates into the market. Furthermore, all of our future contract manufacturers are likely to be engaged with other companies to supply and/or manufacture materials or products for such companies, which exposes them to regulatory risks for the production of such materials and products. As a result, failure to satisfy the regulatory requirements for the production of those materials and products may affect the regulatory clearance of the contract manufacturers’ facilities generally. Failure by third-party manufacturers or us to comply with applicable regulations could result in sanctions being imposed on us, including fines, injunctions, civil penalties, failure of the government to grant pre-market approval of drugs, delays, suspension or withdrawal of approvals, seizures or recalls of products, operating restrictions, and criminal prosecutions. Many aspects of the clinical trial and manufacturing process are outside of our control.


The facilities and quality systems of third-party contractors must pass a pre-approval inspection for compliance with the applicable regulations as a condition of regulatory approval of product candidates. In addition, the regulatory authorities may, at any time, audit or inspect a manufacturing facility involved with the preparation of our product candidates or the associated quality systems for compliance with the regulations applicable to the activities being conducted. If these facilities do not pass a pre-approval plant inspection, FDA approval of the products will not be granted.

The regulatory authorities also may, at any time following approval of a product for sale, audit our manufacturing facilities or those of our third-party manufacturers. If any such inspection or audit identifies a failure to comply with applicable regulations or if a violation of our product specifications or applicable regulations occurs independent of such an inspection or audit, we or the relevant regulatory authority may require remedial measures that may be costly and/or time-consuming for us or our third-party manufacturers to implement and that may include the temporary or permanent suspension of a clinical trial or commercial sales or the temporary or permanent closure of a manufacturing facility. Any such remedial measures imposed upon us or third parties with whom we contract could materially harm our business.

Developments by competitors may render our products or technologies obsolete or non-competitive which would have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

We compete against fully integrated pharmaceutical companies and smaller companies that are collaborating with larger pharmaceutical companies, academic institutions, government agencies and other public and private research organizations. Our drug candidates will have to compete with existing therapies and therapies under development by our competitors. In addition, our commercial opportunities may be reduced or eliminated if our competitors develop and market products that are less expensive, more effective or safer than our drug products. Other companies have drug candidates in various stages of preclinical or clinical development to treat diseases for which we are also seeking to develop drug products. Some of these potential competing drugs are further advanced in development than our drug candidates and may be commercialized earlier. Even if we are successful in developing effective drugs, our products may not compete successfully with products produced by our competitors. Most of our competitors, either alone or together with their collaborative partners, operate larger research and development programs, have larger staffing and facilities, and have substantially greater financial resources than we do, as well as significantly greater experience in:

developing drugs;

undertaking preclinical testing and human clinical trials;

obtaining FDA and other regulatory approvals, including foreign regulatory approvals, of drugs;

formulating and manufacturing drugs; and

launching, marketing and selling drugs.

These organizations also compete with us to attract qualified personnel, acquisitions and joint venture candidates and for other collaborations. Activities of our competitors may impose unanticipated costs on our business which would have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

We depend upon key officers and consultants in a competitive market for skilled personnel. If we are unable to attract and retain key personnel, it could adversely affect our ability to develop and market our products.

We are highly dependent upon the principal members of our management team, especially our Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Jason Slakter, and Vice President of Business Development and Chief Financial Officer, Sam Backenroth, as well as our directors and key consultants. A loss of any of these personnel may have a material adverse effect on aspects of our business.

We also depend in part on obtaining the service of scientific personnel and our ability to identify, hire and retain additional personnel. We experience intense competition for qualified personnel, and the existence of non-competition agreements between prospective employees and their former employers may prevent us from hiring those individuals or subject us to suit from their former employers. While we attempt to provide competitive compensation packages to attract and retain key personnel, many of our competitors are likely to have greater resources and more experience than we have, making it difficult for us to compete successfully for key personnel.

In addition, the announcement that we have commenced a review of strategic alternatives may create uncertainty about our prospects as an independent business entity, and make it more difficult to attract and retain qualified executive and other key personnel. The review process may also be costly, time-consuming, divert the attention of management and our employees or result in changes in our management team or our board of directors, all of which could materially and adversely affect our business. In addition, our stock price may experience periods of increased volatility as a result of these activities or related rumors and speculation.


Our employees, partners, independent contractors, principal investigators, consultants, vendors and contract research organizations may engage in misconduct or other improper activities, including noncompliance with regulatory standards and requirements.

We are exposed to the risk that our employees, partners, independent contractors, principal investigators, consultants, vendors and contract research organizations may engage in fraudulent or other illegal activity with respect to our business. Misconduct by these employees could include intentional, reckless and/or negligent conduct or unauthorized activity that violates: (1) FDA or any comparable foreign regulatory authority regulations, including those laws requiring the reporting of true, complete and accurate information to the FDA or any comparable foreign regulatory authority; (2) manufacturing standards; (3) federal, state and foreign healthcare fraud and abuse laws and regulations; or (4) laws that require the true, complete and accurate reporting of financial information or data. Activities subject to these laws also involve the improper use of information obtained in the course of clinical trials, or illegal misappropriation of drug product, which could result in regulatory sanctions and serious harm to our reputation. Any incidents or any other conduct that leads to an employee receiving an FDA or other regulatory authority debarment could result in a loss of business from our partners and severe reputational harm. We have adopted a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, but it is not always possible to identify and deter employee misconduct, and the precautions we take to detect and prevent this activity may not be effective in controlling unknown or unmanaged risks or losses or in protecting us from governmental investigations or other actions or lawsuits stemming from a failure to be in compliance with such laws or regulations. If any such actions are instituted against us, and we are not successful in defending ourselves or asserting our rights, those actions could have a significant impact on our business, including the imposition of civil, criminal and administrative penalties, damages, monetary fines, contractual damages, reputational harm, diminished profits and future earnings, and curtailment of our operations, any of which could adversely affect our ability to operate our business, operating results and financial condition.

Any future acquisitions we make of companies or technologies may result in disruption to our business or distraction of our management, due to difficulties in assimilating acquired personnel and operations.

We may acquire or make investments in complementary businesses, technologies, services or products which complement our pharmaceutical operations if appropriate opportunities arise. From time to time we engage in discussions and negotiations with companies regarding our acquiring or investing in such companies’ businesses, products, services or technologies, in the ordinary course of our business. We cannot be assured that we will be able to identify future suitable acquisition or investment candidates, or if we do identify suitable candidates, that we will be able to make such acquisitions or investments on commercially acceptable terms or at all. If we acquire or invest in another company, we could have difficulty in assimilating that company’s personnel, operations, technology and software. In addition, the key personnel of the acquired company may decide not to work for us. If we make other types of acquisitions, we could have difficulty in integrating the acquired products, services or technologies into our operations. These difficulties could disrupt our ongoing business, distract our management and employees, increase our expenses and adversely affect our results of operations. Furthermore, we may incur indebtedness or issue equity securities to pay for any future acquisitions. The issuance of equity securities would be dilutive to our existing stockholders. However, we currently do not have any agreement to enter into any material investment or acquisition transaction.

Security breaches and other disruptions could compromise our information and expose us to liability, which would cause our business and reputation to suffer.

We store sensitive data, including intellectual property, our proprietary business information and personally identifiable information of our employees, in our data centers and on our networks. The secure maintenance of this information is critical to our operations. Despite our security measures, our information technology and infrastructure may be vulnerable to attacks by hackers or breached due to employee error, malfeasance or other disruptions. Any such breach could compromise our networks and the information stored there could be accessed, publicly disclosed, lost or stolen. Any such access, disclosure or other loss of information could result in legal claims or proceedings, liability under laws that protect the privacy of personal information, regulatory penalties, and damage our reputation.

Our business and operations would suffer in the event of system failures.

Despite the implementation of security measures, our internal computer systems and those of our contractors and consultants are vulnerable to damage from computer viruses, unauthorized access, natural disasters, terrorism, war and telecommunication and electrical failures. Such an event could cause interruption of our operations. For example, the loss of data from clinical trials for our product candidates could result in delays in our regulatory approval efforts and significantly increase our costs. To the extent that any disruption or security breach were to result in a loss of or damage to our data, or inappropriate disclosure of confidential or proprietary information, we could incur liability and the development of our product candidates could be delayed.

Risks Related to FDA, Comparable Foreign Regulatory Authority and Healthcare Regulations

We face heavy government regulation. FDA regulatory approval and/or comparable foreign regulatory authority’s approval of our products is uncertain.

The research, testing, manufacturing and marketing of drug products such as those that we are developing are subject to extensive regulation by federal, state and local government authorities, including the FDA or any comparable foreign regulatory authority. To obtain regulatory approval of a product, we must demonstrate to the satisfaction of the applicable regulatory agency that, among other things, the product is safe and effective for its intended use. In addition, we must show that the manufacturing facilities used to produce the products are in compliance with current Good Manufacturing Practices regulations.


The process of obtaining FDA and other required regulatory approvals, including foreign regulatory approvals and clearances, will require us to expend substantial time and capital. Despite the time and expense expended, regulatory approval is never guaranteed. The number of preclinical and clinical trials that will be required for FDA approval, or any comparable foreign regulatory authority’s approval, varies depending on the drug candidate, the disease or condition for which the drug candidate is in development, and the requirements applicable to that particular drug candidate. The FDA or other foreign health authority can delay, limit or deny approval of a drug candidate for many reasons, including that:

a drug candidate may not be shown to be safe or effective;

the FDA or any comparable foreign regulatory authority may not approve our manufacturing process;

the FDA or any comparable foreign regulatory authority may interpret data from preclinical and clinical trials in different ways than we do; and

the FDA may not meet, or may extend, the Prescription Drug User Fee Act date with respect to a particular NDA.

For example, if certain of our methods for analyzing our trial data are not accepted by the FDA or foreign regulatory authority, we may fail to obtain regulatory approval for our product candidates. Moreover, if and when our products do obtain marketing approval, the marketing, distribution and manufacture of such products would remain subject to extensive ongoing regulatory requirements. Failure to comply with applicable regulatory requirements could result in:

warning letters;

fines;

civil penalties;

injunctions;

recall or seizure of products;

total or partial suspension of production;

refusal of the government to grant future approvals;

withdrawal of approvals; and

criminal prosecution.

Any delay or failure by us to obtain regulatory approvals for our product candidates could diminish competitive advantages that we may attain and would adversely affect the marketing of our products. We have not received regulatory approval to market any of our product candidates in any jurisdiction.

Following regulatory approval of any of our drug candidates, we will be subject to ongoing regulatory obligations and restrictions, which may result in significant expense and limit our ability to commercialize our potential products.

With regard to our drug candidates, if any, approved by the FDA or by another regulatory authority, including a foreign regulatory authority, we are held to extensive regulatory requirements over product manufacturing, labeling, packaging, adverse event reporting, storage, advertising, promotion and record keeping. Regulatory approvals may also be subject to significant limitations on the indicated uses or marketing of the drug candidates. Potentially costly follow-up or post-marketing clinical studies may be required as a condition of approval to further substantiate safety or efficacy, or to investigate specific issues of interest to the regulatory authority. Previously unknown problems with the drug candidate, including adverse events of unanticipated severity or frequency, may result in restrictions on the marketing of the drug, and could include withdrawal of the drug from the market.

In addition, the law or regulatory policies governing pharmaceuticals may change. New statutory requirements may be enacted or additional regulations may be enacted that could prevent or delay regulatory approval of our drug candidates. We cannot predict the likelihood, nature or extent of adverse government regulation that may arise from future legislation or administrative action, either in the United States or elsewhere. If we are not able to maintain regulatory compliance, we might not be permitted to market our drugs and which could have a material adverse effect on our business and competitive position.

Healthcare policy changes, including proposals to reform the U.S. healthcare system, may harm our future business.

Healthcare costs have risen significantly over the past decade. There have been and continue to be proposals by legislators, regulators and third-party payors to keep these costs down. Certain proposals, if passed, would impose limitations on the prices we will be able to charge for the products that we are developing, or the amounts of reimbursement available for these products from governmental agencies third-party payors. These limitations could in turn reduce the amount of investment into development, and the amount of revenues that we will be able to generate in the future from sales of our products and licenses of our technology.


In March 2010, the U.S. Congress enacted healthcare reform legislation that may significantly impact the pharmaceutical industry. In addition to requiring most individuals to have health insurance and establishing new regulations on health plans, this legislation requires discounts under the Medicare drug benefit program and increased rebates on drugs covered by Medicaid. In addition, the legislation imposes an annual fee, which will increase annually, on sales by branded pharmaceutical manufacturers starting in 2011. The financial impact of these discounts, increased rebates and fees and the other provisions of the legislation on our business is unclear and there can be no assurance that our business will not be materially adversely affected. In addition, these and other ongoing initiatives in the United States have increased and will continue to increase pressure on drug pricing. The announcement or adoption of any government initiatives could have an adverse effect on potential revenues from any product that we may successfully develop.

Various healthcare reform proposals have also emerged at the state level. We cannot predict what healthcare initiatives, if any, will be implemented at the federal or state level, or the effect any future legislation or regulation will have on us. However, an expansion in government’s role in the U.S. healthcare industry may lower the future revenues for the products we are developing and adversely affect our future business, possibly materially.

Risks Related to Our Intellectual Property

Our ability to compete may be undermined if we do not adequately protect our proprietary rights.

Our commercial success depends on obtaining and maintaining proprietary rights to our product candidates and technologies and their uses, as well as successfully defending these rights against third-party challenges. We will be able to most effectively protect our product candidates, technologies, and their uses from unauthorized use by third parties to the extent that valid and enforceable patents, or effectively protected trade secrets, cover them. For example, we have rights under U.S. patents and patent applications 7981876, 8716270, 6262283, 7728157, 20130281420 and 21050342874 to cover the Squalamine formulations, composition of matter, use in combination with other agents, methods of manufacture, and uses. Nonetheless, the issued patents and patent applications covering our technology programs remain subject to uncertainty due to a number of factors, including:

we may not have been the first to make one or more of the inventions covered by our pending patent applications or issued patents;

we may not have been the first to file patent applications for one or more of our product candidates or the technologies we rely upon;

others may independently develop similar or alternative technologies or duplicate any of our technologies;

our disclosures in a particular patent application may be determined to be insufficient to meet the statutory requirements for patentability;

one or more of our pending patent applications may not result in issued patents;

we may not seek or obtain patent protection in all countries that will eventually provide a significant business opportunity;

one or more patents issued to us or to our collaborators may not provide a basis for commercially viable products, may not provide us with any competitive advantages or may be challenged by third parties;

we may fail to file for patent protection in all of the countries where patent protection will ultimately be necessary or fail to comply with other procedural, documentary, fee payment or other provisions during the patent process in any such country, and we may be precluded from filing at a later date or may lose some or all patent rights in the relevant jurisdiction;

one or more of our technologies may not be patentable;

others may design around one or more of our patent claims to produce competitive products which fall outside of the scope of our patents;

others may identify prior art which could invalidate our patents; or

changes to patent laws may limit the exclusivity rights of patent holders.

Even if we have or obtain patents covering our product candidates or technologies, we may still be barred from making, using and selling one or more of our product candidates or technologies because of the patent rights of others. Others have or may have filed, and in the future are likely to file, patent applications covering compounds, assays, therapeutic products and delivery systems, including sustained release delivery, that are similar or identical to ours. Numerous U.S. and foreign issued patents and pending patent applications owned by others exist in the area of ocular disorders. These could materially affect our ability to develop our product candidates or sell our products. Because patent applications can take years to issue, there may be currently pending applications, unknown to us, that may later result in issued patents that our product candidates or technologies may infringe. These patent applications may have priority over one or more patent applications filed by us.


If our competitors have prepared and filed patent applications in the United States that claim technology we also claim, we may have to participate in interference proceedings required by the United States Patent and Trademark Office to determine priority of invention, whichThis litigation could result in substantial costs even if we ultimately prevail. Resultsand a diversion of interference proceedings are highly unpredictablemanagement’s resources and may result in us having to try to obtain licenses in order to continue to develop or market certainattention, which could harm our business and the value of our drug products.common stock.

 

Disputes may arise regarding the ownership or inventorship of our inventions. It is difficult to determine how such disputes would be resolved. Others may challenge the validity of our patents. If one or more of our patents are found to be invalid, we will lose the ability to exclude others from making, using or selling the inventions claimed therein.

Some of our research collaborators and scientific advisors have rights to publish data and information to which we have rights. Additionally, employees whose positions may be eliminated may seek future employment with our competitors. Each of our employees is required to signOn March 20, 2019, a confidentiality agreement and invention assignment agreement with us at the time of hire. While such arrangements are intended to enable us to better control the use and disclosure of our proprietary property and provide for our ownership of proprietary technology developed on our behalf, they may not provide us with meaningful protection for such property and technologyputative class action lawsuit was filed in the event of unauthorized use or disclosure. In addition, technology that we may in-license may become important to some aspects of our business. We generally will not control all of the patent prosecution, maintenance or enforcement of in-licensed technology.

We rely on confidentiality agreements that could be breached and may be difficult to enforce which could have a material adverse effect on our business and competitive position.

Our policy is to enter agreements relating to the non-disclosure of confidential information with third parties, including our contractors, consultants, advisors and research collaborators, as well as agreements that purport to require the disclosure and assignment to us of the rights to the ideas, developments, discoveries and inventions of our employees and consultants while we employ them. However, these agreements can be difficult and costly to enforce. Moreover, to the extent that our contractors, consultants, advisors and research collaborators apply or independently develop intellectual property in connection with any of our projects, disputes may arise as to the proprietary rights to this type of information. If a dispute arises, a court may determine that the right belongs to a third party, and enforcement of our rights can be costly and unpredictable. In addition, we rely on trade secrets and proprietary know-how that we will seek to protect in part by confidentiality agreements with our employees, contractors, consultants, advisors or others. In addition, courts outside the United States may be less willingDistrict Court for District of Delaware naming as defendants Ohr and its board of directors, Legacy NeuBase and Ohr Acquisition Corp., captioned Wheby v. Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc., et al., Case No. 1:19-cv-00541-UNA (the “Wheby Action”). The plaintiffs in the Wheby Action allege that the preliminary joint proxy/prospectus statement filed by Ohr with the SEC on March 8, 2019 contained false and misleading statements and omitted material information in violation of Section 14(a) of the Exchange Act and SEC Rule 14a-9 promulgated thereunder, and further that the individual defendants are liable for those alleged misstatements and omissions under Section 20(a) of the Exchange Act. The complaint in the Wheby Action has not been served on, nor was service waived by, any of the named defendants in that action. The action seeks, among other things, to protect trade secrets. Despiterescind the protective measures we employ, we still face the risk that:

these agreements may be breached;

these agreements may not provide adequate remedies for the applicable typeMerger or an award of breach; or

our trade secrets or proprietary know-how will otherwise become known.

Any breach of our confidentiality agreements or our failure to effectively enforce such agreements would have a material adverse effect on our business and competitive position.

If we infringe the rights of third parties, we could be prevented from selling products, forced to pay damages, and required to defend againstan award of attorneys’ and experts’ fees and expenses. The defendants dispute the claims raised in the Wheby Action. Management believes that the likelihood of an adverse decision from the sole remaining action is unlikely; however, the litigation which could result in substantial costs and a diversion of management’s resources and attention, which could harm our business and the value of our common stock.

26

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

We operate in a dynamic and rapidly changing environment that involves numerous risks and uncertainties. Certain factors may have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations, and you should carefully consider them. Accordingly, in evaluating our business, in addition to other information contained in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, you should carefully consider the factors discussed under the caption “Risk Factors” that appear in Item 1A of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended September 30, 2020, filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on December 23, 2020. Other events that we do not currently anticipate or that we currently deem immaterial may also affect our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations. There have been no material changes from the risk factors previously disclosed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended September 30, 2020.

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

 

We have not received to date any claims of infringement by any third parties. However, as our product candidates progress into clinical trials and commercialization, if at all, our public profile and that of our product candidates may be raised and generate such claims. Defending against such claims, and occurrence of a judgment adverse to us, could result in unanticipated costs and may have a material adverse effect on our business and competitive position. If our products, methods, processes and other technologies infringe the proprietary rights of other parties, we could incur substantial costs and we may have to:Not applicable.

 

obtain licenses, which may not be available on commercially reasonable terms, if at all;

ITEM 3. DEFAULTS UPON SENIOR SECURITIES

 

redesign our products or processes to avoid infringement;

Not applicable.

 

stop using the subject matter claimed in the patents held by others, which could cause us to lose the use of one or more of our drug candidates;

ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

 

defend litigation or administrative proceedings that may be costly whether we win or lose, and which could result in a substantial diversion of management resources; or

Not applicable.

ITEM 5. OTHER INFORMATION

Not applicable.

27

ITEM 6. EXHIBITS

    Incorporated by Reference
Exhibit
Number
 Description Form File
Number
 Filing Date Exhibit
2.1+ Agreement and Plan of Merger and Reorganization, dated as of January 2, 2019, by and among Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc., Ohr Acquisition Corp. and NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. 8-K 001-35963 1/3/2019 2.1
           
2.2 First Amendment to the Agreement and Plan of Merger and Reorganization, dated as of June 27, 2019, by and among Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc., Ohr Acquisition Corp. and NeuBase Therapeutics, Inc. 8-K 001-35963 7/3/2019 2.1
           
3.1 Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of the Company. 8-K 001-35963 7/12/2019 3.1
           
3.2 Amended and Restated Bylaws of the Company. 8-K 001-35963 9/23/2019 3.1
           
4.2 Form of Series A Warrant issued to investors pursuant to the Securities Purchase Agreement, dated December 7, 2016, by and among Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc. and the purchasers listed therein. 8-K 001-35963 12/8/2016 4.1
           
4.3 Form of Warrant issued to investors pursuant to the Securities Purchase Agreement, dated as of April 5, 2017, by and among Ohr Pharmaceutical, Inc. and the purchasers listed therein. 8-K 001-35963 4/6/2017 4.1
           
4.4 Form of Common Stock Certificate. S-8 333-233346 8/16/2019 4.17
           
31.1* Certification of Chief Executive Officer Pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
           
31.2* Certification of Chief Financial Officer Pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
           
32.1* Certification of Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer Pursuant to 18 U.S.C Section 1350, As Adopted Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002.

 

101.INS*XBRL Instance Document.
101.SCH*pay damages.XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document.

Any costs incurred in connection with such events or the inability to sell our products may have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.


Intellectual property litigation is increasingly common and increasingly expensive and may result in restrictions on our business and substantial costs, even if we prevail.

Patent and other intellectual property litigation is becoming more common in the pharmaceutical industry. Litigation is sometimes necessary to defend against or assert claims of infringement, to enforce our patent rights, including those we have licensed from others, to protect trade secrets or to determine the scope and validity of proprietary rights of third parties. Currently, no third party is asserting that we are infringing upon their patent rights or other intellectual property, nor are we aware or believe that we are infringing upon any third party’s patent rights or other intellectual property. We may, however, be infringing upon a third party’s patent rights or other intellectual property, and litigation asserting such claims might be initiated in which we would not prevail, or we would not be able to obtain the necessary licenses on reasonable terms, if at all. All such litigation, whether meritorious or not, as well as litigation initiated by us against third parties, is time-consuming and very expensive to defend or prosecute and to resolve. In addition, if we infringe the intellectual property rights of others, we could lose our right to develop, manufacture or sell our products or could be required to pay monetary damages or royalties to license proprietary rights from third parties. An adverse determination in a judicial or administrative proceeding or a failure to obtain necessary licenses could prevent us from manufacturing or selling our products, which could harm our business, financial condition and prospects.

A dispute concerning the infringement or misappropriation of our proprietary rights or the proprietary rights of others could be time consuming and costly, and an unfavorable outcome could harm our business.

There is significant litigation in our industry regarding patent and other intellectual property rights. While we are not currently subject to any pending intellectual property litigation, and are not aware of any such threatened litigation, we may be exposed to future litigation by third parties based on claims that our product candidates, technologies or activities infringe the intellectual property rights of others. If our drug development activities are found to infringe any such patents, we may have to pay significant damages or seek licenses to such patents. If our products are found to infringe any such patents, we may have to pay significant damages or seek licenses to such patents. A patentee could prevent us from making, using or selling the patented compounds. We may need to resort to litigation to enforce a patent issued to us, protect our trade secrets or determine the scope and validity of third-party proprietary rights. From time to time, we may hire scientific personnel formerly employed by other companies involved in one or more areas similar to the activities conducted by us. Either we or these individuals may be subject to allegations of trade secret misappropriation or other similar claims as a result of their prior affiliations. If we become involved in litigation, it could consume a substantial portion of our managerial and financial resources, regardless of whether we win or lose. We also may not be able to afford the costs of litigation.

The patent applications of pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies involve highly complex legal and factual questions, which, if determined adversely to us, could negatively impact our patent position.

The patent positions of pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies can be highly uncertain and involve complex legal and factual questions. No consistent policy regarding the breadth of claims allowed in biotechnology patents has emerged to date. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s standards are uncertain and could change in the future. Consequently, the issuance and scope of patents cannot be predicted with certainty. Patents, if issued, may be challenged, invalidated or circumvented. U.S. patents and patent applications may also be subject to interference or derivation proceedings, and U.S. patents may be subject to inter partes review, post grant review and ex parte reexamination proceedings in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (and foreign patents may be subject to opposition or comparable proceedings in the corresponding foreign patent office), which proceedings could result in either loss of the patent or denial of the patent application or loss or reduction in the scope of one or more of the claims of the patent or patent application. Similarly, opposition or invalidity proceedings could result in loss of rights or reduction in the scope of one or more claims of a patent in foreign jurisdictions. Such interference, inter partes review, post grant review and ex parte reexamination and opposition proceedings may be costly. Accordingly, rights under any issued patents may not provide us with sufficient protection against competitive products or processes.

Changes in or different interpretations of patent laws in the United States and foreign countries may permit others to use our discoveries or to develop and commercialize our technology and products without providing any compensation to us or may limit the number of patents or claims we can obtain. In particular, there have been proposals to shorten the exclusivity periods available under U.S. patent law that, if adopted, could substantially harm our business. The product candidates that we are developing are protected by intellectual property rights, including patents and patent applications. If any of our product candidates becomes a marketable product, we will rely on our exclusivity under patents to sell the compound and recoup our investments in the research and development of the compound. If the exclusivity period for patents is shortened, then our ability to generate revenues without competition will be reduced and our business could be materially adversely impacted. The laws of some countries do not protect intellectual property rights to the same extent as U.S. laws, and those countries may lack adequate rules and procedures for defending our intellectual property rights. For example, some countries, including many in Europe, do not grant patent claims directed to methods of treating humans and, in these countries, patent protection may not be available at all to protect our product candidates. In addition, U.S. patent laws may change, which could prevent or limit us from filing patent applications or patent claims to protect our products or technologies or limit the exclusivity periods that are available to patent holders. For example, the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act, or the Leahy-Smith Act, was recently signed into law and includes a number of significant changes to U.S. patent law. These include changes to transition from a “first-to-invent” system to a “first-to-file” system and to the way issued patents are challenged. These changes may favor larger and more established companies that have more resources to devote to patent application filing and prosecution. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has been in the process of implementing regulations and procedures to administer the Leahy-Smith Act, and many of the substantive changes to patent law associated with the Leahy-Smith Act may affect our ability to obtain, enforce or defend our patents. Accordingly, it is not clear what, if any, impact the Leahy-Smith Act will ultimately have on the cost of prosecuting our patent applications, our ability to obtain patents based on our discoveries and our ability to enforce or defend our issued patents.


If we fail to obtain and maintain patent protection and trade secret protection of our product candidates, proprietary technologies and their uses, we could lose our competitive advantage and competition we face would increase, reducing our potential revenues and adversely affecting our ability to attain profitability.

Risks Related to our Common Stock

The market price and volume of our common stock fluctuate significantly and could result in substantial losses for individual investors.

The stock market from time to time experiences significant price and volume fluctuations that are unrelated to the operating performance of particular companies. These broad market fluctuations may cause the market price and volume of our common stock to decrease. In addition, the market price and volume of our common stock is highly volatile.

Factors that may cause the market price and volume of our common stock to decrease include:

101.CAL*XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document.
101.DEF*adverse results, termination, reduction, changes or delays in our or our competitors clinical trials;XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document.

101.LAB*XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document.
101.PRE*fluctuations in our results of operations, timing and announcements of our bio-technological innovations or new products or those of our competitors;

developments concerning discussions that we may be in, or enter into, regarding strategic alliances, partnerships, mergers, acquisitions, or similar transactions;

announcements of FDA non-approval of our drug products, or delays in the FDA or other foreign regulatory review process or actions;

adverse actions taken by regulatory agencies with respect to our drug products, clinical trials, manufacturing processes or sales and marketing activities;

any lawsuit involving us or our drug products;

developments with respect to our patents and proprietary rights;

announcements of technological innovations or new products by our competitors;

public concern as to the safety of products developed by us or others;

regulatory developments in the United States and in foreign countries;XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document.

 

*changes in stock market analyst recommendations regarding our common stock or lack of analyst coverage;Filed herewith.

#the pharmaceutical industry conditions generally and general market conditions;

failure of our results of operations to meet the expectations of stock market analysts and investors;

sales of our common stock by our executive officers, directors and five percent stockholdersManagement compensatory plan or sales of substantial amounts of our common stock;arrangement.

changes in status of Nasdaq listing;

changes in accounting principles; and

loss of any of our key scientific or management personnel.

The market for our common stock is illiquid. Our stockholders may not be able+     All schedules and exhibits to resell their shares at or above the purchase price paid by such stockholders, or at all.

Our common stock is quoted on the NASDAQ Capital Market. The market for our securities is illiquid. This illiquidity may be caused by a variety of factors including:

lower trading volume; and

market conditions.


There is limited trading in our common stock and our security holders may experience wide fluctuations in the market price of our securities. Such price and volume fluctuations have particularly affected the trading prices of equity securities of many pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. These price and volume fluctuations often appear toagreement have been unrelatedomitted pursuant to Item 601(b)(2) of Regulation S-K. A copy of any omitted schedule and/or exhibit will be furnished to the operating performance of the affected companies. These fluctuations may have an extremely negative effect on the market price of our securities and may prevent a stockholder from obtaining a market price equal to the purchase price such stockholder paid when the stockholder attempts to sell our securities in the open market. In these situations, the stockholder may be required either to sell our securities at a market price which is lower than the purchase price the stockholder paid, or to hold our securities for a longer period of time than planned. An inactive market may also impair our ability to raise capital by selling shares of capital stock or to recruit and retain managers with equity-based incentive plans.SEC upon request.

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As a “smaller reporting company,” the Company may avail itself of reduced disclosure requirements, which may make the Company’s common stock less attractive to investors.

Because the market value of the Company’s common stock as of the end of its most recently completed second fiscal quarter was less than $75 million, the Company is a “smaller reporting company” under applicable SEC rules and regulations. As a “smaller reporting company,” the Company has relied on exemptions from certain disclosure requirements that are applicable to other public companies. The Company may continue to rely on such exemptions for so long as the Company remains a “smaller reporting company.” These exemptions include reduced financial disclosure, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation, and not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. The Company’s reliance on these exemptions may result in the public finding the Company’s common stock to be less attractive and adversely impact the market price of the Company’s common stock or the trading market thereof.

We will not pay cash dividends and investors may have to sell their shares in order to realize their investment.

We have not paid any cash dividends on our common stock and do not intend to pay cash dividends in the foreseeable future. We intend to use our cash for reinvestment in the development and marketing of our products and services. As a result, investors may have to sell their shares of common stock to realize their investment.

Our internal controls over financial reporting may not be effective which could have a significant and adverse effect on our business and reputation.

We are subject to the requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the rules and regulations of the SEC thereunder (“Section 404”). Section 404 requires us to report on the design and effectiveness of our internal controls over financial reporting. In the past, our management has identified certain “material weaknesses” in our internal controls over financial reporting which we believe have been remediated. However, any failure to maintain effective controls could result in significant deficiencies or material weaknesses, and cause us to fail to meet our periodic reporting obligations, or result in material misstatements in our financial statements. We may also be required to incur costs to improve our internal control system and hire additional personnel. This could negatively impact our results of operations.

Compliance with changing regulation of corporate governance and public disclosure may result in additional expenses and divert management’s attention from operating our business, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.

There have been other changing laws, regulations and standards relating to corporate governance and public disclosure in addition to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, as well as new regulations promulgated by the Commission and rules promulgated by the national securities exchanges. These new or changed laws, regulations and standards are subject to varying interpretations in many cases due to their lack of specificity, and as a result, their application in practice may evolve over time as new guidance is provided by regulatory and governing bodies, which could result in continuing uncertainty regarding compliance matters and higher costs necessitated by ongoing revisions to disclosure and governance practices. As a result, our efforts to comply with evolving laws, regulations and standards are likely to continue to result in increased general and administrative expenses and a diversion of management time and attention from revenue-generating activities to compliance activities. Our board members, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer could face an increased risk of personal liability in connection with the performance of their duties. As a result, we may have difficulty attracting and retaining qualified board members and executive officers, which could have a material adverse effect on our business. If our efforts to comply with new or changed laws, regulations and standards differ from the activities intended by regulatory or governing bodies, we may incur additional expenses to comply with standards set by regulatory authorities or governing bodies which would have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

Delaware law could discourage a change in control, or an acquisition of the Company by a third party, even if the acquisition would be favorable to stockholders.

The Delaware General Corporation Law contains provisions that may have the effect of making more difficult or delaying attempts by others to obtain control of the Company, even when these attempts may be in the best interests of stockholders. Delaware law imposes conditions on certain business combination transactions with “interested stockholders.” These provisions and others that could be adopted in the future could deter unsolicited takeovers or delay or prevent changes in our control or management, including transactions in which stockholders might otherwise receive a premium for their shares of common stock over then current market prices. These provisions may also limit the ability of stockholders to approve transactions that they may deem to be in their best interests.


Our Board of Directors has the authority to issue Serial Preferred Stock, which could affect the rights of holders of our common stock and may delay or prevent a takeover that could be in the best interests of our stockholders.

The Board of Directors has the authority to issue up to 9,416,664 shares of Serial Preferred Stock, $.0001 par value per share (the “Serial Preferred Stock”) (after giving effect to the conversion and cancellation of a previous issue of 5,583,336 shares of Series B Preferred), in one or more series and to fix the number of shares constituting any such series, the voting powers, designation, preferences and relative participation, optional or other special rights and qualifications, limitations or restrictions thereof, including the dividend rights and dividend rate, terms of redemption (including sinking fund provisions), redemption price or prices, conversion rights and liquidation preferences of the shares constituting any series, without any further vote or action by the stockholders. 6,000,000 shares of the Serial Preferred Stock, designated the Series B Preferred, have been authorized, 5,583,336 were issued and, as of the date of this filing, all such shares have been converted and no Series B Preferred shares remain issued and outstanding. The issuance of additional Serial Preferred Stock could affect the rights of the holders of Common Stock. For example, such issuance could result in a class of securities outstanding that would have preferential voting, dividend, and liquidation rights over the Common Stock, and could (upon conversion or otherwise) enjoy all of the rights appurtenant to the shares of common stock. The authority possessed by the Board of Directors to issue Serial Preferred Stock could potentially be used to discourage attempts by others to obtain control of the Company through merger, tender offer, proxy contest or otherwise by making such attempts more difficult or costly to achieve. The Board of Directors may issue the Serial Preferred Stock without stockholder approval and with voting and conversion rights which could adversely affect the voting power of holders of common stock. There are no agreements or understandings for the issuance of Serial Preferred Stock and the Board of Directors has no present intention to issue any Serial Preferred Stock.

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

In October 2017, the Company issued a warrant to purchase 250,000 shares of common stock to a consultant for services to be rendered. The warrant vests in six equal consecutive monthly amounts at the end of each calendar month starting October 31, 2017, at an exercise price of $1.00 per share, for a term of two years from the date of issuance. The warrant was issued pursuant to the exemption from registration provided by Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

Item 3.Defaults Upon Senior Securities.

None. 

Item 4.Mine Safety Disclosures.

Not applicable.

Item 5.Other Information.

None.

Item 6.

Exhibits.

Exhibit Number
31.1Certification of Chief Executive Officer Pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
31.2Certification of Chief Financial Officer Pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
32.1Certification of Chief Executive Officer Pursuant to 18 U.S.C Section 1350, As Adopted Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes Oxley Act of 2002
32.2Certification of Chief Financial Officer Pursuant to 18 U.S.C Section 1350, As Adopted Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
101.INSXBRL Instance Document
101.SCHXBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document
101.CALXBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document
101.DEFXBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document
101.LABXBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document
101.PREXBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document


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.

 

Date: February 14, 2018

OHR PHARMACEUTICAL, INC.

(Registrant)

By:/s/ Dr. Jason S. SlakterNeuBase Therapeutics, Inc.
 
Dr. Jason Slakter
Chief Executive Officer
(Principal Executive Officer)

By:Date: May 13, 2021/s/ Sam Backenroth
 Sam Backenroth
 Chief Financial Officer
 (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)

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