Summary of Significant Accounting Policies | 2. Summary of Accounting Policies Basis of Presentation The accompanying financial statements have been prepared in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”). Any reference in these notes to applicable guidance is meant to refer to the authoritative GAAP as found in the Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) and Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) of the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”). The accompanying financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis, which contemplates the realization of assets and the satisfaction of liabilities and commitments in the ordinary course of business. The Company has limited operating history and its prospects are subject to risks, expenses and uncertainties frequently encountered by companies in the biotechnology industry. 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 reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. The Company bases its estimates and assumptions on historical experience when available and on various factors that it believes to be reasonable under the circumstances. Significant estimates and assumptions reflected in these financial statements include, but are not limited to, research and development costs, accrued research and development costs and related prepaid expenses, and the fair values of common stock, convertible preferred stock and stock-based compensation. Actual results could differ materially from those estimates. The length of time and full extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic directly or indirectly impacts our business, results of operations and financial condition, including expense, the supply chain, clinical trials, research and development costs, and employee-related costs, depends on future developments that are highly uncertain, subject to change and are difficult to predict, including as a result of new information that may emerge concerning COVID-19 and the actions taken to contain or treat COVID-19 as well as the economic impact on local, regional, national and international customers and markets. We have made estimates of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic within our consolidated financial statements and there may be changes to those estimates in future periods. Reverse Stock Split In September 2020, the Company’s board of directors and stockholders approved an amendment to the Company’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation to affect a 5.2651-for-1 reverse stock split of the Company’s common stock and convertible preferred stock, which was effected on September 24, 2020. The par value of the common stock and convertible preferred stock were not adjusted as a result of the reverse stock split. Accordingly, all common stock, convertible preferred stock, stock options, and related per share amounts in these financial statements have been retroactively adjusted for all periods presented to give effect to the reverse stock split. Fair Value of Financial Instruments The Company discloses and recognizes the fair value of its assets and liabilities using a hierarchy that prioritizes the inputs to valuation techniques used to measure fair value. Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability (an exit price) in an orderly transaction between market participants at the reporting date. The hierarchy gives the highest priority to valuations based upon unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1 measurements) and the lowest priority to valuations based upon unobservable inputs that are significant to the valuation (Level 3 measurements). The guidance establishes three levels of the fair value hierarchy as follows: • Level 1 - Inputs that reflect unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities that the Company has the ability to access at the measurement date. • Level 2 - Inputs other than quoted prices that are observable for the asset or liability either directly or indirectly, including inputs in markets that are not considered to be active. • Level 3 - Inputs are unobservable in which there is little or no market data available, which require the reporting entity to develop its own assumptions that are unobservable. Assets and liabilities measured at fair value are classified in their entirety based on the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value measurement. The Company’s assessment of the significance of a particular input to the fair value measurement in its entirety requires management to make judgments and consider factors specific to the asset or liability. Cash, Cash Equivalents and Marketable Securities Management considers all highly liquid investments with original maturities of three months or less to be cash equivalents. The Company’s marketable debt securities have been classified and accounted for as available-for-sale. The Company classifies its marketable debt securities as either short-term or long-term based on each instrument’s underlying contractual maturity date. Marketable debt securities with maturities of 12 months or less are classified as short-term and marketable debt securities with maturities greater than 12 months are classified as long-term. As of December 31, 2021, the company’s long-term marketable debt securities have maturity dates no more than two years. The Company’s marketable debt securities are carried at fair value, with unrealized gains and losses, net of taxes, reported as a component of accumulated other comprehensive loss in stockholders’ equity. Premiums and discounts on marketable debt securities are amortized into earnings over the life of the security. For the years ending December 31, 2021, 2020, and 2019, the company recorded, $550, $152, and $62 of amortization, respectively. Restricted cash as of December 31, 2021 included a $822 deposit at the Company’s commercial bank underlying a stand-by letter of credit issued in favor of a landlord (See Note 6) and is classified in current assets. Leases At the inception of an arrangement, the Company determines whether the arrangement is or contains a lease based on the circumstances present. The Company accounts for a contract as a lease when it has the right to control the asset for a period of time while obtaining substantially all of the asset’s economic benefits. The Company determines the initial classification and measurement of its operating right-of-use (“ROU”) assets and operating lease liabilities at the lease commencement date, and thereafter if modified. The lease term includes any renewal options that the Company is reasonably assured to exercise. The Company’s policy is to not record leases with a lease term of 12 months or less on its balance sheets. The Company’s only existing leases are for office and laboratory space. The ROU asset represents the right to use the leased asset for the lease term. The lease liability represents the present value of the lease payments under the lease. The present value of lease payments is determined by using the interest rate implicit in the lease, if that rate is readily determinable; otherwise, the Company uses its estimated secured incremental borrowing rate for that lease term. Lease expense for operating leases is recognized on a straight-line basis over the reasonably assured lease term based on the total lease payments and is included in operating expense in the statements of operations. Payments due under each lease agreement include fixed and variable payments. Variable payments relate to the Company’s share of the lessor’s operating costs associated with the underlying asset and are recognized when the event on which those payments are assessed occurs. Neither of the Company’s leases contain residual value guarantees. The interest rate implicit in lease agreements is typically not readily determinable, and as such, the Company utilizes the incremental borrowing rate to calculate lease liabilities, which is the rate incurred to borrow on a collateralized basis over a similar term an amount equal to the lease payments in a similar economic environment. Property and Equipment Property and equipment are recorded at cost net of accumulated depreciation. Property and equipment are depreciated using the straight‑line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets, generally five years, except for leasehold improvements, which are amortized over the remaining term of the lease. Upon retirement or sale of assets, the cost and related accumulated depreciation are removed from the balance sheet and the resulting gain or loss is reflected in operations. Repairs and maintenance costs are charged to operations as incurred. Impairment of Long-Lived Assets Long-lived assets, are tested for recoverability whenever events or changes in the business environment indicate that the carrying amount of the assets may not be fully recoverable. Factors considered by the Company when deciding when to perform an impairment review include significant underperformance of the business against expectations, significant negative industry or economic trends and significant changes or planned changes in the use of the assets. If an impairment review is performed to evaluate a long-lived asset for recoverability, the Company compares forecasts of undiscounted cash flows resulting from the use and eventual disposition of the long-lived asset to its carrying value. An impairment loss would be recognized when estimated undiscounted future cash flows resulting from the use of an asset are less than its carrying amount. The impairment loss would be based on the excess of the carrying value of the impaired asset over its current fair value. To date, the Company has not recorded any impairment losses on long-lived assets. Comprehensive Income/Loss The Company recorded $(78), $3, and $10 in other comprehensive (loss) income related to unrealized (losses) gains on marketable securities, net of tax for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020, and 2019, respectively. The Company presents comprehensive income in a single statement within its financial statements. Research and Development Expenses All costs associated with research and development are expensed as incurred. Research and development expenses include costs directly attributable to the conduct of research and development programs, including compensation costs, which includes allocated stock-based compensation, salary payroll taxes, employee benefits; materials; supplies; depreciation on and maintenance of research equipment; the cost of services provided by outside contractors; and the allocable portions of facility costs, such as rent, utilities, insurance, repairs and maintenance, depreciation, and general support services. The Company records accruals for estimated research and development expenses, comprising payments for work performed by third party vendors, clinical research organizations, clinical manufacturing organizations and others. Some of these vendors bill monthly based on actual services performed, while others bill periodically based upon achieving certain contractual milestones. For the latter, the Company accrues the expenses as goods or services are used or rendered. Research and development activities related to patient enrollment are accrued as patients enter and progress through the trial. In the event that we prepay fees, we record the prepayment as a prepaid asset and periodically evaluate the prepaid asset in conjunction with the related accrued research and development expenses. Convertible Preferred Stock The Company’s convertible preferred stock was classified outside of stockholders’ deficit because the shares contained deemed liquidation rights that were a contingent redemption feature not solely within the control of the Company. The Company’s policy is not to accrete the carrying value and related issuance costs of the convertible preferred stock to its redemption value until it is probable that the security will become redeemable. The convertible preferred stock converted to common stock in connection with the Company’s Initial Public Offering (“IPO”) on September 25, 2020. Derivative Liabilities The Company may issue certain financial instruments with embedded features which may be accounted for as separate derivative assets or liabilities, dependent on their specific contractual terms or other conditions. These derivative assets or liabilities are required to be measured at fair value at issuance and remeasured Stock‑Based Compensation The Company’s share-based compensation program allows for grants of stock options and restricted stock awards. Grants The Company accounts for stock-based employee compensation arrangements in accordance with provisions of ASC 718, Compensation – Stock Compensation . awards The Company’s stock-based compensation awards are subject to either service or performance-based vesting conditions. Compensation expense related to awards to employees and directors with service-based vesting conditions The Black-Scholes option pricing model requires inputs based on certain subjective assumptions, including (i) the expected stock price volatility, (ii) the expected term of the award, (iii) the risk-free interest rate and (iv) expected dividends. Due to the lack of a public market for the Company’s common stock until September 2020 and lack of company-specific historical and implied volatility data, the Company has based its computation of expected volatility on the historical volatility of a representative group of public companies with similar characteristics to the Company, including stage of product development and life science industry focus. The historical volatility is calculated based on a period of time commensurate with expected term assumption. The Company uses the simplified method to calculate the expected term for options granted to employees whereby the expected term equals the arithmetic average of the vesting term and the original contractual term of the options due to its lack of sufficient historical data. The risk-free interest rate is based on U.S. Treasury securities with a maturity date commensurate with the expected term of the associated award. The expected dividend yield is assumed to be zero as the Company has never paid dividends and has no current plans to pay any dividends on its common stock. The Company recognizes forfeitures as they occur. Prior to the Company’s IPO, due to the absence of an active market for the Company’s common stock, the Company utilized methodologies in accordance with the framework of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants Technical Practice Aid, Valuation of Privately-Held Company Equity Securities Issued as Compensation, to estimate the fair value of its common stock. In determining the exercise prices for options granted, the Company considered the estimated fair value of the common stock as of the measurement date. Prior to the Initial Public Offering, the estimated fair value of the common stock was determined at each grant date based upon a variety of factors, including the illiquid nature of the common stock, arm’s-length sales of the Company’s capital stock (including convertible preferred stock), the effect of the rights and preferences of the preferred shareholders, and the prospects of a Segment Reporting Operating segments are identified as components of an enterprise for which separate discrete financial information is available Net Loss per Common Share Basic net loss per share is computed using the “two-class” method which includes the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period and other securities that participate in dividends (a participating Earnings per Share pari passu Income Taxes The Company accounts for income taxes in accordance with ASC 740, Income Taxes deferred assets be reduced by a valuation allowance if it is more likely than not that some or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. The Company evaluates annually the realizability of the deferred tax assets by assessing the valuation allowance and by adjusting the amount of such allowance, if necessary. The factors used to assess the likelihood of realization include forecast of future taxable income and available tax planning strategies that could be implemented to realize the net deferred tax assets. In 20 2 1 and 20 20 , the Company recorded a full valuation allowance for the deferred tax assets based on the historical loss and the uncertainty regarding the ability to project future taxable income. In future periods if the Company is able to generate income, the Company may reduce or eliminate the valuation allowance. The Company accounts for uncertain tax positions in accordance with ASC 740. ASC 740 prescribes a recognition threshold and measurement attribute for the financial statement recognition and measurement of a tax provision that an entity takes or expects to take in a tax return. Additionally, ASC 740 provides guidance on derecognition, classification, interest and penalties, accounting in interim periods, disclosures, and transition. Under ASC 740, an entity may only recognize or continue to recognize tax positions that meet a "more likely than not" threshold. In accordance with this accounting policy, the Company recognizes accrued interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits as a component of income tax. Recent Accounting Pronouncements In February 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (the “FASB”) issued ASU No. 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842), as amended by multiple standards updates, in order to increase transparency and comparability among organizations by requiring lessees to recognize most leases on their balance sheets and making targeted changes to lessor accounting. The most significant change arising from the new standard is the recognition of right of use assets and lease liabilities for leases classified as operating leases. The right-of-use lease liability for operating leases is based on the net present value of future minimum lease payments. Additionally, the right-of-use asset for operating leases is based on the lease liability adjusted for the reclassification of certain balance sheet amounts such as the long term portion of straight line rent liability and deferred lease incentives. Under the standard, disclosures are required to enable financial statement users to assess the amount, timing, and uncertainty of cash flows arising from the leases. Companies are also required to recognize and measure leases existing at, or entered into after, the adoption date using a modified retrospective approach, with certain practical expedients available. Comparative periods prior to adoption have not been retrospectively adjusted. The Company adopted the standard effective January 1, 2021 using the modified retrospective transition method. Upon adoption, the Company applied the package of practical expedients that allows an entity to not reassess (i) whether any expired or existing contracts are or contain leases, (ii) lease classification for any expired or existing leases and (iii) initial direct costs for any expired or existing leases. The Company elected the practical expedient not to apply the recognition requirements to short-term leases, defined as a lease that at the commencement date has a lease term of 12 months or less that does not include a purchase option to purchase the underlying asset that the Company is reasonably certain to exercise. Furthermore, the Company has elected the practical expedient to not separate lease and non-lease components by class of underlying asset for its existing leases. As the Company enters into new leases, it will continue to evaluate this accounting policy for any new classes of underlying assets. Upon adoption, the Company recorded ROU assets of $970 and lease liabilities of $1,129. The standard did not have a material impact on the statement of operations or statement of cash flows. In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12, Income Taxes – Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes. The new guidance simplifies the accounting for income taxes by removing several exceptions in the current standard and adding guidance to reduce complexity in certain areas, such as requiring that an entity reflect the effect of an enacted change in tax laws or rates in the annual effective tax rate computation in the interim period that includes the enactment date. The Company adopted this standard as of January 1, 2021 . The adoption did no t have a material impact on the Company’s financial statements. Concentration of Credit Risk and Other Risks and Uncertainties Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to significant concentrations of credit risk consist of cash and cash equivalents and marketable securities. Cash and cash equivalents include a checking account and a money market account held at one financial institution. At times, such deposits may be in excess of insured limits. The Company has not experienced any losses on its deposits of cash and cash equivalents. The Company’s marketable debt securities are carried at fair value and include any unrealized gains and losses. Any investments with unrealized losses are considered to be temporarily impaired. The Company’s future results of operations involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Factors that could affect the Company’s future operating results and cause actual results to vary materially from expectations include, but are not limited to, rapid technological change, uncertainty of market acceptance of the product, competition from substitute products and larger companies, protection of proprietary technology, any future strategic relationships and dependence on key individuals. Products developed by the Company require clearances from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration or other international regulatory agencies prior to commercial sales. There can be no assurance the Company’s product candidates will receive the necessary clearances. If the Company is denied clearance, clearance is delayed or it is unable to maintain clearance, it could have a materially adverse impact on the Company. In January 2020, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak of a novel coronavirus (COVID-19) as a “Public Health Emergency of International Concern,” which continues to spread throughout the world. The outbreak has adversely impacted global commercial activity and contributed to significant volatility in financial markets. The COVID-19 outbreak and government responses are creating disruption in global supply chains and adversely impacting many industries. The outbreak could have a continued material adverse impact on economic and market conditions. The Company continues to monitor the impact of the COVID-19 outbreak closely. |