aimd_10k.htm
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 10-K
(Mark One)
AINOS, INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
(Address of principal executive offices) Zip Code
Issuer’s telephone number, including area code: (858) 869-2986
Securities registered under Section 12(b) of the Exchange Act.
Title of each class Trading Symbol(s) Name of each exchange on which registered
Common Stock AIMD The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC(Nasdaq Capital Market)
Securities registered under Section 12(g) of the Exchange Act. None
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. ☐ Yes ☒ No
Indicate by check mark whether the issuer is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act. ☐ Yes ☒ No
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act of 1934 during the past 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. ☒ Yes ☐ No
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§ 232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). ☒ Yes ☐ No
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
Large accelerated filer ☐ Accelerated filer ☐
Non-accelerated filer ☒ Smaller reporting company ☒
Emerging growth company ☐
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☐
If securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based compensation received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b). ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). ☐ Yes ☒ No
As of March 7, 2024, there were issued and outstanding 5,954,317 shares of the registrant’s common stock, par value $0.01, which is the only class of common or voting stock of the registrant. As of June 30, 2023, the aggregate market value of the shares of common stock outstanding, other than shares held by persons who may be deemed affiliates of the Registrant, computed by reference to the closing price of $ 0.6801(before reverse stock split) for the Registrant’s common stock on June 30, 2023, as reported on Nasdaq Capital Market, was approximately $5,219,651.2. Shares of common stock held by officers, directors and each shareholder owning 10% or more of the outstanding common stock have been excluded in that such persons may be deemed to be affiliates.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
PART I 3
ITEM 1. BUSINESS 3
ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS 15
ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS 38
ITEM 1C. CYBERSECURITY 38
ITEM 2. DESCRIPTION OF PROPERTY 39
ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS 39
ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES 39
ITEM 6. [RESERVED] 41
ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK 47
ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA 47
ITEM 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES 47
ITEM 9B. OTHER INFORMATION 48
ITEM 9C. DISCLOSURE REGARDING FOREIGN JURISDICTIONS THAT PREVENT INSPECTIONS 48
PART III 49
ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS, AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE 49
ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION 52
ITEM 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING FEES AND SERVICES 58
ITEM 15. EXHIBITS, FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES 59
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PART I
The following contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. The Company’s actual results could differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors, including those discussed elsewhere in this Form 10-K. The following discussion should be read in conjunction with the Consolidated Financial Statements and the Notes thereto included elsewhere in this Form 10-K.
ITEM 1. BUSINESS.
Overview
Ainos, Inc. (the “Company”), incorporated in the State of Texas in 1984, is a diversified healthcare company focused on the development of novel point-of-care testing (the “POCT”), therapeutics based on very low-dose interferon alpha (the “VELDONA”), and synthetic RNA-driven preventative medicine. Our product pipeline includes commercial-stage VELDONA Pet cytoprotein supplements, clinical-stage VELDONA human therapeutics and telehealth-friendly POCTs powered by the AI Nose technology platform.
We have historically involved in the research and development of therapeutics based on VELDONA. Building on our research and development on VELDONA since inception, we are focused on commercializing a suite of VELDONA-based products including VELDONA Pet cytoprotein supplements and human related VELDONA therapeutics.
In 2021 and 2022, we acquired certain types of intellectual property from controlling shareholder, Ainos Inc., a Cayman Island corporation (“Ainos KY”), to expand product portfolio into POCTs aimed to provide connected, rapid, and convenient testing for a broad range of health conditions. Pivoting from the sales of COVID-19 POCT, we aim to commercialize POCTs that detect volatile organic compounds (the “VOC”) emitted by the body, powered by our AI Nose technology platform. Our lead VOC POCT candidate, Ainos Flora, aims to test female vaginal health and certain common sexually transmitted infections (the “STIs”) quickly and easily.
We believe the following attributes differentiate us from other diversified life science companies:
- intuitive, telehealth-friendly point-of-care testing
- AI-powered VOC testing platform
- decades of proprietary low-dose oral interferon clinical research
- capital-efficient business model
- outsourced manufacturing
- global distribution relationships
Our Technologies
VELDONA
Interferons are proteins made by host cells in response to the presence of pathogens. Interferons allow for communication between cells to trigger the protective defenses of the immune system. VELDONA formulation, delivered into the oral cavity as a lozenge in low doses, is designed to enhance autoimmunity to resist virus damages, potentially reducing side effects and risks caused by high-dose interferon and other small molecule drugs.
We believe VELDONA has shown to be safe and effective in the clinical studies for treatment of intended human and animal diseases. Since our inception to date, 68 human clinical trials have been conducted with low-dose oral IFNα. 63 studies were Phase 2 trials, and 3 Phase 1 and 2 Phase 3 studies have also been conducted.
In 28 studies performed by Ainos, VELDONA was found to exhibit systemic effects in mice, cats, dogs, ferrets, chickens, rats, guinea pigs, horses, calves/cows, and particularly pigs. VELDONA aided in boosting feed conversion efficiency and fighting deadly viral infections in these species, including canine parvovirus, equine herpesvirus, feline coronavirus, and others. We believe the studies demonstrate VELDONA’s therapeutic or preventive effect via the oral mucosa and shows VELDONA modulates systemic and mucosal immunity without serious side effects.
We have researched VELDONA for a broad range of human disease indications. We intend to prioritize advancing the following candidates: oral warts for HIV-seropositive patients, Sjogren’s Syndrome, mid COVID-19 syndromes, common cold, influenza, aphthous stomatitis, and chemotherapy-induced stomatitis. The United States Food and Drug Administration (the “U.S. FDA”) have granted Orphan Drug Designation (“ODD”) for our VELDONA formulation as a potential treatment for oral warts in HIV-seropositive patients.
Leveraging our VELDONA technology, we have launched a series of health supplements for dogs and cats under the brand name “VELDONA Pet” in Taiwan since the second quarter of 2023 and we intend to explore international sales and marketing opportunities. Our VELDONA Pet product line is formulated to address a variety of health issues, including skin, gum, emotion, discomfort caused by allergies, eye, and weight-related issues. We also intend to conduct clinical studies in Taiwan for the treatment of feline chronic gingivostomatitis (FCGS).
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Point-of-Care Tests (POCTs)
Our POCT technologies aim to provide a simple, effective and telehealth-friendly tests that can deliver results within minutes. Our POCT detection technologies consists of VOC sensing, lateral flow immunochromatographic assay and nucleic acid. Currently we prioritize developing products based on VOC sensing. We intend to evaluate our lateral flow and nucleic acid test technologies for potential applications for other disease indication.
VOC Sensing Powered by AI Nose
We believe the analysis of VOC is a powerful, non-invasive option for disease detection and health monitoring. Our VOC sensing technology aims to detect the target VOCs within few minutes. AI Nose, the key enabler of our VOC sensing, consists of three key technologies: 1) a “digital nose” detects the target VOCs; 2) a trained artificial intelligence (“AI”) algorithm analyzes the target VOCs; 3) a “Smell ID” stores the VOC’s digital profile in the cloud.
We believe VOC sensing powered by AI Nose is scalable into a broad range of industries for two reasons. First, digital nose sensors can be made small and at low cost through semiconductor manufacturing technology. Second, as we train our AI with more Smell IDs, our VOC sensing can continue to improve. While health testing is our near-term focus, we believe we can broaden VOC sensing powered by AI Nose to other applications including telehealth, automotive, industrial, and environmental safety.
Our Pipeline
An integral part of our operating strategy is to create multiple revenue streams through sales of commercially ready products, out-licensing or forming strategic relationships to develop and commercialize our products. As of December 31, 2023, we have commercialized the following products:
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Our Business Model
We believe our business model is capital efficient based on the following:
Operation in Taiwan. We have constructed our operation to be capital efficient by choosing Taiwan as our R&D and operating center. We believe Taiwan has been a key center of the global technology supply chain and it is also home to high-caliber engineers, scientists and healthcare professionals. We believe maintaining operations in Taiwan, at least in the near-term, allows us to access high-caliber talent while staying cost effective, enabling us to develop high quality, affordable, consumer-friendly products.
Outsourced Manufacturing. We believe our outsourced manufacturing strategy potentially saves us the time and resources required to establish our own infrastructure. We outsource manufacturing of our POCT product candidates to Taiwan Carbon Nano Technology (“TCNT”). We outsource manufacturing of VELDONA drugs for human-use to Swiss Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., a Taiwan-based company. We outsource manufacturing of VELDONA Pet supplements to a Taiwan-based third party and to TCNT.
Distribution Relationships.We work with distributors to sell products. We appointed Inabata & Co. Ltd. (“Inabata”), a Japanese corporation, as our non-exclusive worldwide distributor and preferred distributor for customers based in Japan. Inabata’s Taiwan subsidiary (Taiwan Inabata Sangyo Co.) coordinates business logistics and working capital for our designated programs. Topmed International Biotech Co., Ltd. ("Topmed"), a Taiwanese biotech company, is a distributor of our VELDDONA Pet supplements in Taiwan.
Intellectual Property
We own a portfolio of patents covering various aspects of our core technologies. As of December 31, 2023, we had fifty-four (54) patents issued and sixteen (16) pending patent applications. Forty-seven (47) of the issued patents relate to acquired VOC and POCT technologies, four (4) relate to interferon technologies and three (3) relate to our smart drug injection technology. Forty-seven (47) of the issued patents are foreign patents and seven (7) are U.S. patents. Two (2) issued patents are licensed patents. Of the issued patents, thirty-two (32) are invention patents, fourteen (14) are utility model patents and eight (8) are design patents. Of our issued patents, five (5) shall expire between 2026 and 2029; twenty-two (22) between 2030 and 2034, twenty-seven (27) between 2035 and 2046.
We own a registered trademark for VELDONA as well as certain trademarks for our VELDONA Pet supplement in Taiwan. We also have several trademark applications for certain countries outside of Taiwan.
Employees
As of December 31, 2023, we had 46 full-time employees, of which 26 are in research and development. Majority of our employees are in Taiwan. None of our employees are represented by a labor union or are a party to a collective bargaining agreement. We plan to continue expand our manpower in research development, sales and marketing, and general operations to support our business programs. Please refer to Part 3 Item 10 and 11 for executive profile and compensation.
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Additional Information
Under our former name, Amarillo Biosciences, Inc., we completed an initial public offering on the Nasdaq SmallCap Market in August 1996 and have traded on the U.S. over-the-counter market since October 1999. On October 31, 2013, we filed a voluntary petition for reorganization under Chapter 11 of the United States bankruptcy code. We emerged from bankruptcy on January 23, 2015. We established a Taiwan branch office in 2017. We renamed as Ainos, Inc in April 2021.
On August 9, 2022, our common stock and warrants began trading on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the trading symbols “AIMD” and “AIMDW,” respectively. We effectuated a 1-for-15 reverse stock split of our common stock on August 8, 2022, and a 1-for-5 reverse stock split on December 14, 2023.
Our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, and all amendments to those reports are available free of charge on the Company’s website at www.ainos.com as soon as reasonably practicable after such material is electronically filed with, or furnished to, the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Government Regulation
Regulation of Medical Devices in Taiwan
Our product candidates and operations are subject to the Taiwan Medical Devices Act and its implementation regulations (collectively the “Taiwan MDA”), which govern the development, design, pre-clinical and clinical research, manufacturing, safety, efficacy, labeling, packaging, storage, installation, servicing, recordkeeping, premarket clearance or approval, import, export, adverse event reporting, advertising, promotion, marketing and distribution of medical devices. Under the Taiwan MDA, medical devices, depending on the degree of risk associated with each medical device and the extent of manufacturer and regulatory control needed to provide reasonable assurance of its safety and effectiveness, will be subject to differentiated level of review and examination of TFDA before marketing the device. Unless an exemption applies, each medical device requires either (a) an approval granted by TFDA or (b) a registration with TFDA before launching distribution or marketing in Taiwan. The latter is a simplified premarket review process applicable to some medical devices classified as “lower risk level” items listed in the TFDA announcement. Our product candidates are not on the list of “lower risk level” and the approval of TFDA will be required for us to launch distribution or marketing of such products in Taiwan.
Additionally, the TFDA may grant emergency use authorizations (“EUA”) to allow commercial distribution of medical devices intended to address the public health emergency during public emergencies. The TFDA needs to assess the potential effectiveness of such medical device on a case-by-case basis using a risk-benefit analysis and will require the submission of pre-clinical studies and clinical trials. The TFDA also may revise or revoke an issued EUA if the circumstances justifying such granting no longer exist, the criteria for its granting of EUA are no longer met, or other circumstances make a revision or revocation appropriate to protect the public health or safety. The EUA granted by TFDA to TCNT for COVID-19 antigen test kits ended in March 2023.
Concerning the post-marketing regulatory requirements, a company engaging in medical devices business will be required to follow stringent design, testing, control, documentation, and other quality assurance procedures during all aspects of the design and manufacturing process and report to TFDA when the device it markets has or may have caused or contributed to a death or serious injury. The TFDA also has broad discretion to take compliance and enforcement actions, such as requiring a safety surveillance report to be submitted regularly for review, ordering corrections, and conducting on-site inspection if it has any regulatory concerns. Failure to comply with applicable requirements under the Taiwan MDA may subject a device and/or manufacturers to a variety of administrative sanctions, such as the TFDA’s refusal to approve pending premarket applications, mandatory product recalls, import detentions, business suspension or license/listing cancellation, administrative fines, product seizures and destruction, civil monetary penalties and/or criminal prosecution and criminal penalties. Any company engaging in medical devices business may be additionally subject to ten times the criminal fines for each violation made by its authorized representative and/or employees.
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Personal Data Protection Laws in Taiwan
Under the Taiwan Personal Data Protection Act (“PDPA”), each individual or governmental or non-governmental agencies, including our affiliate in Taiwan, should be subject to certain requirements and restrictions for collecting, processing or using personal data. The definition of “personal data” is extended to cover a broad scope, including name, birthday, ID, special features, fingerprints, marriage status, family, education, occupation, medical records, medical history, genetic information, sex life, health examination report, criminal records, contact information, financial status, social activities, and any other data which is sufficient to directly or indirectly identify a specific person. Due to the nature of the use of medical devices, our operation and the operation of our partners might collect, process, or use the data pertaining to a person’s medical records and healthcare, genetics (collectively, sensitive data), which is subject to stricter scrutiny. Generally, we can only obtain such sensitive data when the person consents in writing or electronically. Furthermore, in January 2022, the TFDA published the Regulations for the Security and the Maintenance of Personal Information Files in Wholesaling and Retailing Medical Devices authorized under the PDPA, which requires the medical devices wholesalers and retailers to adopt necessary data security/protection measures, and establish prevention and reporting mechanisms in relation to any data breach. The bill also empowers the TFDA to conduct regular inspections and audits. If we fail to comply with the PDPA, we may be subject to punishment for civil claims, criminal offenses and administrative liabilities; the defendant may be subject to an imprisonment; and the penalty for administrative liabilities, and may be imposed consecutively if such violation continues.
Regulation of Veterinary Drugs in Taiwan
Our veterinary product candidates are subject laws and regulations in Taiwan including, but not limited to, the Veterinary Drugs Control Act, Enforcement Rules under the Veterinary Control Act, Guidelines of Good Manufacture Practice for Veterinary Drug Manufacturers, and Taiwan Regulations for Pet Foods and Supplements. The laws and regulations govern, among other things, product design and development, pre-clinical and clinical testing, quality testing, manufacturing, packaging, labeling, storage, record keeping and reporting, clearance or approval, marketing, sales and distribution, promotion and advertising, import and export and post-marketing surveillance.
Under Taiwan law, a “veterinary drug” refers to one of the following substances in the form of bulk chemical compound, formulated preparation, or over the counter drug: Biologics specifically made for preventing and treating animal diseases based on microbiology, immunology or molecular biology; Antibiotics specifically made for preventing and treating animal diseases; Diagnostics announced and designated by the central competent authority for the diagnosis of animal diseases; and drugs that enhance or regulate animal physical functions specifically for preventing and treating animal diseases.
The competent authorities with licensing and enforcement authority under the Veterinary Drugs Control Act include the Council of Agriculture of the central government, the municipal government of a special municipality, or a local city or county.
Regulation of Medical Devices in the United States
Our product candidates and operations are subject to extensive and ongoing regulation by the FDA under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act of 1938 and its implementing regulations, collectively referred to as the FDCA, as well as other federal and state regulatory bodies in the United States. The laws and regulations govern, among other things, product design and development, pre-clinical and clinical testing, manufacturing, packaging, labeling, storage, record keeping and reporting, clearance or approval, marketing, distribution, promotion, import and export and post-marketing surveillance.
The FDA regulates the development, design, pre-clinical and clinical research, manufacturing, safety, efficacy, labeling, packaging, storage, installation, servicing, recordkeeping, premarket clearance or approval, import, export, adverse event reporting, advertising, promotion, marketing and distribution of medical devices in the United States to ensure that medical devices distributed domestically are safe and effective for their intended uses and otherwise meet the requirements of the FDCA. Failure to comply with applicable requirements may subject a device and/or its manufacturer to a variety of administrative sanctions, such as FDA refusal to approve pending premarket applications, issuance of warning letters, mandatory product recalls, import detentions, civil monetary penalties, and/or judicial sanctions, such as product seizures, injunctions, and criminal prosecution.
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FDA Premarket Clearance and Approval Requirements
Unless an exemption applies, each medical device commercially distributed in the United States requires either FDA clearance of a 510(k) premarket notification, approval of a premarket approval, or PMA, or grant of a de novo request for classification. During public emergencies, FDA also may grant emergency use authorizations to allow commercial distribution of devices intended to address the public health emergency. Under the FDCA, medical devices are classified into one of three classes—Class I, Class II or Class III—depending on the degree of risk associated with each medical device and the extent of manufacturer and regulatory control needed to provide reasonable assurance of its safety and effectiveness.
Class I devices include those with the lowest risk to the patient and are those for which safety and effectiveness can be reasonably assured by adherence to the FDA’s “general controls” for medical devices. Some Class I or low risk devices also require premarket clearance by the FDA through the 510(k) premarket notification process described below.
Class II devices are moderate risk devices that require premarket review and clearance by the FDA through the 510(k) premarket notification process, though certain Class II devices are exempt from this premarket review process. Unless a specific exemption applies, 510(k) premarket notification submissions are subject to user fees. If the FDA determines that the device, or its intended use, is not substantially equivalent to a legally marketed device, the FDA will place the device, or the particular use of the device, into Class III, and the device sponsor must then fulfill more rigorous premarketing requirements.
Class III devices include devices deemed by the FDA to pose the greatest risk, such as life-sustaining, life-supporting or implantable devices and devices deemed not substantially equivalent to a predicate device following a 510(k) submission. Submission and FDA approval of a PMA application is required before marketing of a Class III device. As with 510(k) submissions, unless an exemption applies, PMA submissions are subject to user fees.
Emergency Use Authorization
In emergency situations, such as a pandemic, the FDA has the authority to allow unapproved medical products or unapproved uses of cleared or approved medical products to be used in an emergency to diagnose, treat, or prevent serious or life-threatening diseases or conditions caused by chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear warfare threat agents when there are no adequate, approved, and available alternatives.
Under this authority, the FDA may issue an EUA for an unapproved device if the following four statutory criteria have been met: (1) a serious or life-threatening condition exists; (2) evidence of effectiveness of the device exists; (3) a risk-benefit analysis shows that the benefits of the product outweigh the risks; and (4) no other alternatives exist for diagnosing, preventing, or treating the disease or condition.
Once issued, an EUA will remain in effect and generally terminate on the earlier of (1) the determination by the Secretary of Health and Human Services that the public health emergency has ceased or (2) a change in the approval status of the product such that the authorized use(s) of the product are no longer unapproved. After the EUA is no longer valid, the product is no longer considered to be legally marketed and one of the FDA’s non-emergency premarket pathways would be necessary to resume or continue distribution of the subject product.
The FDA also may revise or revoke an EUA if the circumstances justifying its issuance no longer exist, the criteria for its issuance are no longer met, or other circumstances make a revision or revocation appropriate to protect the public health or safety.
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510(k) Clearance Marketing Pathway
To obtain 510(k) clearance for a medical device, an applicant must submit to the FDA a 510(k) submission demonstrating that the proposed device is “substantially equivalent” to a legally marketed device, known as a “predicate device.” A showing of substantial equivalence sometimes, but not always, requires clinical data. Once the 510(k) submission is accepted for review, by regulation, the FDA has 90 calendar days to review and issue a determination. As a practical matter, clearance may take and often takes longer. Upon review, the FDA may require additional information, including clinical data, to make a determination regarding substantial equivalence. In addition, the FDA collects user fees for certain medical device submissions and annual fees and for medical device establishments.
Before the FDA will accept a 510(k) submission for substantive review, the FDA will first assess whether the submission satisfies a minimum threshold of acceptability. If the FDA determines that the 510(k) submission is incomplete, the FDA will issue a “Refuse to Accept” letter which generally outlines the information the FDA believes is necessary to permit a substantive review and to reach a determination regarding substantial equivalence. An applicant must submit the requested information within 180 days before the FDA will proceed with additional review of the submission.
If the FDA agrees that the device is substantially equivalent to a predicate device currently on the market, it will grant 510(k) clearance to commercially market the device. If the FDA determines that the device is “not substantially equivalent” to a previously cleared device, for example, due to a finding of a lack of a predicate device, that the device has a new intended use or different technological characteristics that raise different questions of safety or effectiveness when the device is compared to the cited predicate device, the device is automatically designated as a Class III device. The device sponsor must then fulfill more rigorous PMA requirements, or can request a risk-based classification determination for the device in accordance with the “de novo” process, which is a route to market for novel medical devices that are low to moderate risk and are not substantially equivalent to a predicate device. If the FDA determines that the information provided in a 510(k) submission is insufficient to demonstrate substantial equivalence to the predicate device, the FDA generally identifies the specific information that needs to be provided so that the FDA may complete its evaluation of substantial equivalence, and such information may be provided within the time allotted by the FDA or in a new 510(k) submission should the original 510(k) submission have been withdrawn.
After a device receives 510(k) marketing clearance, any modification that could significantly affect its safety or effectiveness, or that would constitute a major change or modification in its intended use, will require a new 510(k) marketing clearance or, depending on the modification, PMA approval. The determination as to whether or not a modification could significantly affect the device’s safety or effectiveness is initially left to the manufacturer using available FDA guidance. Many minor modifications today are accomplished by a “letter to file” in which the manufacturer documents the rationale for the change and why a new 510(k) submission is not required. However, the FDA may review such letters to file to evaluate the regulatory status of the modified product at any time and may require the manufacturer to cease marketing and recall the modified device until 510(k) marketing clearance or PMA approval is obtained. The manufacturer may also be subject to significant regulatory fines or penalties.
Over the last several years, the FDA has proposed reforms to its 510(k) clearance process, and such proposals could include increased requirements for clinical data and a longer review period, or could make it more difficult for manufacturers to utilize the 510(k) clearance process for their products.
PMA Approval Pathway
A PMA must be submitted to the FDA if the device cannot be cleared through the 510(k) process. The PMA must be supported by extensive data, including data from pre-clinical studies and clinical trials. Review may take anywhere from 180 days to several years. An advisory panel of experts from outside the FDA may be convened to review and evaluate the application and provide recommendations to the FDA as to the approvability of the device. The FDA may or may not accept the panel’s recommendation. In addition, the FDA will generally conduct a pre-approval inspection of the applicant or its third-party manufacturers’ or suppliers’ manufacturing facility or facilities to ensure compliance with the QSR.
The FDA will approve the new device for commercial distribution if it determines that the data and information in the PMA constitute valid scientific evidence and that there is reasonable assurance that the device is safe and effective for its intended use(s). The FDA may approve a PMA with post-approval conditions, it may also condition PMA approval on some form of post-market surveillance. Failure to comply with the conditions of approval can result in material adverse enforcement action, including withdrawal of the approval.
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As of December 31, 2023, none of our test kits were approved under a PMA. However, we may in the future develop devices which will require the approval of a PMA.
De novo Classification
Medical device types that the FDA has not previously classified as Class I, II or III are automatically classified into Class III regardless of the level of risk they pose. To market low to moderate risk medical devices that are automatically placed into Class III due to the absence of a predicate device, a manufacturer may request a de novo down-classification on the basis that the device presents low or moderate risk, rather than requiring the submission and approval of a PMA application. In the event the FDA determines the data and information submitted demonstrate that general controls or general and special controls are adequate to provide reasonable assurance of safety and effectiveness, the FDA will grant the de novo request for classification. When the FDA grants a de novo request for classification, the device is granted marketing authorization and further can serve as a predicate for future devices of that type, through a 510(k) premarket notification.
As of December 31, 2023, we are not currently seeking a de novo classification for any device in development.
Clinical Trials
Clinical trials are typically required to support a PMA, oftentimes for a de novo request for classification, and are sometimes required to support a 510(k) submission. All clinical investigations of devices to determine safety and effectiveness must be conducted in accordance with the FDA’s investigational device exemption, or IDE, regulations which govern investigational device labeling, prohibit promotion of the investigational device, and specify an array of recordkeeping, reporting and monitoring responsibilities of study sponsors and study investigators. The clinical trials must be approved by, and conducted under the oversight of, an Institutional Review Board, or IRB, for each clinical site. If an IDE application is approved by the FDA and one or more IRBs, clinical trials may begin at a specific number of investigational sites with a specific number of patients, as approved by the FDA.
If the device is considered a ”non-significant risk,” IDE submission to FDA is not required. Instead, only approval from the IRB overseeing the investigation at each clinical trial site is required. After a trial begins, we, the FDA or the IRB could suspend or terminate a clinical trial at any time for various reasons.
Post-market Regulation
After a device is cleared or approved for marketing, numerous and pervasive regulatory requirements continue to apply. These include:
· Establishment registration and device listing with the FDA;
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The FDA has broad regulatory compliance and enforcement powers. If the FDA determines that we failed to comply with applicable regulatory requirements, it can take a variety of compliance or enforcement actions, which may result in any of the following sanctions:
· customer notifications for repair, replacement, refunds;
· recall, withdrawal, administrative detention, or seizure of our test kits;
· operating restrictions or partial suspension or total shutdown of production;
· withdrawing 510(k) clearance or PMA approvals that are already granted;
· refusal to grant export approval for our test kits; or
· criminal prosecution.
U.S. drug and biological product development
In the United States, the FDA regulates drugs under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) and its implementing regulations and biologics under the FDCA, the Public Health Service Act (PHSA), and their implementing regulations. Both drugs and biologics also are subject to other federal, state and local statutes and regulations. Failure to comply with applicable U.S. requirements at any time during the product development process, approval process or following approval may subject us to administrative or judicial sanctions. These sanctions could include, among other actions, the FDA’s refusal to approve pending applications, license revocation, a clinical hold, untitled or warning letters, product recalls, market withdrawals, product seizures, total or partial suspension of production or distribution, injunctions, fines, refusals of government contracts, restitution, disgorgement and civil or criminal penalties.
Our VELDONA product candidates for human use must be approved by the FDA through a BLA or new drug application (NDA), or supplemental BLA or supplemental NDA, process before they may be legally marketed in the United States.
Preclinical studies
Before any of our development candidates may be tested in humans, the development candidate must undergo rigorous preclinical testing. Preclinical studies include laboratory evaluation of product chemistry and formulation, as well as in vitro and animal studies to assess the potential for adverse events and in some cases to establish a rationale for therapeutic use. The conduct of preclinical studies is subject to federal regulations and requirements, including GLP regulations for safety/toxicology studies. An IND sponsor must submit the results of the preclinical tests, together with manufacturing information, analytical data, any available clinical data or literature and plans for clinical studies, among other things, to the FDA as part of an IND. An IND is a request for authorization from the FDA to administer an investigational product to humans and must become effective before human clinical trials may begin. Unless the FDA raises concerns, an IND automatically becomes effective 30 days after receipt by the FDA. In such a case, the IND sponsor and the FDA must resolve any outstanding concerns before the clinical trial can begin.
Clinical trials
The clinical stage of development involves the administration of the investigational medicine to healthy volunteers or patients under the supervision of qualified investigators and in accordance with GCP requirements. Clinical trials are conducted under protocols detailing, among other things, the objectives of the clinical trial, dosing procedures, subject selection and exclusion criteria and the parameters to be used to monitor subject safety and assess efficacy. Each protocol, and any subsequent amendments to the protocol, must be submitted to the FDA as part of the IND. Furthermore, each clinical trial must be reviewed and approved by an Institutional Review Board (IRB) for each institution at which the clinical trial will be conducted to ensure that the risks to individuals participating in the clinical trials are minimized and are reasonable in relation to anticipated benefits. The IRB also approves the informed consent form that must be provided to clinical trial subjects and monitors the clinical trial until completed. Further, progress reports detailing the results of the clinical trials, among other information, must be submitted at least annually to the FDA and more frequently in other situations, including the occurrence of serious adverse events. Information about certain clinical trials must be submitted within specific timeframes for publication on the www.clinicaltrials.gov website.
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Foreign studies conducted under an IND must meet the same requirements that apply to studies being conducted in the United States. Data from a foreign study not conducted under an IND may be submitted in support of a BLA if the study was conducted in accordance with GCP requirements, and the FDA is able to validate the data.
Clinical trials generally are conducted in three sequential phases, which may overlap:
The FDA may also require post-approval Phase 4 non-registrational studies to explore scientific questions to further characterize safety and efficacy during commercial use of a drug.
The FDA or the clinical trial site may suspend or terminate a clinical trial at any time on various grounds, including a finding that the patients are being exposed to an unacceptable health risk. Similarly, an IRB can suspend or terminate approval of a clinical trial at its institution if the clinical trial is not being conducted in accordance with the IRB’s requirements or if the drug or biologic has been associated with unexpected serious harm to patients. Additionally, some clinical trials are overseen by an independent group of qualified experts organized by the clinical trial sponsor, known as a data safety monitoring board or committee. This group provides authorization for whether a clinical trial may move forward at designated check points based on access to certain data from the clinical trial.
FDA review process
Following completion of the clinical trials, data are analyzed to assess whether the investigational product is safe and effective for the proposed indicated use or uses. The results of preclinical studies and clinical trials are then submitted to the FDA as part of a BLA or NDA, along with proposed labeling, chemistry, and manufacturing information to ensure product quality and other relevant data. A BLA is a request for approval to market a biologic for one or more specified indications and must contain proof of the biologic’s safety, purity, and potency. An NDA for a new drug must contain proof of the drug’s safety and efficacy. To support marketing approval, the data submitted must be sufficient in quality and quantity to establish the safety and efficacy of the investigational product to the satisfaction of the FDA. FDA approval of a BLA or NDA must be obtained before a biologic or drug may be marketed in the United States.
Before approving a BLA or NDA, the FDA will conduct a pre-approval inspection of the manufacturing facilities for the new product to determine whether the facilities comply with cGMP requirements and are adequate to assure consistent production of the product within required specifications. The FDA also may audit data from clinical trials to ensure compliance with GCP requirements. Additionally, the FDA may refer applications for novel products or products which present difficult questions of safety or efficacy to an advisory committee of expert advisors for review, evaluation and a recommendation as to whether the application should be approved and under what conditions, if any. The committee makes a recommendation to the FDA that is not binding but is generally followed.
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After the FDA evaluates a BLA or NDA, it will grant marketing approval, request additional information or issue a complete response letter (CRL) outlining the deficiencies in the submission. The CRL may require additional testing or information, including additional preclinical or clinical data, for the FDA to reconsider the BLA or NDA. Even if such additional information and data are submitted, the FDA may decide that the BLA or NDA still does not meet the standards for approval. If the FDA grants approval, it issues an approval letter that authorizes commercial marketing of the product with specific prescribing information for specific indications.
Orphan drug designation
Under the Orphan Drug Act, the FDA may grant orphan designation to a drug or biologic product intended to treat a rare disease or condition, which is generally a disease or condition that affects fewer than 200,000 individuals in the United States, or more than 200,000 individuals in the United States and for which there is no reasonable expectation that the cost of developing and making the product available in the United States for this type of disease or condition will be recovered from sales of the product.
If a product that has orphan designation subsequently receives the first FDA approval for the disease or condition for which it has such designation, the product is entitled to orphan drug exclusivity, which means that the FDA may not approve any other applications to market the same drug for the same indication for seven years from the date of such approval, except in very limited circumstances, such as if the latter product is shown to be clinically superior to the orphan product.
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act
We may be subject to compliance with the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, as amended by the Healthcare Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009, or HIPAA, among other things, established federal protection for the privacy and security of protected health information, or PHI. The HIPAA privacy regulations protect PHI by limiting its use and disclosure, giving patients the right to access certain information about them, and limiting most disclosures of PHI to the minimum amount necessary to accomplish an intended purpose. The HIPAA security standards require the adoption of administrative, physical, and technical safeguards and the adoption of written security policies and procedures.
In addition, various states, such as California and Massachusetts, have implemented similar privacy and security laws and regulations. The interplay of federal and state laws may be subject to varying interpretations by courts and government agencies, creating complex compliance issues. The compliance requirements of these laws, including additional breach reporting requirements, and the penalties for violation vary widely, and new privacy and security laws in this area are evolving. Requirements of these laws and penalties for violations vary widely.
Failure to comply with HIPAA, Healthcare Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009 or their implementing regulations, and similar state laws, may result in significant penalties, including civil, criminal and administrative penalties, fines, imprisonment and exclusion from participation in federal or state healthcare programs, and the curtailment or restructuring of our operations.
U.S. Federal, State and Foreign Fraud and Abuse Laws
The U.S. federal and state governments have enacted, and actively enforce, a number of laws to address fraud and abuse in federal healthcare programs. Our business is subject to compliance with these laws.
Anti-Kickback Statutes
The federal Anti-Kickback Statute prohibits, among other things, knowingly and willfully soliciting, offering, receiving or paying remuneration, directly or indirectly, overtly or covertly, in cash or in kind, to induce or reward either the referral of an individual, or the purchase, order, arrangement for, or recommendation of, items or services for which payment may be made, in whole or in part, under a federal healthcare program such as Medicare or Medicaid. Many states have adopted laws similar to the federal Anti-Kickback Statute. Some of these state prohibitions apply to referral of recipients for healthcare products or services reimbursed by any source, not only government healthcare programs, and may apply to payments made directly by the patient.
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Government officials have focused their enforcement efforts on the marketing of healthcare services and products, among other activities, and recently have brought cases against companies, and certain individual sales, marketing and executive personnel, for allegedly offering unlawful inducements to potential or existing customers in an attempt to procure their business.
Federal False Claims Laws
The FCA prohibits any person or entity, among other things, to knowingly present, or cause to be presented, a false or fraudulent claim for payment of government funds and knowingly making, using or causing to be made or used, a false record or statement to get a false claim paid or to avoid, decrease or conceal an obligation to pay money to the federal government. The qui tam provisions of the FCA allow a private individual to bring actions on behalf of the federal government alleging that the defendant has violated the FCA and to share in any monetary recovery. In addition, various states have enacted false claims laws analogous to the FCA, and many of these state laws apply where a claim is submitted to any third-party payor and not only a federal healthcare program.
Violations of the FCA may result in treble damages and significant mandatory penalties, civil monetary penalties, and violators may be subject to exclusion from participation in federal healthcare programs such as Medicare and Medicaid. Many medical device manufacturers and healthcare companies have reached substantial financial settlements with the federal government for a variety of alleged improper activities and have entered into corporate integrity agreements with OIG, under which the companies undertake certain compliance, certification and reporting obligations, to avoid exclusion from federal health care program.
Our activities, including those relating to the reporting of discount and rebate information and other information affecting federal, state and third-party reimbursement of our test kits (once approved) and the sale and marketing of our test kits (once approved), may be subject to scrutiny under the federal Anti-Kickback Statute and the FCA. We are also subject to other criminal federal laws that prohibit making false or fictitious claims and false statements to the federal government.
HIPAA Fraud Statute
HIPAA, among other things, imposes criminal liability for knowingly and willfully executing or attempting to execute a scheme to defraud any healthcare benefit program, including private third-party payors, knowingly and willfully embezzling or stealing from a healthcare benefit program, willfully obstructing a criminal investigation of a healthcare offense, and creates federal criminal laws that prohibit knowingly and willfully falsifying, concealing or covering up a material fact or making any materially false, fictitious or fraudulent statement or representation, or making or using any false writing or document knowing the same to contain any materially false, fictitious or fraudulent statement or entry in connection with the delivery of or payment for healthcare benefits, items or services. Similar to the federal healthcare Anti-Kickback Statute, a person or entity does not need to have actual knowledge of the statute or specific intent to violate it to have committed a violation.
Open Payments
The federal Physician Payments Sunshine Act, implemented as the Open Payments Program, requires certain manufacturers of drugs, medical devices, biologics and medical supplies for which payment is available under Medicare, Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program to report annually to CMS information related to payments and other “transfers of value” to physicians, and teaching hospitals, and requires applicable manufacturers to report annually ownership and investment interests held by physicians and their immediate family members. Beginning in 2022, applicable manufacturers will also be required to report information and transfers of value provided (beginning in 2021) to physician assistants, nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, certified nurse anesthetists, and certified nurse-midwives. Failure to submit timely, accurate and complete reports may result in substantial monetary penalties. We are subject to the Open Payments Program and the information we disclose may lead to greater scrutiny, which may result in modifications to established practices and additional costs. Additionally, similar reporting requirements have also been enacted on the state level domestically, and an increasing number of countries worldwide either have adopted or are considering similar laws requiring transparency of interactions with healthcare professionals.
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Foreign Corrupt Practices Act
The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, or FCPA, prohibits any U.S. individual or business from paying, offering or authorizing payment or offering of anything of value, directly or indirectly, to any foreign official, political party or candidate for the purpose of influencing any act or decision of the foreign entity in order to assist the individual or business in obtaining or retaining business. The FCPA also obligates companies whose securities are listed in the United States to comply with accounting provisions requiring them to maintain books and records that accurately and fairly reflect all transactions of the corporation, including international subsidiaries, if any, and to devise and maintain an adequate system of internal accounting controls for international operations.
U.S. Health Reform
Changes in healthcare policy could increase our costs, decrease our revenue and impact sales of and reimbursement for our current and future products once approved. The United States and some foreign jurisdictions are considering or have enacted a number of legislative and regulatory proposals to change the healthcare system in ways that could affect our ability to sell our test kits profitably once approved. Among policy makers and payors in the United States and elsewhere, there is significant interest in promoting changes in healthcare systems with the stated goals of containing healthcare costs, improving quality or expanding access. Current and future legislative proposals to further reform healthcare or reduce healthcare costs may limit coverage of or lower reimbursement for the procedures associated with the use of our test kits once approved. The cost containment measures that payors and providers are instituting and the effect of any healthcare reform initiative implemented in the future could impact our revenue from the sale of our test kits once approved.
The implementation of the Affordable Care Act in the United States, for example, has changed healthcare financing and delivery by both governmental and private insurers substantially, and affected medical device manufacturers significantly. In addition, other legislative changes have been proposed and adopted since the Affordable Care Act was enacted.
We believe that there will continue to be proposals by legislators at both the federal and state levels, regulators and third-party payors to reduce costs and potentially affect individual healthcare benefits. Certain of these changes could impose additional limitations on the rates we will be able to charge for our current and future products or the amounts of reimbursement available for our current and future products from governmental agencies or third-party payors.
ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS.
Investors should carefully consider the following discussion of significant factors, events, and uncertainties that make an investment in our securities risky. The events and consequences discussed in these risk factors could, in circumstances we may or may not be able to accurately predict, recognize, or control, have a material adverse effect on our business, growth, reputation, prospects, financial condition, operating results (including components of our financial results), cash flows, liquidity, and stock price. These risk factors do not identify all risks that we face; our operations could also be affected by factors, events, or uncertainties that are not presently known to us or that we currently do not consider to present significant risks to our operations. In addition, the global economic climate amplifies many of these risks.
Risks related to our limited operating history, financial position, and need for additional capital
We have a history of operating losses that are expected to continue for the foreseeable future, and we are unable to predict the extent of future losses, or whether we will generate significant revenues or achieve or sustain profitability.
We are focused on product development and have generated $102,256 and $3,519,627 in revenues from COVID-19 antigen rapid test kit sales in 2023 and 2022, respectively. We expect to continue to incur operating losses until we are able to commercialize or license our other products. These operating losses have adversely affected and are likely to continue to adversely affect our working capital, total assets and stockholders’ equity. We have generated operating losses of $13,206,396 and $13,976,212 in the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, we had cumulative losses of $37,886,155 and $24,115,606, respectively. We expect to make substantial expenditures and incur increasing operating costs in the future and our accumulated deficit will increase significantly as we expand development and clinical trial activities for our product candidates. Because of the risks and uncertainties associated with product development, we are unable to predict the extent of any future losses, whether we will ever generate significant revenues or if we will ever achieve or sustain profitability.
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We believe that our cash on hand, along with the anticipated net proceeds from products sales and additional financing, will enable us to fund our operations over the short and medium terms based on our current plan. We are dependent on obtaining, and are continuing to pursue, necessary funding from outside sources, including obtaining additional funding from the issuance of securities in order to continue our operations. Without adequate funding, we may not be able to meet our obligations. The successful commercialization of any of our products will require us to perform a variety of functions, including:
· continuing to undertake preclinical and clinical development;
· engaging with payors and other pricing and reimbursement authorities;
Our revenue for the fiscal year of 2023 was almost exclusively dependent on sales of the Ainos COVID-19 antigen rapid test kits and we ceased the sale of the Ainos COVID-19 antigen rapid test kits in early 2024. We anticipate that VELDONA Pet will serve as our primary source of our future revenue until we can develop, obtain regulatory clearance or other appropriate authorization for, and commercialize additional product candidates.
Our revenue for the fiscal year of 2023 was almost exclusively dependent on sales of the Ainos COVID-19 antigen rapid test kits and we ceased the sale of the Ainos COVID-19 antigen rapid test kits in early 2024. Until such time as we can commercialize additional products, the discontinuation of sales of the Ainos COVID-19 antigen rapid test kits may adversely affect our business, operating results, and financial condition.
Starting from the year 2024, we anticipate VELDONA Pet to serve as a key source of our future revenue until we can develop, obtain regulatory clearance, or secure other appropriate authorization for additional product candidates and commercialize them. The sales of VELDONA Pet will depend on several factors, including, but not limited to, sales and marketing strategies, affordability, and ease of use compared to other products and competitors of VELDONA Pet. If we cannot expand our customer base or improve our sales and marketing strategies, we may not be able to increase our revenue.
We have generated very little revenue from product sales and may never become profitable.
Our ability to generate product sales and achieve profitability depends on our ability, alone or with collaborative partners, to successfully complete the development of, and obtain the regulatory approvals necessary to commercialize our current and future product candidates. Our product candidates will require additional clinical, manufacturing, and non-clinical development, regulatory approval, commercial manufacturing arrangements, establishment of a commercial organization, significant marketing efforts, and further investment before we generate significant product sales.
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We cannot assure you that we will meet our timelines for our development programs, which may be delayed or not completed for a number of reasons. Our ability to generate future revenues from product sales depends heavily on our, or our collaborators’ ability to successfully:
· address competing technological and market developments;
· implement internal systems and infrastructure, as needed;
· attract, hire, and retain qualified personnel.
Even if one or more of our current and future product candidates are approved for commercial sale, we anticipate incurring significant costs associated with commercializing any approved product candidate. Our expenses could increase beyond our expectations if we are required by the TFDA, the FDA or other regulatory authorities to perform clinical and other studies in addition to those that we currently anticipate. If we are required to conduct additional clinical trials or other testing of our product candidates that we develop beyond those that we currently expect, if we are unable to successfully complete clinical trials of our product candidates or other testing, if the results of these trials or tests are not positive or are only modestly positive, or if there are safety concerns, we may be delayed in obtaining marketing approval for our product candidates, not obtain marketing approval at all, or obtain more limited approvals. Even if we are able to generate revenues from the sale of any approved product candidates, we may not become profitable and may need to obtain additional funding to continue operations.
Even if we do achieve profitability, we may not be able to sustain or increase profitability on a quarterly or annual basis. Our failure to become and remain profitable would decrease the value of the Company and could impair our ability to raise capital, maintain our research and development efforts, expand our business or continue our operations. A decline in the value of our Company also could cause you to lose all or part of your investment.
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We need to raise additional capital to operate our business. If we fail to obtain the capital necessary to fund our operations, we will be unable to continue or complete our product development.
We are a company primarily focused on product development and our product revenues may not be sufficient to fund our operations. Until, and if, we receive approval from the TFDA, FDA and other regulatory authorities for our product candidates, our revenues generated from products may be limited. We had cash and cash equivalents of approximately $1.9 million as of December 31, 2023, and we will need to continue to seek capital from time to time to capitalize the development and commercialization of our product candidates and to acquire and develop other product candidates. Our actual capital requirements will depend on many factors. For instance, our business or operations may change in a manner that would consume available funds more rapidly than anticipated and substantial additional funding may be required to maintain operations, fund expansion, develop new or enhanced products, acquire complementary products, business or technologies or otherwise respond to competitive pressures and opportunities, such as a change in the regulatory environment or a change in disease treatment modalities. If we experience unanticipated cash requirements, we may need to seek additional sources of financing, which may not be available on favorable terms, if at all.
However, we may not be able to secure funding when we need it or on favorable terms. If we cannot raise adequate funds to satisfy our capital requirements, we will have to delay, scale-back or eliminate our research and development activities, clinical studies or future operations, we may be unable to complete planned nonclinical studies and clinical trials or obtain approval of our product candidates from the TFDA and FDA and other regulatory authorities. In addition, we could be forced to discontinue product development, reduce or forego sales and marketing efforts and attractive business opportunities, reduce overhead, or discontinue operations. We may also be required to obtain funds through arrangements with collaborators, which arrangements may require us to relinquish rights to certain technologies or products that we otherwise would not consider relinquishing, including rights to future product candidates or certain major geographic markets. We may further have to license our technology to others. This could result in sharing revenues which we might otherwise retain for ourselves. Any of these actions may harm our business, financial condition and results of operations.
The amount of capital we may need depends on many factors, including the progress, timing and scope of our product development programs; the progress, timing and scope of our nonclinical studies and clinical trials; the time and cost necessary to obtain regulatory approvals; the time and cost necessary to further develop manufacturing processes and arrange for contract manufacturing; our ability to enter into and maintain collaborative, licensing and other commercial relationships; and our partners’ commitment of time and resources to the development and commercialization of our products.
We may be unable to access the capital markets and even if we can raise additional funding, we may be required to do so on terms that are dilutive to you.
The capital markets have been unpredictable in the recent past for unprofitable companies such as ours. The amount of capital that a company such as ours is able to raise often depends on variables that are beyond our control. As a result, we cannot assure you that we will be able to secure financing on terms attractive to us, or at all. If we are able to consummate a financing arrangement, the amount raised may not be sufficient to meet our future needs. If adequate funds are not available on acceptable terms, or at all, our business, results of operations, financial condition and our continued viability will be materially adversely affected.
Our operating results may fluctuate significantly, which will make our future results difficult to predict and could cause our results to fall below expectations.
Our quarterly and annual operating results may fluctuate significantly, which will make it difficult for us to predict our future results. These fluctuations may occur due to a variety of factors, many of which are outside of our control and may be difficult to predict, including:
· the scalability of our product sales, which is difficult to predict
· the timing and status of enrollment for our clinical trials;
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The cumulative effects of these factors could result in large fluctuations and unpredictability in our quarterly and annual operating results. As a result, comparing our operating results on a period-to-period basis may not be meaningful. Investors should not rely on our past results as an indication of our future performance.
Risks related to product development and regulatory process
We are early in our development efforts of some of our product candidates, and our business is dependent on the successful development of our current and future product candidates. If we are unable to advance our current or future product candidates through clinical trials, obtain marketing approval and ultimately commercialize any product candidates we develop, or experience significant delays in doing so, our business will be materially harmed.
Our product candidates are in different stages of clinical development. Our current and future product candidates may never achieve expected levels of efficacy or an acceptable safety profile. Our use of clinically validated targets to pursue treatments does not guarantee efficacy or safety or necessarily reduce the risk that our current or future product candidates will not achieve expected levels of efficacy or an acceptable safety profile.
The success of our business, including our ability to finance our Company and generate revenue from products in the future will depend heavily on the successful development and eventual commercialization of our product candidates, which may never occur. Our current product candidates, and any future product candidates we develop, will require additional nonclinical and clinical development, management of clinical, nonclinical and manufacturing activities, marketing approval in the United States and other markets, obtaining sufficient manufacturing supply for both clinical development and commercial production, building of a commercial organization, and substantial investment and significant marketing efforts before we generate any revenues from product sales.
As a company, we have limited experience in preparing, submitting and prosecuting regulatory filings. We have no prior experience in developing or securing regulatory approvals for veterinary drugs or treatments. If we do not receive regulatory approvals for current or future product candidates, we may not be able to continue our operations. Even if we successfully obtain regulatory approval to market a product candidate, our revenue will depend, in part, upon the size of the markets in the territories for which we gain regulatory approval and have commercial rights, as well as the availability of competitive products, third-party reimbursement and adoption by physicians.
We plan to seek regulatory approval to commercialize our product candidates both in the United States and in select foreign countries. While the scope of regulatory approval in other countries is generally similar to that in the United States, in order to obtain separate regulatory approval in other countries we must comply with numerous and varying regulatory requirements of such countries. We may be required to expend significant resources to obtain regulatory approval and to comply with ongoing regulations in these jurisdictions.
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The success of our current and future product candidates will depend on many factors, which may include the following:
· successful enrollment and completion of clinical trials;
If we are not successful with respect to one or more of these factors in a timely manner or at all, we could experience significant delays or an inability to successfully obtain regulatory approval of or commercialize the product candidates we develop, which would materially harm our business. If we do not receive marketing approvals for our current or future product candidates, we may not be able to continue our operations. Even if regulatory approvals are obtained, we may never be able to successfully commercialize any products. Accordingly, we cannot provide assurances that we will be able to generate sufficient revenue through the sale of products to continue our business.
Clinical product development involves a lengthy and expensive process, with uncertain outcomes. We may experience delays in completing, or ultimately be unable to complete, the development and commercialization of our current and future product candidates, which could result in increased costs to us, delay or limit our ability to generate revenue and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
To obtain the requisite regulatory approvals to commercialize any of our product candidates, we must demonstrate that our products are safe and effective in humans and animals with respect to our veterinary drug candidates. Clinical trials are expensive and can take many years to complete, and their outcomes are inherently uncertain. We may experience delays in completing current and future clinical trials. We may also experience numerous unforeseen events prior to, during, or as a result of our nonclinical studies or clinical trials that could delay or prevent our ability to receive marketing approval or commercialize the product candidates we develop, including:
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We could encounter delays if a current or future clinical trial is suspended or terminated by us, by the TFDA, FDA or other regulatory authorities and/or review boards. Such authorities may impose such a suspension or termination due to a number of factors, including failure to conduct the clinical trial in accordance with regulatory requirements or our clinical protocols, inspection of the clinical trial operations or trial site by the TFDA, FDA or other regulatory authorities resulting in the imposition of a clinical hold, unforeseen safety issues, failure to demonstrate a benefit from using a product, changes in governmental regulations or administrative actions or lack of adequate funding to continue the clinical trial. Many of the factors that cause, or lead to, a delay in the commencement or completion of clinical trials may also ultimately lead to the denial of marketing approval of our product candidates.
If we experience termination or delays in the completion of any clinical trial of our product candidates, the commercial prospects of our product candidates will be harmed, and our ability to generate product revenues from any of these product candidates may be delayed. In addition, any delays in completing our clinical trials will likely increase our costs, slow down our product candidate development and approval process and impact our ability to commence product sales and generate revenues. Significant clinical trial delays could also allow our competitors to bring products to market before we do, shorten any periods during which we may have the exclusive right to commercialize our product candidates, impair our ability to commercialize our product candidates and harm our business and results of operations.
Any of these occurrences may harm our business, financial condition and prospects significantly. Delays in clinical product development present material uncertainty and risk with respect to our clinical trials, business, and financial condition.
We and our collaboration partners have conducted and intend to conduct clinical trials for selected product candidates at sites outside the United States, and for any of our product candidates for which we seek approval in the United States, the FDA may not accept data from trials conducted in such locations or may require additional U.S.-based trials.
We and our collaboration partners have conducted and plan to continue to conduct, clinical trials outside the United States, including in Taiwan. Although the FDA may accept data from clinical trials conducted outside the United States, acceptance of these data is subject to certain conditions imposed by the FDA. There can be no assurance that the FDA will accept data from trials conducted outside of the United States. If the FDA does not accept the data from any clinical trials that we or our collaboration partners conduct outside the United States, it would likely result in the need for additional clinical trials, which would be costly and time-consuming and delay or permanently halt our ability to develop and market these or other product candidates in the United States. In other jurisdictions, for instance, in Taiwan, there is a similar risk regarding the acceptability of clinical trial data conducted outside of that jurisdiction.
Our long-term prospects depend in part upon discovering, developing and commercializing additional products, including POCT and VELDONA candidates, which may fail in development or suffer delays that adversely affect their commercial viability.
Our future operating results are dependent on our ability to successfully discover, develop, obtain regulatory approval for and commercialize product candidates, including POCT and VELDONA candidates, beyond those we currently have in development. The success of a product candidate is unknown and initial product development success may not result in a viable commercial product. The product development process may require changes in manufacturing methods and formulation/design or additional validation testing. We may also make changes as we work to optimize our manufacturing processes, but we cannot be sure that even minor changes in our processes will result in products that are safe and effective or that will be approved for commercial sale. If a product candidate fails to develop as expected, or we experience additional and/or unforeseen development costs and/or delays, we could face additional costs and/or loss of expected future revenue, which would adversely affect our current financial position and future prospects may be adversely affected.
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Even if we complete the necessary nonclinical studies and clinical trials, the marketing approval process is expensive, time consuming and uncertain, which may prevent us or any of our future collaboration partners from obtaining approvals for the commercialization of our current product candidates and any other product candidate we develop.
Any current or future product candidates, including medical device products, we may develop and the activities associated with their development and commercialization, including their design, testing, manufacture, recordkeeping, labeling, storage, approval, advertising, promotion, sale, and distribution, are subject to comprehensive regulation by the FDA and other regulatory authorities in the United States and by comparable authorities in Taiwan and other countries. Failure to obtain marketing approval for a product candidate will prevent us from commercializing the product candidate in a given jurisdiction. It is possible that some of our current or future product candidates will not obtain regulatory approval in the jurisdiction we are targeting. We have limited experience in filing and supporting the applications necessary to gain marketing approvals, but we expect to rely on third-party CROs or regulatory consultants to assist us in this process. Securing regulatory approval requires the submission of extensive applications to the various regulatory authorities. Product candidates we develop may not be effective or may prove to have adverse characteristics that may preclude our obtaining marketing approval or prevent or limit commercial use.
The process of obtaining marketing approvals, in Taiwan, the United States and other jurisdictions, is expensive, may take many years, if approval is obtained at all, and can vary substantially based upon a variety of factors, including the type, complexity, and novelty of the product candidates involved. Changes in marketing approval policies during the development period, changes in or the enactment of additional statutes or regulations, or changes in regulatory review for each submitted product application, may cause delays in the approval or rejection of an application. The FDA and comparable authorities in other countries may refuse to accept any application or may decide that our data are insufficient for approval and require additional nonclinical, clinical or other studies. Any marketing approval we ultimately obtain may be limited or subject to restrictions or post-approval commitments. If we experience delays in obtaining marketing approval or if we fail to obtain marketing approval of any current or future product candidates we may develop, the commercial prospects for those product candidates may be harmed, and our ability to generate revenues will be materially impaired.
Even if a current or future product candidate, including POCT and VELDONA, receives marketing approval, it may fail to achieve the degree of market acceptance by physicians, patients, third-party payors and others in the medical community necessary for commercial success.
If any current or future product candidate we develop receives marketing approval, whether as a single agent or in combination with other therapies, it may nonetheless fail to gain sufficient market acceptance by physicians, patients, third-party payors, and others in the medical community, or such participants may prefer existing treatment options. If the product candidates we develop, including medical device products, do not achieve an adequate level of market acceptance, we may not generate expected levels of revenues associated with such products, which may prevent those products from becoming profitable. The degree of market acceptance of any product candidate, if approved for commercial sale, will depend on a number of factors, including:
· efficacy and potential advantages compared to alternative tools;
· convenience and ease of use;
· the willingness of the target market to adopt new technologies; and
· the strength of marketing and distribution support.
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The total addressable market opportunity for our current and future products may be much smaller than we estimate.
Our estimates of the total addressable market for our product candidates are based on internal and third-party estimates as well as a number of significant assumptions. Market opportunity estimates and growth forecasts are subject to significant uncertainty and are based on assumptions and estimates. These estimates, which have been derived from a variety of sources, including market research and our own internal estimates, may prove to be incorrect. Further, the continued development of, and approval or authorizations for, vaccines and therapeutic treatments may affect these market opportunity estimates. Our market opportunity may also be limited by new products that enter the market. If any of our estimates prove to be inaccurate, the market opportunity for platform and products could be significantly less than we estimate. If this turns out to be the case, our potential for growth may be limited and our business and future prospects may be materially adversely affected.
We may not obtain approval for our product candidates in any jurisdictions.
Approval of a product candidate in one jurisdiction by a regulatory authority, such as the TFDA or FDA, does not ensure approval of such product candidate by regulatory authorities in other countries or jurisdictions. Commercialization of our product candidates will be subject to the regulatory requirements governing marketing authorization in the jurisdiction in which they are sold.
Approval procedures vary among jurisdictions and can involve requirements and administrative review periods different from, and more onerous than, those in Taiwan and the United States, including additional nonclinical studies or clinical trials. In many countries outside Taiwan and United States, a product candidate must be approved for reimbursement before it can be approved for sale in that country. In some cases, the price that we intend to charge for any product candidates, if approved, is also subject to approval. For example, obtaining approval for our product candidates in the European Union (the EU) from the European Commission following the opinion of the EMA, would be a lengthy and expensive process. The EMA may limit the indications for which the product may be marketed, require extensive warnings on the product labeling or require expensive and time-consuming additional clinical trials or reporting as conditions of approval. Approval of certain product candidates outside of Taiwan and the United States, particularly those that target diseases that are more prevalent outside of the United States, will be particularly important to the commercial success of such product candidates. Obtaining regulatory approvals in various jurisdictions and complying with the regulatory requirements of multiple jurisdictions could result in significant delays, difficulties and costs for us and could delay or prevent the introduction of our product candidates in certain countries.
Even if we are able to commercialize any product candidates, such products may become subject to unfavorable pricing regulations or third-party coverage and reimbursement policies, which would harm our business.
The regulations that govern marketing approvals, pricing and reimbursement for new products vary widely from country to country. Some countries require approval of the sale price of a product before it can be marketed. In many countries, the pricing review period begins after marketing approval is granted. As a result, we might obtain marketing approval for a product candidate in a particular country, but then be subject to price regulations that delay our commercial launch of the product candidate. Adverse pricing limitations may hinder our ability to recoup our investment in one or more product candidates, even if our product candidates obtain marketing approval. Our ability to successfully commercialize any product candidates, whether as a single agent or in combination, will also depend in part on the extent to which coverage and reimbursement for these product candidates and related treatments is available from government authorities, private health insurers and other organizations. Government authorities and third-party payors, such as private health insurers and health maintenance organizations, and establish reimbursement levels. It is difficult to predict at this time what government authorities and third-party payors may decide with respect to coverage and reimbursement for our programs (if approved).
A primary trend in the U.S. healthcare industry and elsewhere is cost containment. Government authorities, particularly in the European Union, and third-party payors have attempted to control costs by limiting coverage and the amount of reimbursement for particular products and requiring substitutions of generic products and/or biosimilars. Reimbursement may impact the demand for, or the price of, any product candidate for which we obtain marketing approval. If reimbursement is not available or is available only to limited levels, we may not be able to successfully commercialize any product candidate for which we obtain marketing approval.
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If product liability lawsuits are brought against us, we may incur substantial liabilities and may be required to limit commercialization of any approved products.
We face an inherent risk of product liability as a result of the clinical testing of product candidates and will face an even greater risk if we commercialize any products. For example, we may be sued if any product candidate we develop is found to be otherwise unsuitable during clinical testing, manufacturing, marketing or sale. Any such product liability claims may include allegations of defects in manufacturing, defects in design, a failure to warn of dangers inherent in the product, negligence, strict liability or a breach of warranties. Claims could also be asserted under state consumer protection acts. If we cannot successfully defend ourselves against product liability claims, we may incur substantial liabilities or be required to limit commercialization of any approved products. Even successful defense would require significant financial and management resources. Regardless of the merits or eventual outcome, liability claims may result in:
· decreased demand for any approved product;
· injury to our reputation;
· withdrawal of clinical trial participants;
· initiation of investigations by regulators;
· costs to defend litigation;
· a diversion of management’s time and our resources;
· substantial monetary payments to trial participants or patients;
· loss of revenue;
· exhaustion of any available insurance and our capital resources;
· adverse effects to our results of operations and business;
· the inability to commercialize any product candidate; and
· a decline in our share price.
Our inability to obtain sufficient product liability insurance at an acceptable cost or at all to protect against potential product liability claims could prevent or inhibit the commercialization of products we develop, alone or with collaboration partners.
Additionally, insurance coverage is increasingly expensive. We may not be able to maintain insurance, including product liability insurance at a reasonable cost or in an amount adequate to satisfy any liability that may arise, if at all, that could have an adverse effect on our business and financial condition. Our product liability insurance policy contains various exclusions, and we may be subject to a product liability claim for which we have no coverage. We may have to pay any amounts awarded by a court or negotiated in a settlement that exceed our coverage limitations or that are not covered by our insurance, and we may not have, or be able to obtain, sufficient capital to pay such amounts. Similar challenges to obtaining coverage and reimbursement will apply to companion POCTs that we or our collaborators may develop. Even if our agreements with current or future collaborators entitle us to indemnification against losses, such indemnification may not be available or adequate should any claim arise.
Any disruption in our research and development facility could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our facility may be affected by natural or man-made disasters. We are vulnerable to damage from other types of disasters, including power loss, attacks from extremist organizations, fires, floods, and similar events. If our facilities are affected by a natural or man-made disaster, we may be forced to curtail our operations and/or rely on third-parties to perform some or all of our research and development activities. Although we believe we possess adequate insurance in light of our current operations, such insurance may not be sufficient to cover all of our potential losses and may not continue to be available to us on acceptable terms, or at all. In the future, we may choose to expand our operations in either our existing facilities or in new facilities.
Our business and operations would be adversely affected in the event that our computer systems or those of our partners, contract research organizations, contractors, consultants or other third parties we work with were to suffer system failures, cyber-attacks, loss of data or other security incidents.
Despite the implementation of security measures, our computer systems, as well as those of our partners, contract research organizations, contractors, consultants, law and accounting firms and other third parties we work with, may sustain damage from computer viruses, unauthorized access, data breaches, phishing attacks, ransomware attacks, denial-of-service attacks, cybercriminals, natural disasters, terrorism, war and telecommunication and electrical failures. We rely on our partners and third-party providers to implement effective security measures and identify and correct for any such failures, deficiencies or breaches. The risks of a security breach or disruption, particularly through cyber-attacks or cyber intrusion, including by computer hackers, foreign governments and cyber-terrorists, have increased significantly and are becoming increasingly difficult to detect.
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If a failure, accident or security breach were to occur and cause interruptions in our operations, or the operations of our partners or third-party providers, it could result in a misappropriation of confidential information, including our intellectual property or financial information or clinical trial participant personal data, a material disruption or delay in our drug development programs, and/or significant monetary losses. For example, the loss of preclinical or clinical trial data from completed, ongoing or planned trials, or chemistry, manufacturing and controls data for our product candidates could result in delays in regulatory approval efforts and significantly increase our costs to recover or reproduce the data. Any such breach, loss or compromise of clinical trial participant personal data may also subject us to civil fines and penalties under the privacy laws of the European Union or other countries as well as state and federal privacy laws in the United States.
Risks related to reliance on third parties
We rely on third parties to manufacture our product and product candidates, and we intend to rely on third parties which increases the risk that we will not have sufficient quantities of such product candidates or products or such quantities at an acceptable cost, which could delay, prevent or impair our development or commercialization efforts.
We do not own or operate manufacturing facilities. Our current strategy is to outsource all manufacturing of our product and product candidates to other companies, including Taiwan Carbon Nano Technology (“TCNT”), our affiliate and product co-developer, and Swiss Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.
Our manufacturers may be unable to successfully increase the manufacturing capacity for any of our product and product candidates in a timely or cost-effective manner, or at all. In addition, quality issues may arise during scale-up activities and at any other time. If our manufacturers are unable to successfully scale up the manufacture of our product candidates in sufficient quality and quantity, the development, testing and clinical trials, if applicable, of that product candidate may be delayed or infeasible, and regulatory approval or commercial launch of that product candidate may be delayed or not obtained, which could significantly harm our business.
If we engage additional manufacturers in the future, our use of new manufacturers increases the risk of delays in production or insufficient supplies of our product candidates.
Even after a third-party manufacturer has gained significant experience in manufacturing our product and product candidates or even if we believe we have succeeded in optimizing the manufacturing process, there can be no assurance that such manufacturer will produce sufficient quantities for us in a timely manner or continuously over time, or at all.
We may be delayed if we need to change the manufacturing process used by our manufacturers. Further, if we change an approved manufacturing process, then we may be delayed if the FDA or a comparable foreign authority needs to review the new manufacturing process before it may be used.
Our failure, or the failure of our manufacturers, to comply with applicable requirements could result in sanctions being imposed on us, including fines, injunctions, civil penalties, delays, suspension or withdrawal of approvals, license revocation, seizures or recalls of product candidates or products, operating restrictions and/or criminal prosecutions, any of which could significantly and adversely affect supplies of our product candidates.
Our future product candidates and any products that we may develop may compete with other product candidates and products for access to manufacturing facilities.
If the third parties that we engage to supply any materials or manufacture product for our preclinical tests and clinical trials should cease to continue to do so for any reason, we likely would experience delays in advancing these tests and trials while we identify and qualify replacement suppliers or manufacturers and we may be unable to obtain replacement supplies on terms that are favorable to us. In addition, if we are not able to obtain adequate supplies of our product candidates or the substances used to manufacture them, it will be more difficult for us to develop our product candidates and compete effectively.
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Our current and anticipated future dependence upon others for the manufacture of our product candidates may adversely affect our future profit margins and our ability to develop product candidates and commercialize any products that receive marketing approval on a timely and competitive basis.
We currently have limited marketing capabilities. If we are unable to expand sales and marketing capabilities on our own or through third parties, or are delayed in establishing these capabilities, we will be unable to successfully commercialize our product candidates, if approved, or generate product revenue.
We currently have limited marketing capabilities. To commercialize our product candidates, if approved, in the United States and other jurisdictions we seek to enter, we must expand our marketing, sales, distribution, managerial and other non-technical capabilities or make arrangements with third parties to perform these services, and we may not be successful in doing so. There are significant risks involved in building and managing a sales organization, including our ability to hire, retain and incentivize qualified individuals, generate sufficient sales leads, provide adequate training to sales and marketing personnel, and effectively manage a geographically dispersed sales and marketing team. Any failure or delay in the development of our internal sales, marketing, distribution and pricing/reimbursement/access capabilities would impact adversely the commercialization of these products.
To commercialize our products, we also intend to leverage the commercial infrastructure of our distributors. We may choose to collaborate with additional third parties in various countries that have direct sales forces and established distribution systems, either to augment our own sales force and distribution systems or in lieu of our own sales force and distribution systems. If we are unable to enter into such arrangements on acceptable terms or at all, we may not be able to successfully commercialize our product candidates, especially in other countries where we currently do not have a foreign legal presence. The inability to commercialize successfully our product candidates, either on our own or through collaborations with one or more third parties, would harm our business, financial condition, operating results and prospects.
Our employees, independent contractors, consultants, commercial or strategic partners, principal investigators or CROs may engage in misconduct or other improper activities, including noncompliance with regulatory standards and requirements and insider trading, which could have a material adverse effect on our business.
We are exposed to the risk of employee fraud or other misconduct. Misconduct by employees, independent contractors, consultants, commercial partners, principal investigators, contract manufacturing organizations (CROs) could include intentional, reckless, negligent, or unintentional failures to comply with TFDA or FDA regulations, comply with applicable fraud and abuse laws, provide accurate information to the TFDA or FDA, properly calculate pricing information required by federal programs, report financial information or data accurately or disclose unauthorized activities to us. This misconduct could also involve the improper use or misrepresentation of information obtained in the course of clinical trials, which could result in regulatory sanctions and serious harm to our reputation. It is not always possible to identify and deter this type of 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. Moreover, it is possible for a whistleblower to pursue a False Claims Act case against us even if the government considers the claim unmeritorious and declines to intervene, which could require us to incur costs defending against such a claim. 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, financial condition, results of operations, stock price and prospects, including the imposition of significant fines or other sanctions.
We may form or seek strategic partnerships in the future, and we may not realize the benefits of such alliances or licensing arrangements.
From time to time, we may form or seek strategic partnerships, create joint ventures or collaborations or enter into licensing arrangements with third parties that we believe will complement or augment our development and commercialization efforts with respect to our product candidates and any future product candidates that we may develop. Any such relationships may require us to incur non-recurring and other charges, increase our near and long-term expenditures, issue securities that dilute our existing stockholders or disrupt our management and business. These relationships also may result in a delay in the development of our product candidates if we become dependent upon the other party and such other party does not prioritize the development of our product candidates relative to its other development activities. Additionally, any joint ventures, collaborations, or licensing arrangements would be subject to the same product candidate development and compliance risks and obligations as we would be if we were to develop the product candidate on our own. Should any third party with which we enter into any of these arrangements not comply with the applicable regulatory requirements, we or they may be subject to regulatory enforcement action and we or they may be delayed or prevented from obtaining marketing approval for the applicable product candidate.
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In addition, we face significant competition in seeking appropriate strategic partners and the negotiation process is time-consuming and complex. Moreover, we may not be successful in our efforts to establish a strategic partnership or other alternative arrangement for our product candidates because they may be deemed to be at too early of a stage of development for collaborative effort, and third parties may not view our product candidates as having the requisite potential to demonstrate safety and efficacy. If we license products or acquire businesses, we may not be able to realize the benefit of such transactions if we are unable to successfully integrate them with our existing operations and company culture. Any licensed products or acquired businesses may also subject us to the risk of regulatory enforcement should the product or business not be compliant with applicable regulatory requirements. We cannot be certain that, following a strategic transaction or licensing arrangement, we will achieve the revenue or specific net income that justifies such a transaction.
Risks related to intellectual property, patents, and data privacy
Intellectual property rights vary across foreign jurisdictions, and we may not be able to protect our intellectual property rights throughout the world.
We cannot assure you that any intellectual property rights that we currently have or may receive can be successfully asserted in the future or that they will not be invalidated, circumvented or challenged. In addition, the laws of some foreign countries do not protect proprietary rights to the same extent, as do the laws of the United States. Our means of protecting any proprietary rights we may receive in the United States or abroad may not be adequate. Filing, prosecuting, maintaining, defending and enforcing patents on our product candidates in all countries throughout the world would be prohibitively expensive. The requirements for patentability may differ in certain countries, particularly developing countries, and the breadth of patent claims allowed can be inconsistent. In addition, the laws of some foreign countries may not protect our intellectual property rights to the same extent as the laws in the United States. Consequently, we may not be able to prevent third parties from practicing our inventions, or from selling or importing products made using our inventions in and into the United States or other jurisdictions. Competitors may use our technologies in jurisdictions where we have not obtained patents to develop their own products and may export otherwise infringing products to territories where we have patents, but enforcement rights are not as strong as those in the United States. These products may compete with our product candidates and our patents or other intellectual property rights may not be effective or sufficient to prevent them from competing.
We may not have patent rights in certain foreign countries in which a market may exist in the future. Moreover, in foreign jurisdictions where we do have patent rights, proceedings to enforce such rights could result in substantial costs and divert our efforts and attention from other aspects of our business, could put our patents at risk of being invalidated or interpreted narrowly, and our patent applications at risk of not issuing, and could provoke third parties to assert claims against us. We may not prevail in any lawsuits that we initiate and the damages or other remedies awarded, if any, may not be commercially meaningful. Thus, we may not be able to stop a competitor from marketing and selling in foreign countries products that are the same as or similar to our product.
Many companies have encountered significant problems in protecting and defending intellectual property rights in foreign jurisdictions. The legal systems of some countries do not favor the enforcement or protection of patents, trade secrets and other intellectual property, which could make it difficult for us to stop the infringement of our patents or marketing of competing products in violation of our intellectual property and proprietary rights generally. Proceedings to enforce our intellectual property rights in foreign jurisdictions could result in substantial costs and divert our efforts and attention from other aspects of our business, could put our patents at risk of being invalidated or interpreted narrowly and our patent applications at risk of not issuing and could provoke third parties to assert claims against us. We may not prevail in any lawsuits that we initiate, and the damages or other remedies awarded, if any, may not be commercially meaningful.
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Many foreign countries, including some EU countries, India, Japan, and China, have compulsory licensing laws under which a patent owner may be compelled under specified circumstances to grant licenses to third parties. In addition, many countries limit the enforceability of patents against government agencies or government contractors. In those countries, we may have limited remedies if patents are infringed or if we are compelled to grant a license to a third party, which could materially diminish the value of the applicable patents and limit our potential revenue opportunities. Accordingly, our efforts to enforce our intellectual property rights around the world may be inadequate to obtain a significant commercial advantage from the intellectual property that we develop or license, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
If we and our collaborators are unable to obtain and maintain sufficient patent and other intellectual property protection for our product candidates and technology, our competitors could develop and commercialize products and technology similar or identical to ours, and we may not be able to compete effectively in our market or successfully commercialize any product candidates we may develop.
Our success depends in significant part on our ability and the ability of our current or future collaborators and licensors to obtain, maintain, enforce and defend patents and other intellectual property rights with respect to our product candidates and technology and to operate our business without infringing, misappropriating, or otherwise violating the intellectual property rights of others. If we and our current or future collaborators and licensors are unable to obtain and maintain sufficient intellectual property protection for our product candidates or other future product candidates that we may identify, or if the scope of the intellectual property protection obtained is not sufficiently broad, our competitors and other third parties could develop and commercialize product candidates similar or identical to ours, and our ability to successfully commercialize our product candidates and other product candidates that we may pursue may be impaired.
The process of applying for patent protection itself is time consuming and expensive and we cannot assure you that we have prepared or will be able to prepare, file and prosecute all necessary or desirable patent applications at a reasonable cost or in a timely manner. It is also possible that we will fail to identify patentable aspects of inventions made in the course of development and commercialization activities before it is too late to obtain patent protection on them. In addition, our patents and applications may not be prosecuted and enforced in a manner consistent with the best interests of our business. It is possible that defects of form in the preparation or filing of our patents or patent applications may exist, or may arise in the future, for example, with respect to proper priority claims, inventorship, claim scope or patent term adjustments. We can provide no assurance that any of our current or future patent applications will result in issued patents or that any issued patents will provide us with any competitive advantage. We cannot be certain that there is no invalidating prior art of which we and the patent examiner are unaware or that our interpretation of the relevance of prior art is correct. Failure to obtain issued patents could have a material adverse effect on our ability to develop and commercialize our product candidates. Even if our patent applications do issue as patents, third parties may be able to challenge the validity and enforceability of our patents on a variety of grounds, including that such third party’s patents and patent applications have an earlier priority date, and if such challenges are successful we may be required to obtain one or more licenses from such third parties, or be prohibited from commercializing our product candidates. We may not be able to obtain these licenses on acceptable or commercially reasonable terms, if at all, or these licenses may be non-exclusive, which could result in our competitors using the same intellectual property.
We seek to protect our proprietary positions by, among other things, filing patent applications in the United States and in relevant foreign jurisdictions related to our current product candidates and other future product candidates that we may identify. Obtaining, maintaining, defending and enforcing pharmaceutical patents is costly, time consuming and complex, and we may not be able to file and prosecute all necessary or desirable patent applications, or maintain, enforce and license any patents that may issue from such patent applications, at a reasonable cost or in a timely manner. It is also possible that we will fail to identify patentable aspects of our research and development output before it is too late to obtain patent protection. Moreover, under certain of our license or collaboration agreements, we may not have the right to control the preparation, filing, prosecution and maintenance of patent applications, or to maintain the rights to patents licensed to or from third parties.
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Although we enter into confidentiality agreements with parties who have access to confidential or patentable aspects of our research and development output, such as our employees, collaborators, CROs, contract manufacturers, consultants, advisors and other third parties, any of these parties may breach these agreements and disclose such output before a patent application is filed, thereby jeopardizing our ability to seek patent protection. Further, we may not be aware of all third-party intellectual property rights potentially relating to our product candidates. Publications of discoveries in the scientific literature often lag behind the actual discoveries, and patent applications in the United States and other jurisdictions are typically not published until 18 months after filing or, in some cases, not at all. Therefore, we cannot know with certainty whether we were the first to make the inventions claimed in our patents or pending patent applications, or that we were the first to file for patent protection of such inventions.
The patent position of biotech companies generally is highly uncertain, involves complex legal, technological and factual questions and has, in recent years, been the subject of much debate and litigation throughout the world. The subject matter claimed in a patent application can be significantly reduced or eliminated before the patent issues, if at all, and its scope can be reinterpreted or narrowed after issuance. Therefore, our pending and future patent applications may not result in patents being issued in relevant jurisdictions that protect our product candidates, in whole or in part, or that effectively prevent others from commercializing competitive product candidates, and even if our patent applications issue as patents in relevant jurisdictions, they may not issue in a form that will provide us with any meaningful protection for our product candidates or technology, prevent competitors from competing with us or otherwise provide us with any competitive advantage. Additionally, our competitors may be able to circumvent our patents by challenging their validity or by developing similar or alternative product candidates or technologies in a non-infringing manner. The issuance of a patent is not conclusive as to its inventorship, scope, validity or enforceability, and our patents may be challenged in the courts or patent offices in the United States and abroad. An adverse determination in any such submission, proceeding or litigation could result in loss of exclusivity or ability to sell our products free from infringing the patents of third parties, patent claims being narrowed, invalidated or held unenforceable, in whole or in part, and limitation of the scope or duration of the patents directed to our product candidates, all of which could limit our ability to stop others from using or commercializing similar or identical product candidates or technology to compete directly with us, without payment to us, or result in our inability to manufacture or commercialize product candidates or approved products (if any) without infringing third-party patent rights. In addition, if the breadth or strength of the claims of our patents and patent applications is threatened, regardless of the outcome, it could dissuade companies from collaborating with us to license, develop or commercialize current or future product candidates, or could have a material adverse effect on our ability to raise funds necessary to continue our research programs or clinical trials. Such proceedings also may result in substantial cost and require significant time from our scientists and management, even if the eventual outcome is favorable to us.
We may become involved in lawsuits to protect or enforce our patents or other intellectual property, which could be expensive, time-consuming and unsuccessful, and issued patents directed towards our technology and product candidates could be found invalid or unenforceable if challenged.
Competitors and other third parties may infringe or otherwise violate our issued patents or other intellectual property or the patents or other intellectual property of our licensors and collaborators. In addition, our patents or the patents of our licensors and collaborators may become involved in inventorship or priority disputes. To counter infringement or other unauthorized use, we may be required to file infringement claims, which can be expensive and time-consuming. Significantly, our pending patent applications cannot be enforced against third parties practicing the technology claimed in such applications unless and until a patent issue from such applications. Our ability to enforce patent rights also depends on our ability to detect infringement. It may be difficult to detect infringers who do not advertise the components or methods that are used in connection with their products and services. Moreover, it may be difficult or impossible to obtain evidence of infringement in a competitor’s or potential competitor’s product or service. Any claims we assert against perceived infringers could provoke these parties to assert counterclaims against us alleging that we infringe their patents or that our patents are invalid or unenforceable. In a patent infringement proceeding, a court may decide that a patent of ours is invalid or unenforceable, in whole or in part, construe the patent’s claims narrowly or refuse to stop the other party from using the technology at issue on the grounds that our patents do not cover the technology. An adverse result in any litigation proceeding could put one or more of our owned or licensed patents at risk of being invalidated, held unenforceable or interpreted narrowly. We may find it impractical or undesirable to enforce our intellectual property against some third parties.
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If we were to initiate legal proceedings against a third party to enforce a patent directed to our product candidates, or one of our future product candidates, the defendant could counterclaim that our patent is invalid or unenforceable. In patent litigation in the United States, defendant counterclaims alleging invalidity or unenforceability are commonplace. Grounds for a validity challenge could be an alleged failure to meet any of several statutory requirements, including lack of novelty, obviousness, non-enablement or insufficient written description. Grounds for an unenforceability assertion could be an allegation that someone connected with prosecution of the patent withheld relevant information from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) or made a misleading statement during prosecution. Third parties may also raise similar claims before the USPTO or an equivalent foreign body, even outside the context of litigation. Such proceedings could result in the revocation of, cancellation of, or amendment to our patents in such a way that they no longer cover our technology or any product candidates that we may develop. The outcome following legal assertions of invalidity and unenforceability is unpredictable. With respect to the validity question, for example, we cannot be certain that there is no invalidating prior art of which we and the patent examiner were unaware during prosecution. If a defendant were to prevail on a legal assertion of invalidity or unenforceability, we would lose at least part, and perhaps all, of the patent rights directed towards the applicable product candidates or technology related to the patent rendered invalid or unenforceable. Such a loss of patent rights would materially harm our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
Interference and/or derivation proceedings provoked by third parties or brought by us or declared by the USPTO may be necessary to determine the priority of inventions with respect to our patents or patent applications. An unfavorable outcome could require us to cease using the related technology or to attempt to license rights to it from the prevailing party. Our business could be materially harmed if the prevailing party does not offer us a license on commercially reasonable terms. Furthermore, because of the substantial amount of discovery required in connection with intellectual property litigation, there is a risk that some of our confidential information could be compromised by disclosure during this type of litigation.
Some of our competitors are larger than we are and have substantially greater resources. They are, therefore, likely to be able to sustain the costs of complex patent litigation or proceedings more effectively than we can because of their greater financial resources and more mature and developed intellectual property portfolios. Accordingly, despite our efforts, we may not be able to prevent third parties from infringing, misappropriating or otherwise violating our intellectual property. Even if resolved in our favor, litigation or other legal proceedings relating to intellectual property claims could result in substantial costs and diversion of management resources, which could harm our business. In addition, the uncertainties associated with litigation could compromise our ability to raise the funds necessary to continue our clinical trials, continue our internal research programs, or in-license needed technology or other product candidates. There could also be public announcements of the results of the hearing, motions, or other interim proceedings or developments. If securities analysts or investors perceive those results to be negative, it could cause the price of shares of our common stock to decline. Any of the foregoing events could harm our business, financial condition, results of operation and prospects.
Patent terms may be inadequate to protect our competitive position on our product candidates for an adequate amount of time.
The USPTO and various foreign governmental patent agencies require compliance with a number of procedural, documentary, fee payment and other similar provisions during the patent application process. In addition, periodic maintenance fees on issued patents often must be paid to the USPTO and foreign patent agencies over the lifetime of the patent. While an unintentional lapse can in many cases be cured by payment of a late fee or by other means in accordance with the applicable rules, there are situations in which noncompliance can result in abandonment or lapse of the patent or patent application, resulting in partial or complete loss of patent rights in the relevant jurisdiction. Non-compliance events that could result in abandonment or lapse of a patent or patent application include, but are not limited to, failure to respond to official actions within prescribed time limits, non-payment of fees and failure to properly legalize and submit formal documents. If we fail to maintain the patents and patent applications covering our product or procedures, we may not be able to stop a competitor from marketing products that are the same as or similar to our product and technologies.
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Patents have a limited lifespan. The terms of individual patents depend upon the legal term for patents in the countries in which they are granted. In most countries, including the United States, if all maintenance fees are timely paid, the natural expiration of a utility patent is generally 20 years from its earliest non-provisional filing date in the applicable country. However, the actual protection afforded by a patent varies from country to country, and depends upon many factors, including the type of patent, the scope of its coverage, the availability of regulatory-related extensions, the availability of legal remedies in a particular country and the validity and enforceability of the patent. Various extensions including patent term extension, or PTE, and patent term adjustment, or PTA, may be available, but the lives of such extensions, and the protections they afford, are limited. Even if patents covering our product candidates are obtained, once the patent life has expired, we may be open to competition from competitive products, including biosimilars and generics. Given the amount of time required for the development, testing and regulatory review of new product candidates, patents protecting our product candidates might expire before or shortly after we or our partners commercialize those candidates. As a result, our owned and licensed patent portfolio may not provide us with sufficient rights to exclude others from commercializing products similar or identical to ours
If we are unable to protect the confidentiality of our trade secrets, our business and competitive position could be harmed.
In addition to seeking patents for our technologies and product candidates, we also rely on trade secret protection, as well as confidentiality agreements, non-disclosure agreements and invention assignment agreements with our employees, consultants and third-parties, to protect our know-how and other confidential and proprietary information, especially where we do not believe patent protection is appropriate or obtainable.
It is our policy to require our employees, corporate collaborators, outside scientific collaborators, CROs, contract manufacturers, consultants, advisors, and other third parties to execute confidentiality agreements upon the commencement of employment or consulting relationships with us. These agreements generally provide that all confidential information concerning our business or financial affairs developed by or made known to an individual or entity during the course of that party’s relationship with us is to be kept confidential and not disclosed to third parties, except in certain specified circumstances. In the case of employees, the agreements provide that all inventions conceived by the individual, and that are related to our current or planned business or research and development or made during normal working hours, on our premises or using our equipment or proprietary information, are our exclusive property. In the case of consultants and other third-party service providers, the agreements provide us with certain rights to all inventions arising from the services provided to us by those individuals or entities. However, we cannot guarantee that we have entered into such agreements with each party that may have or have had access to our trade secrets or proprietary technologies and processes. Additionally, the assignment of intellectual property rights may not be self-executing, or assignment agreements may be breached, and we may be forced to bring claims against third parties, or defend claims that they may bring against us, to determine the ownership of what we regard as our intellectual property. We may not be able to obtain adequate remedies for any breaches of such agreements. Ultimately, enforcing a claim that a party illegally disclosed or misappropriated a trade secret can be difficult, expensive, and time-consuming, and the outcome is unpredictable.
In addition to contractual measures, we try to protect the confidential nature of our proprietary information through other appropriate precautions, such as physical and technological security measures. However, trade secrets and know-how can be difficult to protect. These measures may not, for example, in the case of misappropriation of a trade secret by an employee or third party with authorized access, provide adequate protection for our proprietary information. Our security measures may not prevent an employee or consultant from misappropriating our trade secrets and providing them to a competitor, and any recourse we might take against this type of misconduct may not provide an adequate remedy to protect our interests fully. In addition, our trade secrets may be independently developed by others in a manner that could prevent us from receiving legal recourse. If any of our confidential or proprietary information, such as our trade secrets, were to be disclosed or misappropriated, or if any of that information was independently developed by a competitor, our competitive position could be harmed.
In addition, courts inside and outside the United States are sometimes less willing or unwilling to protect trade secrets. If we choose to go to court to stop a third party from using any of our trade secrets, we may incur substantial costs and we cannot guarantee a successful outcome. Even if we are successful, these types of lawsuits may consume significant amounts of our time and other resources. Any of the foregoing could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.
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We may be subject to damages resulting from claims that we or our employees have wrongfully used or disclosed alleged trade secrets of our competitors or are in breach of non-competition or non-solicitation agreements with our competitors.
We could in the future be subject to claims that we or our employees have inadvertently or otherwise used or disclosed alleged trade secrets or other proprietary information of former employers, competitors, or other third parties. Although we endeavor to ensure that our employees and consultants do not use the intellectual property, proprietary information, know-how or trade secrets of others in their work for us, we may in the future be subject to claims that we caused an employee to breach the terms of his or her non-competition or non-solicitation agreement, or that we or these individuals have, inadvertently or otherwise, used or disclosed the alleged trade secrets or other proprietary information of a former employer or competitor. Litigation may be necessary to defend against these claims. Even if we are successful in defending against these claims, litigation could result in substantial costs and could be a distraction to management. If our defense to those claims fails, in addition to paying monetary damages, a court could prohibit us from using technologies or features that are essential to our product, if such technologies or features are found to incorporate or be derived from the trade secrets or other proprietary information of the former employers or other third parties. An inability to incorporate technologies or features that are important or essential to our product may prevent us from selling our product. In addition, we may lose valuable intellectual property rights or personnel. Moreover, any such litigation or the threat thereof may adversely affect our ability to hire employees or contract with independent sales representatives. A loss of key personnel or their work product could hamper or prevent our ability to commercialize our product.
Changes in U.S. patent law, or laws in other countries, could diminish the value of patents in general, thereby impairing our ability to protect our product candidates.
As is the case with other pharmaceutical and biotech companies, our success is heavily dependent on intellectual property, particularly patents. Obtaining and enforcing patents in the pharmaceutical industry involve a high degree of technological and legal complexity. Therefore, obtaining and enforcing pharmaceutical patents is costly, time consuming and inherently uncertain. Changes in either the patent laws or in the interpretations of patent laws in the United States and other countries may diminish the value of our intellectual property and may increase the uncertainties and costs surrounding the prosecution of patent applications and the enforcement or defense of issued patents. We cannot predict the breadth of claims that may be allowed or enforced in our patents or in our licensor’s patents. In addition, Congress or other foreign legislative bodies may pass patent reform legislation that is unfavorable to us. For example, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled on several patent cases in recent years, either narrowing the scope of patent protection available in certain circumstances or weakening the rights of patent owners in certain situations. In addition to increasing uncertainty regarding our ability to obtain patents in the future, this combination of events has created uncertainty with respect to the value of patents, once obtained. Depending on decisions by the U.S. Congress, the U.S. federal courts, the USPTO, or similar authorities in foreign jurisdictions, the laws and regulations governing patents could change in unpredictable ways that would weaken our ability to obtain new patents or to enforce our existing patent and the patents we might obtain or license in the future. Additionally, the application and interpretation of China’s intellectual property right laws and the procedures and standards for granting patents, copyrights, know-how or other intellectual property rights in China are still evolving and are uncertain, and we cannot assure you that PRC courts or regulatory authorities would agree with our analysis. If we were found to have violated the intellectual property rights of others, we may be subject to liability and penalties for our infringement activities or may be prohibited from using such intellectual property, and we may incur licensing fees or be forced to develop alternatives of our own. As a result, our business and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.
Risks related to our business
We will need to increase the size of our Company and may not effectively manage our growth.
Our success will depend upon growing our business and our employee base. Over the next twelve months, we plan to add additional employees to assist us with research and development and our commercialization efforts. Our future growth, if any, may cause a significant strain on our management, and our operational, financial and other resources. Our ability to manage our growth effectively will require us to implement and improve our operational, financial and management systems and to expand, train, manage and motivate our employees. These demands may require the hiring of additional management personnel and the development of additional expertise by management. Any increase in resources devoted to research and product development without a corresponding increase in our operational, financial and management systems could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
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Our future success depends on our ability to retain key executives and to attract, retain and motivate qualified personnel.
We are highly dependent on the research and development, clinical, financial, operational and other business expertise of our executive officers, as well as the other principal members of our management, scientific and clinical teams. Although we have entered into employment agreements with our executive officers, each of them may terminate their employment with us at any time. We do not maintain “key person” insurance for any of our executives or other employees. Recruiting and retaining qualified scientific, clinical, manufacturing, accounting, legal and sales and marketing personnel will also be critical to our success.
The loss of the services of our executive officers or other key employees could impede the achievement of our research, development and commercialization objectives and seriously harm our ability to successfully implement our business strategy. Furthermore, replacing executive officers and key employees may be difficult and may take an extended period of time because of the limited number of individuals in our industry with the breadth of skills and experience required to successfully develop, gain marketing approval of and commercialize products. Competition to hire from this limited pool is intense, and we may be unable to hire, train, retain or motivate these key personnel on acceptable terms given the competition among numerous pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies for similar personnel. We also experience competition for the hiring of scientific and clinical personnel from universities and research institutions. In addition, we rely on consultants and advisors, including scientific and clinical advisors, to assist us in formulating our research and development and commercialization strategy. Our consultants and advisors may be employed by employers other than us and may have commitments under consulting or advisory contracts with other entities that may limit their availability to us. Our success as a public company also depends on implementing and maintaining internal controls and the accuracy and timeliness of our financial reporting. If we are unable to continue to attract and retain high quality personnel, our ability to pursue our growth strategy will be limited.
As we are actively involved in marketing VELDONA Pet supplements within a fiercely competitive industry, any inability to effectively compete may adversely impact our operational results.
The pet health supplement industry is highly competitive. We compete on the basis of product and ingredient quality, product availability, brand awareness, loyalty and trust, product variety and innovation, price and convenience and promotional efforts. The pet products are increasingly competitive due to the expansion of pet-related product offerings by incumbents and new entrants. We face direct competition from companies that sell various products at a lower price point and distribute such products to traditional retailers, which are larger than we are and have greater financial resources. Price gaps between products may result in market share erosion and harm our business. Our current and potential competitors may also establish cooperative or strategic relationships amongst themselves or with third parties that may further enhance their resources and offerings. Further, it is possible that domestic or foreign companies, some with greater experience in the pet health and wellness industry or greater financial resources than we possess, will seek to provide products or services that compete directly or indirectly with ours in the future.
Many of our competitors may have longer operating histories, greater brand recognition, larger fulfillment infrastructures, greater technical capabilities, significantly greater financial, marketing and other resources and larger customer bases than we do. These factors may allow our competitors to derive greater net sales and profits from their existing customer base, acquire customers at lower costs or respond more quickly than we can to new or emerging technologies and changes in consumer preferences or habits. These competitors may engage in more extensive research and development efforts, undertake more far-reaching marketing campaigns and adopt more aggressive pricing policies, which may allow them to build larger customer bases or generate net sales from their customer bases more effectively than we do.
Our competitors may be able to identify and adapt to changes in consumer preferences more quickly than us due to their resources and scale. They may also be more successful in marketing and selling their products, better able to increase prices to reflect cost pressures and better able to increase their promotional activity, which may impact us and the entire pet health and wellness industry. Increased competition as to any of our products could result in price reduction, increased costs, reduced margins and loss of market share, which could negatively affect our profitability. There can be no assurance that we will be able to successfully compete against these other companies. Expansion into markets served by our competitors and entry of new competitors or expansion of existing competitors into our markets could materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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The point-of-care testing (“POCT”) market is extremely competitive and rapidly evolving, making it difficult to evaluate our business and future prospects.
The market for POCT testing is extremely competitive. Further, the POCT testing industry, as well as the manner in which healthcare services are delivered more broadly, is currently experiencing rapid change, technological and scientific breakthroughs, new product introductions and enhancements and evolving industry standards, as well as the emergence of telehealth and other changes in the way healthcare services are delivered. All of these factors could affect the degree to which our products gain market acceptance or approval or result in our products being less marketable or becoming obsolete. Our future success will depend on our ability to successfully compete with established and new market participants and to keep pace with scientific and technological changes and the evolving needs of customers and the healthcare marketplace.
We will be required to continuously enhance our products and develop new tests to keep pace with evolving standards of care. If we do not update our products to keep pace with technological and scientific advances, our products could become obsolete and sales of our products could decline or fail to grow as expected.
Many of our current or potential competitors, either alone or with their collaboration partners, have significantly greater financial resources and expertise than we do in research and development, manufacturing, obtaining regulatory clearances and approvals and regulatory compliance, and sales and distribution. Mergers and acquisitions involving POCT testing or other healthcare companies may result in even more resources being concentrated among a smaller number of our competitors. Smaller or early-stage companies may also prove to be significant competitors, particularly through collaborative arrangements with large and established companies or customer networks. Our commercial opportunity could be reduced or eliminated if our competitors develop and commercialize POCT products or services that are more accurate, more convenient to use or more cost-effective than our products. Our competitors also may obtain FDA or other regulatory clearance or approval for their products more rapidly than we may obtain clearance or able to enter a particular market.
Further, some of our competitors’ products may be sold at prices that may be lower than our pricing, which could adversely affect our sales or force us to reduce our prices, which could harm our revenue, operating income or market share. If we are unable to compete successfully, we may be unable to increase or sustain our revenue or achieve profitability and our future growth prospects may be materially harmed.
Central labs continue to represent the most significant portion of the POCT testing market, and as a result we will be competing against very large and well-established lab companies such as Quest Diagnostics, Inc. and Laboratory Corporation of America. These companies have also expanded beyond centralized laboratory testing into home sample collection. In addition, we also face intense competition from other companies that develop or already have molecular tests, whether at point-of-care or at-home, as well as companies that have or are developing antigen and antibody tests.
To remain competitive, we will need to develop improvements to our products and other offerings. We cannot assure you that we will be able to successfully compete in the marketplace or develop and commercialize new tests or improvements to our products and other offerings on a timely basis. Our competitors may develop and commercialize competing or alternative products or services and improvements faster than we are able to do so, which would negatively affect our ability to increase or sustain our revenue or achieve profitability and could materially adversely affect our future growth prospects.
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Research and development of drug candidates as VELDONA is extremely expensive and complex and its difficult to evaluate the likelihood of the outcome of clinical trials, regulatory approvals, and our business and future prospects.
The discovery and development of new products such as our VELDONA candidates, as well as the development of additional uses for existing products, are necessary for the continued strength of our business. Our product lines must be replenished over time to offset revenue losses when products lose exclusivity or market share, as well as to provide for earnings growth, primarily through internal R&D or through collaborations, acquisitions, JVs, licensing or other arrangements. Growth depends in large part on our ability to identify and develop new products or new indications for existing products that address unmet medical needs and receive reimbursement from payers. However, balancing current growth, investment for future growth and the delivery of shareholder return remains a major challenge. The costs of product development continue to be high, as are regulatory requirements in many therapeutic areas, which may affect the number of candidates we are able to fund as well as the sustainability of the R&D portfolio. Decisions made early in the development process of a drug or vaccine candidate can have a substantial impact on the marketing strategy and payer reimbursement possibilities if the candidate receives regulatory approval. We try to plan clinical trials prudently and to reasonably anticipate and address challenges, but there is no assurance that an optimal balance between trial conduct, speed and desired outcome will be achieved.
Additionally, our product candidates can fail at any stage of the R&D process, and may not receive regulatory approval even after many years of R&D. We may fail to correctly identify indications for which our science is promising or allocate R&D investment resources efficiently, and failure to invest in the right technology platforms, therapeutic areas, product classes, geographic markets and/or licensing opportunities could adversely impact the productivity of our pipeline. Further, even if we identify areas with the greatest commercial potential, the scientific approach may not succeed despite the significant investment required for R&D, and the product may not be as competitive as expected because of the highly dynamic market environment and the hurdles in terms of access and reimbursement. For example, our VELDONA product candidates are based on a novel technology with only a few gene therapies approved to date, which makes it difficult to predict the time and cost of development and the ability to obtain regulatory approval. Further, our VELDONA therapies may face difficulties in gaining the acceptance of patients or the medical community.
If we fail to develop and maintain our brand, or the quality of our products that customers have come to expect, our business could suffer.
We believe that developing and maintaining our brand and the quality of our products may affect our success. The importance of our brand recognition and the quality of our products may become even greater as competitors offer more products similar to ours. Our financial success may depend on our target customers’ perception of our brand and our products. Our brand-building activities involve providing high-quality products, increasing awareness of our brand, creating and increasing the availability of our products.
The success of our brand may suffer if our marketing plans or product initiatives do not have the desired impact on our brand’s image or its ability to attract customers. Further, our brand value could diminish significantly due to a number of factors, including consumer perception that we have acted in an irresponsible manner, adverse publicity about our products (whether or not valid), our failure to maintain the quality of our products, product contamination, the failure of our products to deliver consistently positive consumer experiences, or the products becoming unavailable to consumers. The growing use of social and digital media by consumers increases the speed and extent that information and opinions can be shared. Negative posts or comments about us or our brands or products on social or digital media could damage our brands and reputation. If we fail to maintain the favorable perception of our brands, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be negatively impacted.
Our business, operations, clinical development plans and timelines, and supply chain could be adversely affected by the effects of epidemics, including but not limited to COVID-19.
Our business could be adversely affected by health epidemics wherever we have clinical trial sites or other business operations. In addition, health epidemics could cause significant disruption in the operations of third-party manufacturers, contract research organizations and other third parties upon whom we rely. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has presented a substantial public health and economic challenge worldwide. Besides the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States and other countries have experienced, and may experience in the future, public health outbreaks such as Zika virus, Avian Flu, SARS, and H1N1 influenza. A prolonged occurrence of contagious diseases such as these could result in significant challenges affecting employees, patients, communities, supply chains, business operations, as well as the U.S. economy and financial markets. These challenges may negatively impact productivity, disrupt our business and delay our clinical programs and timelines, the magnitude of which will depend, in part, on the length and severity of the restrictions and other limitations on our ability to conduct our business in the ordinary course. These and similar, and perhaps more severe, disruptions in our operations could negatively impact our business, operating results and financial condition.
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