BIOVIE INC

Overview

BioVie Inc. (the “Company” or “we” or “our”) is a clinical-stage company developing innovative drug therapies for the treatment of neurological and neurodegenerative disorders and advanced liver disease.

Neurodegenerative Disease Program

The Company acquired the biopharmaceutical assets of NeurMedix, Inc. (“NeurMedix”) a privately held clinical-stage pharmaceutical company and a related party in June 2021*.* The acquired assets included NE3107. In April 2024, the Company announced that the United States Adopted Names Council, and the World Health Organization International Nonproprietary Names expert committee had approved “bezisterim” as the non-proprietary (generic) name for NE3107. Bezisterim (NE3107) is an investigational, novel, orally administered small molecule that is thought to inhibit inflammation-driven insulin resistance and major pathological inflammatory cascades with a novel mechanism of action. There is emerging scientific consensus that both inflammation and insulin resistance may play fundamental roles in the development of Alzheimer’s disease (“AD”) and Parkinson’s disease (“PD”), and bezisterim (NE3107) could, if approved by U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”), represent an entirely new medical approach to treating these devastating conditions affecting an estimated 6 million Americans suffering from AD and 1 million Americans suffering from PD.

In neurodegenerative disease, bezisterim (NE3107) inhibits activation of inflammatory extracellular signal-regulated kinase (“ERK”) and nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (“NFκB”) (including interactions with tumor necrosis factor (“TNF”) signaling and other relevant inflammatory pathways) that lead to neuroinflammation and insulin resistance. Bezisterim (NE3107) does not interfere with their homeostatic functions (e.g., insulin signaling and neuron growth and survival). Both inflammation and insulin resistance are drivers of AD and PD.

About Inflammation and Bezisterim’s (NE3107’s) Mechanism of Action

Neuroinflammation, insulin resistance, and oxidative stress are common features in the major neurodegenerative diseases, including AD, PD frontotemporal lobar dementia, and Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (“ALS”). Bezisterim (NE3107) is an orally bioavailable, blood-brain permeable, small molecule, with potential anti-inflammatory, insulin sensitizing, and ERK-binding properties that may allow it to selectively inhibit ERK-, NFκB- and TNF-stimulated inflammation. Bezisterim’s (NE3107’s) potential to inhibit neuroinflammation and insulin resistance forms the basis for the Company’s work testing the molecule in AD and PD patients.

Parallels exist between AD and PD, among them activated microglia driving inflammation, involvement of TNFα, oxidative stress, protein misfolding, mitochondrial dysfunction, and insulin resistance. In preclinical and clinical studies, bezisterim (NE3107) reduced inflammation and enhanced insulin sensitivity, both of which are important to PD pathology. Preclinical studies in marmoset monkeys have shown bezisterim (NE3107) administered alone to be as pro-motoric as levodopa, underscoring the apparently critical role of inflammation in expression of PD motor symptoms. When bezisterim (NE3107) was administered with levodopa, the combination improved motor control better than either drug alone. Furthermore, in the marmoset study, bezisterim (NE3107) reduced the severity of levodopa induced dyskinesia (“LID”) concurrent with pro-motoric benefit and decreased neurodegeneration, preserving twice as many dopaminergic neurons compared to control.

Alzheimer’s Disease

AD Pathophysiology and Bezisterim (NE3107) Treatment Rationale

Alzheimer’s disease, which affects an estimated 6 million Americans, is a neuroinflammatory and neurodegenerative condition characterized by progressive deterioration of cognitive function and loss of short-term memory and executive function. Cognitive tests quantifying AD severity have been exhaustively developed. Formal diagnosis of AD has historically been dependent on the presence of extraneuronal amyloid beta (“Aβ”) plaques, which can only be observed at autopsy or with the aid of sophisticated radioimaging techniques. However, diagnostic methods have recently been approved that quantify Aβ in peripheral blood and correlate well with imaging results. Aβ plaques can also be found in people without apparent AD symptoms, which has cast doubt about the role of Aβ as the central mediator of disease pathology.

Scientific investigations in the past twenty years have provided strong evidence that inflammation, type 2 diabetes (“T2D”), and inflammation-driven insulin resistance are drivers of AD through interplay with the major inflammation signaling node, NFkB, and the cytokine, TNF, the activities of which are modulated by bezisterim (NE3107). The link between inflammation, T2D, and inflammation-driven insulin resistance and cognitive impairment are described by relatively new terms, type 3 diabetes and metabolic-cognitive syndrome.

Inflammation, insulin resistance, and associated metabolic dysregulation in the brain contribute to Aβ oligomerization and aggregation, phospho-tau formation, reduced neuron survival stimulus, and a forward-feeding cycle of neuronal energy deficit and oxidative stress, causing neuronal dysfunction (cognitive impairment) and neurodegeneration.

Insulin has a major role in metabolic regulation and neuron survival, while insulin resistance and T2D are closely linked to AD pathology. Insulin signaling is involved in synaptic plasticity, learning, and memory. Exogenous insulin enhances cognition in normal and cognitively impaired subjects. Insulin resistance is linked to cognitive impairment and senescence in the central nervous system (“CNS”).

Systemic inflammation from inflamed adipose tissue and associated mononuclear cells promotes CNS inflammation and is linked to cognitive decline and neurodegeneration. In addition to the afore mentioned factors contributing to AD pathophysiology, there is an extensive literature on the complex role of adipose tissue inflammation in systemic inflammation, insulin resistance, hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis (“HPA”) dysregulation and chronic cortisol excess in cognitive impairment in AD. Obesity and inflammation are closely linked in expanding adipose tissue, where the production of inflammatory cytokines and increased cortisol are driven though up-regulation of 11β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 1 and adipocyte mineralocorticoid receptor activation. Inflamed adipose tissue interacts with the HPA axis and hippocampus to increase systemic cortisol, and promote hippocampal inflammation through chronically elevated cortisol, which freely penetrates the blood-brain barrier. Hyperglycemia (secondary to insulin resistance) exacerbates adrenal cortisol production and promotes forward feeding of inflammation and HPA-hippocampal dysregulation.

Bezisterim (NE3107) is believed to inhibit ERK/NFkB activation and TNF production stimulated by inflammatory stimuli, which includes oxidative stress. Inhibition of NFkB activation and TNF production from this type of stimulation has broad potential implications for reduction of pathological peripheral and CNS inflammatory signaling in AD, which includes reduction of inflammation-driven insulin resistance, decreased inflammatory cell infiltration into the CNS, and decreased microglia activation. Reduction of systemic inflammation and inflammation-driven insulin resistance are also predicted to have beneficial effects on HPA axis dysregulation and hippocampal dysregulation of cortisol secretion that are consequences of adipose inflammation and insulin resistance, and as described above, are known to promote cognitive impairment and forward-feeding insulin resistance. We believe bezisterim’s (NE3107’s) combination of anti-inflammatory and insulin sensitizing activity has the potential to disrupt this forward-feeding cycle of AD pathology. The multifactorial influence of insulin signaling on neuron survival and cognition suggests that correction of insulin signaling deficits with bezisterim (NE3107) in the target population may provide significant benefits on both cognition and disease progression.

Company’s Progress with Alzheimer’s Disease Clinical Trial

On November 29, 2023, the Company announced topline efficacy data from its Phase 3 clinical trial (NCT04669028) of bezisterim (NE3107) in the treatment of mild to moderate AD. The study had co-primary endpoints looking at cognition using the Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale-Cognitive Scale (ADAS-Cog 12) and function using the Clinical Dementia Rating-Sum of Boxes. Patients were randomly assigned, 1:1 versus placebo, to receive sequentially 5 mg of bezisterim (NE3107) orally twice a day for 14 days, then 10 mg orally twice a day for 14 days, followed by 26 weeks of 20 mg orally twice daily.

Upon trial completion, as the Company began the process of analyzing the trial data, the Company found significant deviation from protocol and current good clinical practices (“cGCPs”) violations at 15 study sites (virtually all of which were from one geographic area). This highly unusual level of suspected improprieties led the Company to exclude all patients from these sites and to refer the sites to the FDA’s Office of Scientific Investigations (“OSI”) for potential action.

After the patient exclusions, 81 patients remained in the Modified Intent-to-Treat population, 57 of whom were in the Per-Protocol population which included those who completed the trial and were verified to take study drug based on pharmacokinetic data. The trial was originally designed to be 80% powered with 125 patients in each of the treatment and placebo arms. The unplanned exclusion of so many patients left the trial underpowered for its primary endpoints.

In the Per-Protocol population, which includes those patients who completed the trial and who were further verified to have taken the study drug (based on pharmacokinetics data), an observed but not statistically significant change from baseline appeared to suggest a slowing of cognitive loss; these same patients experienced an advantage in age deceleration vs. placebo as measured by deoxyribonucleic acid (“DNA”) epigenetic change. Age deceleration is used by longevity researchers to measure the difference between the patient’s biological age, in this case as measured by the Horvath DNA methylation Skin Blood Clock, relative to the patient’s actual chronological age. This test was a non-primary/secondary endpoint, other-outcome measure, done via blood test collected at week 30 (end of study).

Based on the efficacy signal seen in this trial, the Company is exploring (1) a discussion with the FDA to potentially employ the adaptive trial feature of the protocol to continue enrolling patients to achieve statistical significance; and/or (2) the design of a new Phase 3 study of bezisterim (NE3107) that leverages the most recent data and understanding of the potential effects bezisterim (NE3107) may have in persons with AD.

Parkinson’s Disease

Parkinson’s disease (PD), which affects an estimated 1 million Americans, is driven in large part by neuroinflammation and activation of brain microglia, leading to increased proinflammatory cytokines (particularly TNF). Multiple daily administrations of levodopa (converted to dopamine in the brain) is the current standard of care treatment for this movement disorder, but levodopa effectiveness diminishes over time necessitating increased dosage and prolonged daily administration leads to side effects of uncontrolled movements called levodopa-induced dyskinesia, commonly referred to as LID, which is exacerbated by high dose levodopa. Although levodopa provides symptomatic benefit, it does not slow PD progression.

The Company’s Phase 2 study of bezisterim (NE3107) for the treatment of PD (NCT05083260), completed in January 2023, was a double-blind, placebo-controlled, safety, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics study in PD participants treated with carbidopa/levodopa and NE3107. Forty-five patients with a defined L-dopa “off state” were randomized 1:1 to placebo or bezisterim (NE3107) 20 mg twice daily for 28 days. This trial was launched with two design objectives: (1) the primary objective was safety and drug-drug interaction, as requested by the FDA, to assess the potential for adverse interactions between bezisterim (NE3107) and carbidopa/ levodopa; and (2) the secondary objective was to determine if preclinical indications of promotoric activity and apparent enhancement of levodopa activity could be seen in humans. Both objectives were met. Results of the study include:

To extend this Phase 2 data in progressed patients, the Company has designed a new Phase 2 study of bezisterim (NE3107) as a potential first line therapy to treat patients with new onset PD. In July 2024, the Company submitted the protocol for this new study to the FDA for regulatory review.

Bezisterim (NE3107) may have the potential to become a non-dopaminergic alternative to PD patients. There are numerous scientific reports that support the critical role of inflammation in the manifestation of PD symptoms in addition to the essential role of inflammation in driving disease progression. We have shown in a mouse model of PD that bezisterim (NE3107) decreases inflammation and TNF in the brain and increases neuron survival (Nicoletti, 2012 Parkinson’s Disease 969418). In this neurotoxin induced model, bezisterim (NE3107) decreased clinical signs of disease and neuronal death compared to placebo treated mice. An unpublished study of a neurotoxin induced marmoset model of PD reported that administration of bezisterim (NE3107) decreased movement abnormalities that are the clinical signs of the disease. In the same study, bezisterim (NE3107) in combination with levodopa had a stronger effect on clinical signs of disease than levodopa or bezisterim (NE3107) alone, while marmosets treated with bezisterim (NE3107) developed less LID. Bezisterim (NE3107)-treated monkeys also exhibited neuroprotective activity that promoted the survival of twice as many neurons in the substantia nigra (primary region of the brain that degenerates to cause parkinsonism) as monkeys treated with placebo. The results from the marmoset study suggest that bezisterim (NE3107) may decrease clinical signs of disease in humans (improve motor function), which if true could enable a straightforward clinical development strategy to test bezisterim (NE3107) in PD patients needing promotoric therapy. If approved as a promotoric agent, NE3107 would provide a non-dopaminergic alternative to Parkinson’s patients, and an opportunity to significantly delay the need to start levodopa therapy. This could represent a first step toward supplanting levodopa as the primary PD therapy, and in addition to delaying the emergence of LID, could also slow disease progression, the most important and still unmet objective of PD drug development.

Long COVID Program

In April 2024, the Company announced the grant of a clinical trial award of up to $13.1 million from the U.S. Department of Defense (“DOD”), awarded through the Peer Reviewed Medical Research Program of the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs. In August 2024, U.S. Army Medical Research and Development Command, Office of Human Research Oversight (“OHRO”) approved the Company’s plan to evaluate bezisterim (NE3107) for the treatment of neurological symptoms that are associated with long COVID. The FDA had previously reviewed and approved the study as “Safe to Proceed” in August 2024. The approval form OHRO is the last scientific review milestone needed for the Company to receive the additional $12.6 million of the aggregate $13.1 million in grant funding from the DOD. The award can provide up to 2 years of non-dilutive funding for a Phase 2 clinical trial that will assess bezisterim (NE3107) for the treatment of neurological symptoms that are associated with long COVID. The Company anticipates the trial to commence by early 2025. The study protocol was finalized and submitted to the FDA for regulatory review in July 2024 and on August 22, 2024 the FDA authorized our IND application for Bezisterim (NE3107) allowing us to study a novel, anti-inflammatory approach or the treatment of the debilitating neurocognitive symptoms associated with long covid.

Long COVID is a condition in which symptoms of COVID-19, the acute respiratory disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, persist for an extended period of time, generally three months or more. The Centers for Disease Control recently reported that 6.8% of adults in the United States (more than 17 million individuals) currently or previously had long COVID. Symptoms, which include fatigue, cognitive dysfunction and sleep disturbances, are debilitating. The loss in quality of life and earnings and increased medical costs has an enormous economic impact estimated to be 3.7 trillion dollars. To date there are no therapies proven effective for treatment.

Chronic inflammation is one of the main hypotheses that researchers have proposed to explain the persistence of symptoms in long COVID. Specifically in individuals with “brain fog,” sustained systemic inflammation and persistent localized blood-brain-barrier (“BBB”) dysfunction are key physiological features. Bezisterim (NE3107) permeates the BBB and has been shown to modulate inflammation via the inhibition of NF-kB activation, thus representing a novel oral treatment targeting an underlying cause of long COVID symptoms.

Chronic neuroinflammation, insulin resistance, and oxidative stress are common features in the major neurodegenerative diseases, including AD, PD, frontotemporal lobar dementia, and ALS. Bezisterim (NE3107) is an investigational oral small molecule, blood-brain permeable, compound with potential anti-inflammatory, insulin sensitizing, and ERK-binding properties that may allow it to selectively inhibit ERK-, NFκB- and TNF-stimulated inflammation. Bezisterim’s (NE3107) potential to inhibit neuroinflammation and insulin resistance forms the basis for the Company’s work testing the molecule in AD, PD, and long COVID patients. Bezisterim (NE3107) is patented in the United States, Australia, Canada, Europe and South Korea.** **

Liver Cirrhosis Program

In liver disease, our investigational drug candidate BIV201 (continuous infusion terlipressin), which has been granted both FDA Fast Track designation status and FDA Orphan Drug status, is being evaluated and discussed after receiving guidance from the FDA regarding the design of Phase 3 clinical testing for the treatment of ascites due to chronic liver cirrhosis. BIV201 is administered as a patent-pending liquid formulation.

Ascites is a common complication of advanced liver cirrhosis involving the accumulation of large volumes of fluid in the abdomen, often exceeding five liters, due to liver and kidney dysfunction. The FDA has never approved a drug to treat ascites, and once patients reach the refractory stage the estimated one-year survival rate is only approximately 50%[10]. BIV201 is a continuous infusion of terlipressin, a drug used in over 40 countries to treat related complications of liver cirrhosis (Type 1 hepatorenal syndrome and bleeding esophageal varices) that was recently approved in the U.S. but is not approved in Japan. With the novel room temperature stable formulation in a pre-filled syringe, BIV201 could potentially provide a superior terlipressin drug delivery system throughout the world. The goal of BIV201 therapy is to interrupt the ascites disease pathway, thereby halting the cycle of accelerated fluid generation in ascites patients.

In June 2021, the Company initiated a Phase 2 study (NCT04112199) designed to evaluate the efficacy of BIV201 (terlipressin, administered by continuous infusion for two 28-day treatment cycles) combined with standard-of-care (“SOC”), compared to SOC alone, for the treatment of refractory ascites. The primary endpoints of the study are the incidence of ascites-related complications and change in ascites fluid accumulation during treatment compared to a pre-treatment period.

In March 2023, the Company announced enrollment was paused and that data from the first 15 patients treated with BIV201 plus SOC appeared to show at least a 30% reduction in ascites fluid during the 28 days after treatment initiation compared to the 28 days prior to treatment. The change in ascites volume was significantly different from those patients receiving SOC treatment. Patients who completed the treatment with BIV201 experienced a 53% reduction in ascites fluid, which was sustained (43% reduction) during the three months after treatment initiation as compared to the three-month pre-treatment period.

In June 2023, the Company requested and subsequently received guidance from the FDA regarding the design and endpoints for definitive clinical testing of BIV201 for the treatment of ascites due to chronic liver cirrhosis. The Company is currently finalizing protocol designs for the Phase 3 study of BIV201 for the treatment of ascites due to chronic liver cirrhosis.

While the active agent, terlipressin, is approved in the U.S. and in about 40 countries for related complications of advanced liver cirrhosis, treatment of ascites is not included in these authorizations. Patients with refractory ascites suffer from frequent life-threatening complications, generate more than $5 billion in annual treatment costs, and have an estimated 50% mortality rate within 6 to 12 months. The FDA has not approved any drug to treat refractory ascites.

Our proprietary novel liquid formulation of terlipressin is designed to improve convenience for outpatient administration and avoid potential formulation errors when pharmacists reconstitute the current powder version of terlipressin. To date, analytical testing results have confirmed room temperature stability of the prefilled syringe in storage for 18 months, with the potential for up two years stability. Room temperature storage presents a key product differentiation versus terlipressin products in countries where the drug is approved. To the best of the Company’s knowledge, all other terlipressin products sold globally must be stored under refrigeration and there is no prefilled syringe format of terlipressin available for treating patients in these countries. BioVie has also filed a Patent Cooperation Treaty (“PCT”) application covering our novel liquid formulations of terlipressin (international patent application PCT/US2020/034269, published as WO2020/237170) and we are seeking patent protection in at least the U.S., Europe, China, Japan and other jurisdictions.

BIV201 (continuous infusion terlipressin) has the potential to improve the health of thousands of patients suffering from life-threatening complications of liver cirrhosis due to hepatitis, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, and alcoholism. The FDA has granted Fast-Track status and Orphan Drug designation for the most common of these complications, ascites, which represents a significant unmet medical need. Patients with cirrhosis and ascites account for an estimated 116,000 U.S. hospital discharges annually, with frequent early readmissions. According to the HCUP Nationwide Readmissions Database 2016, those requiring paracentesis (removal of ascites fluid) experience an average hospital stay lasting eight days incurring over $86,000 in medical costs. This translates into a total potentially addressable ascites market size for BIV201 therapy exceeding $650 million based on Company estimates. The FDA has never approved any drug specifically for treating ascites. For patients with refractory ascites the mean one-year survival rate is only 50% (Bureau et al. 2017*).* BIV201 has also received Orphan Drug designation for hepatorenal syndrome (“HRS”). Patients with refractory ascites often progress to HRS which is the onset of kidney failure and requires emergency hospitalization.

The BIV201 development program began at LAT Pharma LLC. On April 11, 2016, we acquired LAT Pharma LLC and the rights to its BIV201 development program and currently own all development and marketing rights to the product candidate. We and PharmaIN, LAT Pharma’s former partner focused on the development of new modified product candidates in the same therapeutic field but not including BIV201, have agreed to pay royalties equal to less than 1% of future net sales of each company’s ascites drug development programs, or if such program is licensed to a third party, less than 5% of each company’s net license revenues. On December 24, 2018, we returned our partial ownership rights to the PharmaIN modified terlipressin development program and simultaneously paid the remaining balance due on a related debt. PharmaIN’s rights to our program remain unchanged.

About Ascites and Liver Cirrhosis

Cirrhosis is a leading cause of death in the U.S. The condition results primarily from hepatitis, alcoholism, and fatty liver disease linked to obesity. Ascites is a common complication of advanced liver cirrhosis, involving kidney dysfunction and the accumulation of large amounts of fluid in the abdominal cavity.

The Need for an Ascites Therapy

With no medications approved by the FDA specifically for treating ascites, an estimated 40% of patients die within two years of diagnosis. Certain drugs approved for other uses such as diuretics may provide initial relief, but patients may fail to respond to treatment as ascites worsens. This represents a critical unmet medical need, reflected by the Fast Track designation granted to BIV201 by the FDA as a treatment for ascites refractory to or intolerant of diuretic therapy. U.S. treatment costs for liver cirrhosis, including ascites and other complications, are estimated at more than $5 billion annually.

The Ascites Development Pathway

Most experts agree that ascites develops through a sequence of events illustrated by the above diagram. High blood pressure in the vein that supplies blood to the liver, called “portal hypertension,” occurs as increasing liver damage (fibrosis) impedes blood flow through the liver. This causes vasodilation and blood pooling in the central or “splanchnic” region of the body and low blood volume in the arteries. The decrease in effective blood volume activates a signaling pathway (“neurohormonal systems”) which tells the kidneys to retain large amounts of salt and water in an effort to increase blood volume. Ultimately the retention of excess sodium and water leads to the formation of ascites as these substances “weep” from the liver and lymph system and collect in the patient’s abdomen.

The BIV201 Proposed Mechanism of Action

BIV201 is being developed with the goal of alleviating portal hypertension and correcting splanchnic vasodilation, thereby increasing effective blood volume and reducing the signals to the kidneys to retain excess salt and water. If successful, BIV201 could halt the cycle of accelerating fluid generation in ascites patients and reduce the need for the frequent and painful paracentesis procedures many of these patients currently require.

Future Possible BIV201 Indications

Based on international investigative studies of the active agent in BIV201, terlipressin, we believe our drug candidate has potential future applications in other life-threatening conditions due to liver cirrhosis. Securing marketing approvals for any of these new uses will require well-controlled clinical trials to satisfy the FDA and/or other countries’ regulatory requirements, none of which have commenced at this time. The Company continues to evaluate other indications for the use of terlipressin continuous infusion. BioVie will discuss such indications if and when selected for testing.** **

Intellectual Property

BIV201

BioVie relies on a combination of patent, trade secret, other intellectual property laws (such as FDA data exclusivity), nondisclosure agreements, and other measures to protect our proposed products. We require our employees, consultants, and advisors to execute confidentiality agreements and to agree to disclose and assign to us all inventions conceived during the workday, using our property, or which relate to our business. Despite any measures taken to protect our intellectual property (IP), unauthorized parties may attempt to copy aspects of our products or to obtain and use information that we regard as proprietary.

BIV201 was awarded Orphan Drug Designations in the U.S. for the treatment of hepatorenal syndrome on November 21, 2018 and treatment of ascites due to all etiologies except cancer on September 8, 2016. We also filed a PCT application covering our novel liquid formulations of terlipressin (international patent application PCT/US2020/034269, published as WO2020/237170) and are seeking patent protection in U.S., Europe, China, Japan and other jurisdictions. To date patents have been granted in India (Patent No. 540813) and Chile (Patent No. 68965). Also, we own U.S. Patent 11,364,277, and European patent EP3347032, which is directed to a method of treating ascites with BIV201, and we are pursuing additional patent coverage in U.S., Japan, Europe, and China.

Bezisterim (NE3107) and related compounds

As of August 15, 2024, we have twelve (12) issued U.S. patents, six (6) pending U.S. patent applications, three (3) pending U.S. PCT applications, six (6) issued foreign patents, and six (6) pending foreign patent applications directed to protecting NE3107 and related compounds and methods of making and using thereof. The U.S. patents and pending patent applications and their projected expiration dates are provided below.

Government Regulation

Government authorities in the United States, at the federal, state and local level, and in other countries extensively regulate, among other things, the research, development, testing, manufacture, quality control, approval, labeling, packaging, storage, record-keeping, promotion, advertising, distribution, post-approval monitoring and reporting, marketing and export and import of products such as those we are developing. Any pharmaceutical candidate that we develop must be approved by the FDA before it may be legally marketed in the United States and by the appropriate foreign regulatory agency before it may be legally marketed in foreign countries.

United States Drug Development Process

In the United States, the FDA regulates drugs under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (“FDCA”), and implements regulations. Drugs are also subject to other federal, state and local statutes and regulations. Biologics are subject to regulation by the FDA under the FDCA, the Public Health Service Act (the “PHSA”), and related regulations, and other federal, state and local statutes and regulations. Biological products include, among other things, viruses, therapeutic serums, vaccines and most protein products. The process of obtaining regulatory approvals and the subsequent compliance with appropriate federal, state, local and foreign statutes and regulations require the expenditure of substantial time and financial resources. Failure to comply with the applicable United States requirements at any time during the product development process, approval process or after approval, may subject an applicant to administrative or judicial sanctions. FDA sanctions could include refusal to approve pending applications, withdrawal of an approval, a clinical hold, warning letters, product recalls, product seizures, total or partial suspension of production or distribution, injunctions, fines, refusals of government contracts, restitution, disgorgement or civil or criminal penalties. Any agency or judicial enforcement action could have a material adverse effect on us.

The process required by the FDA before a drug or biological product may be marketed in the United States generally involves the following:

The lengthy process of seeking required approvals and the continuing need for compliance with applicable statutes and regulations require the expenditure of substantial resources. There can be no certainty that approvals will be granted.

Clinical trials involve the administration of the drug or biological candidate to healthy volunteers or patients having the disease being studied under the supervision of qualified investigators, generally physicians not employed by or under the trial sponsor’s control. 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. Each protocol must be submitted to the FDA as part of the IND. Clinical trials must be conducted in accordance with the FDA’s cGCP requirements. Further, each clinical trial must be reviewed and approved by an independent institutional review board (“IRB”), at or servicing each institution at which the clinical trial will be conducted. An IRB is charged with protecting the welfare and rights of trial participants and considers such items as whether 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 each clinical trial subject or his or her legal representative and must monitor the clinical trial until it is completed.

Human clinical trials prior to approval are typically conducted in three sequential phases that may overlap or be combined:

Post-approval studies, or Phase 4 clinical trials, may be conducted after initial marketing approval. These studies are used to gain additional experience from the treatment of patients in the intended therapeutic indication and may be required by the FDA as part of the approval process.

Progress reports detailing the results of the clinical trials must be submitted at least annually to the FDA and written IND safety reports must be submitted to the FDA by the investigators for serious and unexpected adverse events or any finding from tests in laboratory animals that suggests a significant risk for human subjects. Phase 1, Phase 2 and Phase 3 clinical trials may not be completed successfully within any specified period, if at all. The FDA or the sponsor or its data safety monitoring board may suspend a clinical trial at any time on various grounds, including a finding that the research subjects or 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.

Concurrent with clinical trials, companies usually complete additional animal studies and develop additional information about the chemistry and physical characteristics of the drug or biologic as well as finalize a process for manufacturing the product in commercial quantities in accordance with cGMP requirements. The manufacturing process must be capable of consistently producing quality batches of the drug or biological candidate and, among other things, must include methods for testing the identity, strength, quality and purity of the final drug or biologic. Additionally, appropriate packaging must be selected and tested and stability studies must be conducted to demonstrate that the drug or biological candidate does not undergo unacceptable deterioration over its shelf life.

U.S. Review and Approval Processes

The results of product development, preclinical studies and clinical trials, along with descriptions of the manufacturing process, analytical tests conducted on the chemistry of the drug or biologic, proposed labeling and other relevant information are submitted to the FDA as part of an NDA or BLA requesting approval to market the product. The submission of an NDA or BLA is subject to the payment of substantial user fees; a waiver of such fees may be obtained under certain limited circumstances.

The FDA reviews all NDAs and BLAs submitted before it accepts them for filing and may request additional information rather than accepting an NDA or BLA for filing. Once the submission is accepted for filing, the FDA begins an in-depth review of the NDA or BLA.

After the NDA or BLA submission is accepted for filing, the FDA reviews the NDA to determine, among other things, whether the proposed product is safe and effective for its intended use, and whether the product is being manufactured in accordance with cGMP to assure and preserve the product’s identity, strength, quality and purity. The FDA reviews a BLA to determine, among other things, whether the product is safe, pure and potent and the facility in which it is manufactured, processed, packaged or held meets standards designed to assure the product’s continued safety, purity and potency. In addition to its own review, the FDA may refer applications for novel drug or biological products or drug or biological products which present difficult questions of safety or efficacy to an advisory committee, typically a panel that includes clinicians and other experts, for review, evaluation and a recommendation as to whether the application should be approved and under what conditions. The FDA is not bound by the recommendations of an advisory committee, but it considers such recommendations carefully when making decisions. During the approval process, the FDA also will determine whether a risk evaluation and mitigation strategy, or REMS, is necessary to assure the safe use of the drug or biologic. If the FDA concludes that a REMS is needed, the sponsor of the NDA or BLA must submit a proposed REMS; the FDA will not approve the NDA or BLA without a REMS, if required.

Before approving an NDA or BLA, the FDA will inspect the facilities at which the product is to be manufactured. The FDA will not approve the product unless it determines that the manufacturing processes and facilities are in compliance with cGMP requirements and adequate to assure consistent production of the product within required specifications. Additionally, before approving an NDA or BLA, the FDA will typically inspect one or more clinical sites to assure compliance with cGMP. If the FDA determines the application, manufacturing process or manufacturing facilities are not acceptable it will outline the deficiencies in the submission and often will request additional testing or information.

The NDA or BLA review and approval process is lengthy and difficult and the FDA may refuse to approve an NDA or BLA if the applicable regulatory criteria are not satisfied or may require additional clinical data or other information. Even if such data and information is submitted, the FDA may ultimately decide that the NDA or BLA does not satisfy the criteria for approval. Data obtained from clinical trials are not always conclusive and may be susceptible to varying interpretations, which could delay, limit or prevent regulatory approval. The FDA will issue a “complete response” letter if the agency decides not to approve the NDA or BLA. The complete response letter describes all of the specific deficiencies in the NDA or BLA identified by the FDA. The deficiencies identified may be minor, for example, requiring labeling changes, or major, for example, requiring additional clinical trials. Additionally, the complete response letter may include recommended actions that the applicant might take to place the application in a condition for approval. If a complete response letter is issued, the applicant may either resubmit the NDA or BLA, addressing all of the deficiencies identified in the letter, or withdraw the application.

If a product receives regulatory approval, the approval may be limited to specific diseases and dosages or the indications for use may otherwise be limited, which could restrict the commercial value of the product. Further, the FDA may require that certain contraindications, warnings or precautions be included in the product labeling. In addition, the FDA may require Phase 4 testing which involves clinical trials designed to further assess a product’s safety and effectiveness and may require testing and surveillance programs to monitor the safety of approved products that have been commercialized.

Orphan Drug Designation

Under the Orphan Drug Act, the FDA may grant orphan designation to a drug or biological 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 a drug or biological product available in the United States for this type of disease or condition will be recovered from sales of the product. Orphan product designation must be requested before submitting an NDA or BLA. After the FDA grants orphan product designation, the identity of the therapeutic agent and its potential orphan use are disclosed publicly by the FDA. Orphan product designation does not convey any advantage in or shorten the duration of the regulatory review and approval process.

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 product exclusivity, which means that the FDA may not approve any other applications to market the same drug or biological product for the same indication for seven years, except in limited circumstances, such as a showing of clinical superiority to the product with orphan exclusivity. Competitors, however, may receive approval of different products for the indication for which the Orphan product has exclusivity or obtain approval for the same product but for a different indication for which the Orphan product has exclusivity. Orphan product exclusivity also could block the approval of one of our products for seven years if a competitor obtains approval of the same drug or biological product as defined by the FDA or if our drug or biological candidate is determined to be contained within the competitor’s product for the same indication or disease. If a drug or biological product designated as an orphan product receives marketing approval for an indication broader than what is designated, it may not be entitled to orphan product exclusivity. Orphan Drug status in the European Union has similar but not identical benefits in the European Union.

Expedited Development and Review Programs

The FDA has a Fast Track program that is intended to expedite or facilitate the process for reviewing new drug and biological products that meet certain criteria. Specifically, new drug and biological products are eligible for Fast Track designation if they are intended to treat a serious or life-threatening condition and demonstrate the potential to address unmet medical needs for the condition. Fast Track designation applies to the combination of the product and the specific indication for which it is being studied. Unique to a Fast Track product, the FDA may consider for review sections of the NDA or BLA on a rolling basis before the complete application is submitted, if the sponsor provides a schedule for the submission of the sections of the NDA or BLA, the FDA agrees to accept sections of the NDA or BLA and determines that the schedule is acceptable, and the sponsor pays any required user fees upon submission of the first section of the NDA or BLA.

Any product submitted to the FDA for marketing approval, including those submitted to a Fast Track program, may also be eligible for other types of FDA programs intended to expedite development and review, such as priority review and accelerated approval. Any product is eligible for priority review if it has the potential to provide safe and effective therapy where no satisfactory alternative therapy exists or a significant improvement in the treatment, diagnosis or prevention of a disease compared with marketed products. The FDA will attempt to direct additional resources to the evaluation of an application for a new drug or biological product designated for priority review in an effort to facilitate the review. Additionally, a product may be eligible for accelerated approval. Drug or biological products studied for their safety and effectiveness in treating serious or life-threatening illnesses and that provide meaningful therapeutic benefit over existing treatments may receive accelerated approval, which means that they may be approved on the basis of adequate and well-controlled clinical studies establishing that the product has an effect on a surrogate endpoint that is reasonably likely to predict a clinical benefit, or on the basis of an effect on a clinical endpoint other than survival or irreversible morbidity. As a condition of approval, the FDA generally requires that a sponsor of a drug or biological product receiving accelerated approval perform adequate and well-controlled post-marketing clinical studies to establish safety and efficacy for the approved indication. Failure to conduct such studies or conducting such studies that do not establish the required safety and efficacy may result in revocation of the original approval. In addition, the FDA currently requires as a condition for accelerated approval pre-approval of promotional materials, which could adversely impact the timing of the commercial launch or subsequent marketing of the product. Fast Track designation, priority review and accelerated approval do not change the standards for approval but may expedite the development or approval process.

Post-Approval Requirements

Any drug or biological products for which we receive FDA approvals are subject to continuing regulation by the FDA, including, among other things, record-keeping requirements, reporting of adverse experiences with the product, providing the FDA with updated safety and efficacy information on an annual basis or as required more frequently for specific events, product sampling and distribution requirements, complying with certain electronic records and signature requirements and complying with FDA promotion and advertising requirements, which include, among others, standards for direct-to-consumer advertising, prohibitions against promoting drugs and biologics for uses or in patient populations that are not described in the drug’s or biologic’s approved labeling (known as “off-label use”), rules for conducting industry-sponsored scientific and educational activities, and promotional activities involving the internet. Failure to comply with FDA requirements can have negative consequences, including the immediate discontinuation of noncomplying materials, adverse publicity, enforcement letters from the FDA, mandated corrective advertising or communications with doctors, and civil or criminal penalties. Although physicians may prescribe legally available drugs and biologics for off-label uses, manufacturers may not market or promote such off-label uses.

We will need to rely on third parties for the production of our product candidates. Manufacturers of our product candidates are required to comply with applicable FDA manufacturing requirements contained in the FDA’s cGMP regulations. cGMP regulations require among other things, quality control and quality assurance as well as the corresponding maintenance of comprehensive records and documentation. Drug and biologic manufacturers and other entities involved in the manufacture and distribution of approved drugs and biologics are also required to register their establishments and list any products made there with the FDA and comply with related requirements in certain states, and are subject to periodic unannounced inspections by the FDA and certain state agencies for compliance with cGMP and other laws. Accordingly, manufacturers must continue to expend time, money and effort in the area of production and quality control to maintain cGMP compliance. Discovery of problems with a product after approval may result in serious and extensive restrictions on a product, manufacturer, or holder of an approved NDA or BLA, including suspension of a product until the FDA is assured that quality standards can be met, continuing oversight of manufacturing by the FDA under a “consent decree,” which frequently includes the imposition of costs and continuing inspections over a period of many years, and possible withdrawal of the product from the market. In addition, changes to the manufacturing process generally require prior FDA approval before being implemented and other types of changes to the approved product, such as adding new indications and additional labeling claims, are also subject to further FDA review and approval.

The FDA also may require post-marketing testing, known as Phase 4 testing, risk minimization action plans and surveillance to monitor the effects of an approved product or place conditions on an approval that could otherwise restrict the distribution or use of the product.

Employees

Our business is managed by our officers who consist of Mr. Cuong Do, Chief Executive Officer & President; Dr. Joseph M Columbo, Executive Vice President -Chief Medical Officer; and Wendy Kim, our Chief Financial Officer and Corporate Secretary. These individuals devote their full-time efforts to the Company activities. The Company has 14 employees which are all full time. We also rely on a team of highly experienced scientific, medical, and regulatory consultants to conduct product development activities.