The following risks and uncertainties may have a material adverse
effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations. Investors should carefully consider the risks described below before making an investment decision. The risks described below are not the only ones we face. Additional risks not
presently known to us or that we believe are immaterial may also significantly impair our business operations. Our business could be harmed by any of these risks. The trading price of our common stock could decline due to any of these risks, and
investors may lose all or part of their investment.
We have marked with an asterisk (*) those risk factors below that reflect
substantive changes from the risk factors included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 28, 2014.
Risks Related to our Business and Industry
We have incurred cumulative operating losses since inception, we expect to continue to incur losses for the foreseeable future and we may
never obtain profitability.*
We have incurred cumulative losses of $577.4 million since our inception in May 1999, including net
losses of $19.4 million and $24.4 million for the three months ended June 30, 2014 and 2013, respectively. We have made, and expect to continue to make, substantial expenditures in connection with our commercialization of HORIZANT
®
(gabapentin enacarbil) Extended-Release Tablets and to further develop and potentially commercialize our product candidates. We continue to expect substantial costs and expenses associated with
maintaining sales, marketing and commercial capabilities, as well as those associated with research, development, clinical trials, manufacturing and potential regulatory approvals and commercialization of XP23829. In addition, we do not believe that
revenues generated from sales of HORIZANT and REGNITE
®
(gabapentin enacarbil) Extended-Release Tablets will be sufficient alone to sustain our operations, at least in the near term, and we
therefore expect to continue to experience negative cash flows for the foreseeable future as we fund our operating losses and capital expenditures. Annual losses have had, and will continue to have, an adverse effect on our stockholders
equity.
Because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with drug development and commercialization, we are unable to predict
the timing or amount of increased expenses or when, or if, we will be able to achieve or sustain profitability. HORIZANT is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or FDA, for the treatment of moderate-to-severe primary restless legs
syndrome, or RLS, in adults and for the management of postherpetic neuralgia, or PHN, in adults. We have been solely responsible for the commercialization and further development of HORIZANT since May 1, 2013. During a transition period that
ended on April 30, 2013, Glaxo Group Limited, or GSK, was responsible for promoting HORIZANT in the United States pursuant to a November 2012 termination and transition agreement that terminated the prior collaboration arrangement between the
parties. REGNITE has been approved by the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, or MHLW, as a treatment for patients with RLS, and Astellas Pharma Inc. is responsible for promoting REGNITE in Japan.
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To date, we have not generated revenue from sales of HORIZANT or REGNITE that is sufficient to
fund our operations. We have financed our operations primarily through the sale of equity securities, non-equity payments from collaboration, partnership, licensing and other similar forms of arrangements with third parties, collectively referred to
as collaboration arrangements, and interest earned on investments. Prior to 2013, we devoted substantially all of our efforts to research and development, including clinical trials. During 2013, we devoted substantial efforts to the initiation of
HORIZANT commercial operations, and we expect our selling, general and administrative expenses to increase compared to 2013 levels primarily due to the full-year effect of expenses incurred in maintaining sales, marketing, distribution and other
commercial capabilities for HORIZANT, largely through third-party service providers, as well as expenses arising from our planned sales force expansion through our contract sales organization and the cost and expense of the establishment of a
XenoPort-employed sales force. If sales-related revenue from HORIZANT, REGNITE or any product candidate that receives marketing approval is insufficient, if we or our collaborators are unable to develop and commercialize our product candidates or if
development is delayed, we may never become profitable. Even if we do become profitable, we may not be able to sustain or increase our profitability on a quarterly or annual basis.
Our success depends substantially on the success of HORIZANT. If we do not successfully market and sell HORIZANT, or if Astellas does
not effectively market and sell REGNITE in Japan, we may be unable to generate significant product revenue and may be unable to achieve profitability.*
For the three months ended June 30, 2014, we recorded net sales in the United States of HORIZANT of only $4.9 million. To achieve
profitability, we will need to generate substantially more product revenue from HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates that may receive approval.
Our ability to generate significant revenue from HORIZANT depends on our ability to achieve market acceptance of, and to otherwise effectively
market, HORIZANT for the treatment of moderate-to-severe primary RLS and for the management of PHN. We may not be able to devote sufficient resources to the advertising, promotion and sales efforts for HORIZANT. We also need to continue to expend
time and resources to train sales representatives to be credible, persuasive and compliant in discussing HORIZANT with physicians. We also need to continue to train and monitor sales representatives to ensure that a consistent and appropriate
message about HORIZANT is being delivered. If we are unable to effectively educate physicians and potential customers about the benefits and risks of HORIZANT, we could face significant pressure from generic competition, negative market perception
due to GSKs prior promotional efforts and a lack of physician awareness, third-party reimbursement and differentiation from currently approved treatments. Due to our limited resources, we have made decisions on how best to allocate our
resources to efficiently promote HORIZANT. We may not be correct on our decisions, which would limit the sales we could achieve from HORIZANT and could lead to our failure to capitalize on its market opportunity. For example, we have decided on
where to locate sales representatives based on certain characteristics of the territories. If other territories where we have chosen not to a locate sales representative could have generated greater HORIZANT sales than the territories where we are
promoting HORIZANT, we will be unable to capture the full potential value of HORIZANT. In addition, we could fail to comply with applicable regulatory guidelines with respect to the marketing and manufacturing of HORIZANT or with post-marketing
commitments or requirements mandated by the FDA, which could result in administrative or judicially imposed sanctions, including warning letters, civil and criminal penalties, injunctions, product seizures or detention, product recalls and total or
partial suspension of production. In addition, if we are unable to effectively train sales representatives and equip them with effective materials, including medical and sales literature to help inform and educate potential customers about the
benefits and risks of HORIZANT and its proper administration, our efforts to successfully commercialize HORIZANT could be put in jeopardy, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, stock price and operations.
Other factors that may inhibit or delay our efforts to commercialize HORIZANT or any other approved product candidates include:
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the inability of our contract sales organization to provide sales representatives with appropriate technical expertise or our inability to recruit and retain adequate numbers of effective sales and marketing personnel;
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our inability to successfully establish and retain a XenoPort-employed sales force;
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our inability to effectively manage and maintain third-party logistical support for our XenoPort-employed sales force;
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the inability of sales personnel to obtain access to adequate numbers of physicians to provide appropriate information on the advantages and risks of prescribing HORIZANT or other products that may result from our
product candidates;
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inability to obtain coverage and adequate reimbursement from third-party payers;
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the lack of complementary products to be offered by sales personnel, which may put us at a competitive disadvantage compared to companies with more extensive product lines; and
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unforeseen costs and expenses associated with establishing a XenoPort-employed sales force and/or contracting for additional sales representatives as part of our planned or future sales force expansions.
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The competition for qualified personnel in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology field is intense,
and we may experience difficulties in recruiting, hiring and retaining qualified individuals. Prior to our commercial launch of HORIZANT, we had no experience commercializing products on our own, and we have only limited management expertise in
developing and maintaining a commercial organization. Due to our limited internal resources, we have contracted, and anticipate that we will continue to contract, with third-party vendors to manage much of our growth and sales infrastructure. We
will be at risk to the extent we rely on such third parties without effective oversight. In addition, such third-party contractors may not be the most efficient allocation of resources if we could implement such infrastructure internally in a more
cost-effective manner. If we are not successful in recruiting and retaining qualified sales and marketing personnel or in maintaining either a XenoPort-employed or a contracted sales and marketing infrastructure, we will have difficulty
commercializing HORIZANT or our product candidates, which would adversely affect our business and financial condition.
Astellas initiated
sales of REGNITE in Japan in July 2012. We have limited control over the amount and timing of resources that Astellas dedicates to the marketing of REGNITE, and Astellas could fail to effectively commercialize, market and distribute REGNITE. In May
2013, Astellas informed us that they did not have plans for commercialization of REGNITE in the five other Asian countries in their territory. As a result, in May 2013, all rights to gabapentin enacarbil in Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia,
Thailand and Taiwan reverted to us, and we will not receive any revenues from Astellas for the development and commercialization of gabapentin enacarbil in these territories.
HORIZANT or REGNITE may not achieve significant sales, even if we or Astellas devote substantial resources to its commercialization. Even if
we achieve significant levels of sales of HORIZANT, the costs of maintaining sales and marketing capabilities and a distribution and supply chain infrastructure will be substantial and may outweigh any sales of HORIZANT, preventing us from achieving
profitability. The success of HORIZANT and REGNITE is dependent on a number of factors, which include competition from alternative treatments for RLS and, in the case of HORIZANT, for the management of PHN, including generic treatments in the United
States, pricing pressures and whether HORIZANT can obtain sufficient third-party coverage or reimbursement, among other factors that are described below.
In 2013, due to manufacturing delays, there was a stockout of HORIZANT, meaning that an insufficient amount of HORIZANT was in the supply
chain to meet the demand of orders by pharmacies and wholesalers. As a result, starting in March 2013, certain patients who had been prescribed HORIZANT were not able to have such prescriptions filled. Although this stockout was resolved in May
2013, the implementation of our full commercial promotion of HORIZANT was delayed for approximately one month. If we or Patheon Pharmaceuticals Inc., our contract manufacturer of HORIZANT, or our third-party distribution, warehousing and inventory
control service providers experience further delays or issues or otherwise fail to maintain adequate supplies of HORIZANT, our ability to fully commercialize HORIZANT could be hindered, the future demand for, and product sales of, HORIZANT could be
further reduced and our business could be harmed, all of which could accelerate our need for additional capital.
The historical and
pro forma financial statements we have filed with the SEC relating to HORIZANT may not be an indication of our ability to commercialize HORIZANT.
On May 1, 2013, pursuant to our termination and transition agreement with GSK, we completed the reacquisition of the exclusive rights to
commercialize, promote, manufacture and distribute HORIZANT in the United States from GSK and assumed all responsibilities for any further development, manufacturing and commercialization of HORIZANT in the United States beginning on that date. In
July 2013, we filed historical financial statements and pro forma financial information relating to the HORIZANT business, and the SEC stated that it would not object to our conclusion that the filing of the historical financial statements relating
to the HORIZANT business represents substantial compliance with the requirements of Rule 3-05 of Regulation S-X, or Rule 3-05. However, we were advised by GSK that the HORIZANT product line had not been a separate legal entity of GSK and was never
operated as a stand-alone business, division or subsidiary. GSK also advised us that it had never prepared full stand-alone or full carve-out financial statements for the HORIZANT business, and that GSK has never maintained the distinct and separate
accounts necessary to prepare financial statements that fully comply with the requirements of Rule 3-05. As a result, these historical statements may not be an indication of the performance of HORIZANT under GSK for the periods indicated. In
addition, the assumptions used in preparing the pro forma financial information we filed in July 2013 and subsequently updated through December 31, 2013 may not prove to be accurate or relevant to the HORIZANT business, in particular on a
go-forward basis, and therefore should not be relied upon as a measure of our ability to commercialize HORIZANT.
We have no
experience in maintaining a commercial sales force on our own and, to the extent we do not successfully maintain a commercial sales force, sales of HORIZANT and our business will be harmed.*
We are in the process of establishing a XenoPort-employed sales force. We plan to continue to rely on our contract sales organization to
provide back office support for our existing team of sales representatives. We plan to hire our existing sales team from that contract sales organization to create a XenoPort-employed sales force to promote HORIZANT. We have no experience in
maintaining a commercial sales force on our own, and we may not be able to establish or maintain a XenoPort-employed sales force in a cost-effective or timely manner, or otherwise realize a positive return on our investment. We will also need to
commit additional
23
resources to maintain a XenoPort-employed sales force, and maintaining a XenoPort-employed sales force will impose significant added responsibilities on members of management, including the need
to recruit, maintain and integrate additional employees. We will also have to compete with other pharmaceutical and life sciences companies to recruit and retain sales representatives. Our ability to commercialize HORIZANT will depend, in part, on
our ability to establish and maintain our XenoPort-employed sales force effectively. Because of the numerous risks and uncertainties involved with establishing our XenoPort-employed sales force, we may experience difficulties commercializing
HORIZANT, which would adversely affect our business and financial results. In addition, although we are in the process of establishing a XenoPort-employed sales force, we expect to continue to rely on our current contract sales organization to
provide us with additional contract sales representatives as part of our planned sales force expansion, and thus we will need to continue to rely on our contract sales organization to provide us with and maintain contract sales representatives with
appropriate technical expertise to manage this growth.
Our success also depends substantially on our product candidates that are
still under development. If we or our collaborators are unable to bring any of these product candidates to market, or experience significant delays in doing so, our ability to generate revenue and our likelihood of success will be reduced.*
Our ability to generate revenue in the future will depend heavily on the successful development and commercialization of our
product candidates. Any of our product candidates could be unsuccessful if it:
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does not demonstrate acceptable safety and efficacy in preclinical studies or clinical trials or otherwise does not meet applicable regulatory standards for approval;
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does not offer therapeutic or other improvements over existing or future drugs used to treat the same conditions;
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is not capable of being produced in commercial quantities at acceptable costs;
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is not accepted in the medical community; or
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is not reimbursed by third-party payers or is reimbursed only at limited levels.
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For example,
in 2011, following our preliminary results of a Phase 2 clinical trial of XP21279 for the potential treatment of patients with Parkinsons disease who were experiencing motor fluctuations, we announced that we were deferring further investment
in the program pending the outcome of discussions with regulatory authorities and availability of resources. Based on our subsequent End-of-Phase 2 meeting with the FDA, we plan to continue development of XP21279 to the extent additional resources
permit or we enter into a collaboration arrangement with a third party, which we may be unable to do. If our resources prove insufficient or we are unable to establish a collaboration arrangement with a third party for the development and
commercialization of XP21279, we may be unable to advance its development. Our resources may also prove insufficient to develop XP23829 without a collaborator. If we are unable to make additional product candidates commercially available, we may not
be able to generate substantial product revenues, which would adversely affect our business and financial condition.
In May 2013,
following our preliminary results of a Phase 3 clinical trial to evaluate arbaclofen placarbil, or AP, for the potential treatment of spasticity in multiple sclerosis, or MS, patients, we announced that we were terminating further investment in AP
for such treatment. In May 2014, we announced that we had entered into a license agreement with Reckitt Benckiser Pharmaceuticals, Inc., which became effective in June 2014, pursuant to which we granted to Reckitt exclusive world-wide rights to
develop and commercialize pharmaceutical products containing AP and other produgs of baclofen or R-baclofen, or collectively, AP Products, for all indications, subject to our right of first negotiation with Reckitt to collaborate to develop and
commercialize AP Products for non-addiction indications. Accordingly, we are now wholly dependent on Reckitt to develop and commercialize AP Products, and if Reckitt is unable to bring any AP Products to market, or experiences significant delays in
doing so, our ability to generate any additional revenue from AP will be substantially impaired and our business may be harmed.
We
currently depend, and may in the future depend, on collaboration arrangements to complete the development, regulatory approval and commercialization of some of our product candidates. These arrangements may place the development of our product
candidates outside our control, may require us to relinquish important rights, may otherwise be on terms unfavorable to us and may ultimately not be successful.*
As a result of our license agreement with Reckitt, in which we granted to Reckitt exclusive world-wide rights to develop and commercialize AP
Products for all indications, subject to our right of first negotiation with Reckitt to collaborate to develop and commercialize AP Products for non-addiction indications, we are wholly dependent on Reckitt to develop and commercialize AP Products.
Future financial returns to us, if any, under our license agreement with Reckitt depend on the achievement of development, regulatory and commercialization milestones, plus royalties on potential future net product sales. Therefore, any associated
future financial returns to us and our stockholders under the Reckitt license agreement depend entirely on the efforts of, and funding by, Reckitt for the development and commercialization of AP Products. If Reckitt is not successful in developing
and bringing AP Products to market, our ability to generate revenue from AP will be substantially diminished, the development or commercialization of AP could be delayed or terminated, and our business and financial condition could be harmed.
Further, if Reckitt fails to identify and qualify one or more suitable manufacturers of AP, or if such manufacturers terminate their agreement with Reckitt and Reckitt is
24
otherwise unable to manufacture or contract to manufacture sufficient quantities of AP, development and commercialization of AP Products could be impaired or delayed. In addition, if the Reckitt
license terminates in such a way that AP reverts to us and we seek alternative arrangements with one or more other parties to develop and commercialize AP, we may not be able to enter into such an agreement with another suitable third party or third
parties on acceptable terms, or at all. Moreover, although we have a retained a right of first negotiation with Reckitt to collaborate to develop and commercialize AP Products for non-addiction indications, this right is limited and Reckitt is under
no obligation to us to enter into a collaboration with us for AP Products. Accordingly, we could fail to capitalize on, or share in, any successful development of AP by Reckitt apart from the milestone and royalty payment obligations to us under the
Reckitt license agreement.
In December 2005, we entered into a collaboration arrangement with Astellas for the development and
commercialization of gabapentin enacarbil, also known as REGNITE, in Japan, Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand and Taiwan. In 2007, we entered into an exclusive collaboration arrangement with GSK to develop and commercialize gabapentin
enacarbil worldwide, excluding the original Astellas territory. Following a significant dispute in 2012, including the filing of lawsuits in California and Delaware, we terminated our collaboration arrangement with GSK pursuant to a termination and
transition agreement, under which the product rights to HORIZANT returned to us in May 2013. We cannot control the amount and timing of resources that Astellas devotes to the development or commercialization of REGNITE or to its marketing and
distribution. For example, in May 2013, Astellas informed us that they did not have plans for commercialization of REGNITE in the countries other than Japan in their territory. As a result, all rights to gabapentin enacarbil in Korea, the
Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand and Taiwan reverted to us. In addition, Astellas may abandon further commercialization of REGNITE in Japan, or terminate their collaboration arrangement with us at any time, which could delay or impair the
development and commercialization of REGNITE and harm our business.
In addition to our collaborations with Astellas and Reckitt, we may
enter into future collaboration arrangements with third parties to further develop and commercialize HORIZANT
/
gabapentin enacarbil and/or to develop and commercialize our product candidates. Our dependence on current and future collaborators
for the development, regulatory approval and commercialization of some of our products and product candidates subjects us to a number of risks, including:
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we are not able to control the amount and timing of resources that our collaborator devote to the development or commercialization of products and product candidates, or to their marketing and distribution;
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disputes may arise between us and our collaborators, such as the litigation proceedings with GSK in 2012, that result in the delay or termination of the research, development or commercialization of our product
candidates or that result in costly litigation or arbitration that diverts managements attention and resources;
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we may not be able to control the amount and timing of resources that our collaborators may devote to the development or commercialization of products and product candidates or to their marketing and distribution;
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collaborators may delay clinical trials, provide insufficient funding for a clinical trial program, stop a clinical trial or abandon a product candidate, repeat or conduct new clinical trials or require a new
formulation of a product candidate for clinical testing;
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if we do not receive timely and accurate information from any collaborator or our third-party vendors regarding sales activities, expenses and resulting operating profits and losses, our estimates at a given point of
time could be incorrect and we could be required to record adjustments in future periods or restate our financial results for prior periods;
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collaborators may not be successful in their efforts to obtain regulatory approvals in a timely manner, or at all;
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collaborators may receive regulatory sanctions relating to other aspects of their business that could adversely affect the approval or commercialization of our product candidates;
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collaborators may not properly maintain or defend our intellectual property rights or may use our proprietary information in such a way as to invite litigation that could jeopardize or invalidate our proprietary
information or expose us to potential litigation;
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business combinations or significant changes in a collaborators business strategy may also adversely affect a collaborators willingness or ability to complete its obligations under any arrangement;
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a collaborator could independently move forward with a competing product candidate developed either independently or in collaboration with others, including our competitors;
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collaborators may experience financial difficulties; and
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the collaboration arrangements may be terminated or allowed to expire, which would delay the development or commercialization and may increase the cost of developing or commercializing our product candidates.
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For example, in 2007, we entered into a collaboration arrangement with Xanodyne Pharmaceuticals, Inc. for the development
and commercialization of XP21510 in the United States. In 2009, Xanodyne terminated the collaboration arrangement. Likewise, our collaboration with GSK was not successful and was terminated following a significant dispute and litigation related to
GSKs performance under the collaboration.
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We may need to raise additional funding and may be unable to raise capital when needed,
which would force us to delay, reduce or eliminate our commercialization efforts or our current product development programs.*
We
may need to raise additional capital in order to sustain our operations beyond the fourth quarter of 2016, to maintain a sales infrastructure and marketing and distribution capabilities for HORIZANT, and to continue the development of XP23829. Our
future funding requirements will depend on many factors, including:
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the timing, receipt and amount of sales or royalties from HORIZANT, REGNITE and our other potential products;
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the costs of our sales and marketing, supply chain, distribution, pharmacovigilance, compliance and safety infrastructure to promote and distribute HORIZANT, including increased costs associated with the establishment
of a XenoPort-employed sales force and our planned and potential future sales force expansions;
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the scope, rate of progress, results and cost of our preclinical testing, clinical trials and other research and development activities, including the timing and costs of further development of XP23829;
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the costs of manufacturing clinical and commercial supplies of HORIZANT and our product candidates;
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the timing and costs of complying with the remaining post-marketing commitments and post-marketing requirements established in connection with the approval of HORIZANT, and any future additional commitments or
requirements imposed on us by the FDA;
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the number and characteristics of product candidates that we pursue, including any additional potential indications for HORIZANT or the extent to which we pursue any further development of XP21279;
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the costs, timing and outcomes of regulatory approvals, if any;
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the terms and timing of any collaboration arrangements that we may establish or modify;
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the costs associated with any potential litigation;
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the costs of preparing, filing, prosecuting, maintaining, defending and enforcing any patent claims and other intellectual property rights; and
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the extent to which we acquire or invest in businesses, products or technologies that complement our business, although we have no commitments or agreements relating to any of these types of transactions.
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Until we can generate a sufficient amount of product revenues, if ever, we expect to finance future cash needs through
public or private equity or equity-linked offerings, debt financings or collaboration arrangements. If we raise additional funds by issuing our common stock, or securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for common stock, our
stockholders will experience dilution. Any debt financing or additional equity that we raise may contain terms that are not favorable to our stockholders or us. To the extent that we raise additional capital through collaboration arrangements, we
may be required to relinquish, on terms that are not favorable to us, rights to some of our technologies or product candidates that we would otherwise seek to develop or commercialize ourselves. Our ability to raise additional funds and the terms
upon which we are able to raise such funds may be adversely impacted by the uncertainty regarding our financial condition, the commercial prospects of HORIZANT and REGNITE based on their respective sales to date and our relative lack of experience
in commercializing products, and/or current economic conditions, including the effects of disruptions to, and volatility in, the credit and financial markets in the United States, Asia, the European Union and other regions of the world.
We believe that our existing capital resources, together with interest thereon and anticipated product revenue, will be sufficient to meet our
projected operating requirements into the fourth quarter of 2016. We have based our cash sufficiency estimate on assumptions that may prove to be wrong, and we could utilize our available capital resources sooner than we expect. Further, our
operating plan may change (for example, our current operating plan does not include any additional development activities for XP23829 beyond the current Phase 2 development program), and we may need additional funds to meet operational needs and
capital requirements for product development and commercialization sooner than planned. We have no credit facility or committed sources of capital other than potential contingent event-based and royalty payments that we are eligible to receive under
our collaboration arrangements with Astellas and Reckitt. We are responsible for all HORIZANT commercialization and development activities, including all post-marketing requirements and commitments. Such costs could be greater than we anticipate, or
sales of HORIZANT may be less than we anticipate, either or both of which could accelerate our need for additional capital.
Additional
funds may not be available to us on terms that are acceptable to us, or at all. If adequate funds are not, or we anticipate that they may not be, available on a timely basis, we may, among other things:
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reduce the amount of resources devoted to medical affairs, advertising, promotion or sales of HORIZANT;
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curtail or delay further XP23829 development; or
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conduct additional workforce or other expense reductions.
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For example, in 2012, we suspended clinical development activities for XP21279 to focus our
resources on development of our other product candidates. In addition, in May 2013, we terminated further investment in AP as a treatment for spasticity in patients with MS to focus our resources on the commercialization of HORIZANT and continued
development of XP23829. If we are required to reduce the amount of resources devoted to medical affairs, advertising, promotion or sales of HORIZANT, curtail or delay further XP23829 development or conduct additional workforce or other expense
reductions, our business and prospects could be materially and adversely affected. In addition, we may face substantial financial costs in order to comply with the remaining post-marketing commitments and post-marketing requirements established in
connection with the approval of HORIZANT, and our inability to carry out and fund such efforts to comply with these requirements could have material adverse consequences to us, including the loss of marketing approval for HORIZANT.
We rely on third parties to perform many essential services for HORIZANT, including services related to warehousing and inventory
control, distribution, customer service, government price reporting, recording of sales, accounts receivable management, cash collection and adverse event reporting, and if such third parties fail to provide us with accurate information, perform as
expected or comply with legal and regulatory requirements, our efforts to commercialize HORIZANT may be significantly impacted and/or we may be subject to regulatory sanctions.
We intend to continue to rely on third-party service providers to perform a variety of functions related to the sale and distribution of
HORIZANT, key aspects of which are out of our direct control. The services provided by these third parties include warehousing and inventory control, distribution, customer service, government price reporting, recording of sales, accounts receivable
management and cash collection. If these third-party service providers fail to comply with applicable laws and regulations, fail to meet expected deadlines or otherwise do not carry out their contractual duties to us, or if HORIZANT encounters
physical or natural damage at their facilities, our ability to deliver HORIZANT to meet commercial demand would be significantly impaired. If these third parties do not provide us with timely and accurate information, it could impact our ability to
comply with our financial reporting, state and federal healthcare professional aggregate spend reporting, government price reporting and securities laws obligations, which could expose us to the risk of stockholder lawsuits and adversely affect our
business. In addition, we have engaged third parties to perform various other services for us relating to adverse event reporting, safety database management, fulfillment of requests for medical information regarding HORIZANT and related services.
If the quality or accuracy of the data maintained or services performed by these third parties is insufficient, we could be subject to regulatory sanctions.
The commercial success of HORIZANT, REGNITE or any other products that we or our collaborators may develop will depend upon the degree
of market acceptance among physicians, patients, healthcare payers and the medical community.*
HORIZANT, REGNITE or any other
products that may result from our product candidates may not gain market acceptance among physicians, patients, healthcare payers and the medical community. If these products do not achieve an adequate level of acceptance, we may not generate
material product or collaboration revenues and we may not become profitable. The degree of market acceptance of HORIZANT, REGNITE or any products resulting from our product candidates will depend on a number of factors, including:
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the ability to offer such products for sale at competitive prices;
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sufficient third-party coverage or reimbursement for such products;
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the product labeling required by the FDA, the Japanese MHLW or any other regulatory authorities;
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demonstration of efficacy and safety in clinical trials;
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the prevalence and severity of any side effects;
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potential or perceived advantages over alternative treatments;
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perceptions about the relationship or similarity between our product candidates and the parent drug upon which each candidate is based;
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the timing of market entry relative to competitive treatments;
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relative convenience and ease of administration; and
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the strength of marketing and distribution support.
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For example, as HORIZANT is a prodrug of
an already approved drug, gabapentin, and is indicated for the treatment of conditions that also have been treated by generic competitors, there could be a perception among physicians that HORIZANT may not offer a significant clinical advantage or
be sufficiently differentiated from current treatments to justify its price, thereby limiting the market acceptance and sales that we may achieve with HORIZANT. In addition, HORIZANTs limited past sales performance under GSK and a HORIZANT
inventory stockout in 2013 may have created a negative market perception that could be difficult to overcome in our marketing efforts.
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Our ability to generate revenue from HORIZANT, REGNITE or any other products that we or our
collaborators may develop will depend on the availability of coverage and adequate reimbursement from third-party payers and drug pricing policies and regulations. *
In both U.S. and foreign markets, our ability and that of our collaborators to successfully commercialize HORIZANT, REGNITE or any other
products that we or our collaborators may develop, and our ability to attract strategic partners for these products, depends in significant part on the availability of financial coverage and adequate reimbursement from third-party payers, including,
in the United States, governmental payers such as the Medicare and Medicaid programs, managed care organizations and private health insurers. Many patients may be unable to pay for HORIZANT, REGNITE or any other products that we or our collaborators
may develop. We cannot be sure that coverage and adequate reimbursement in the United States, Japan, Europe or elsewhere will be available for HORIZANT, REGNITE or any other products that may result from our product candidates, and any reimbursement
that may become available may be decreased or eliminated in the future. Additionally, coverage and reimbursement determinations are made on a payer-by-payer basis. Therefore, obtaining acceptable coverage and reimbursement from one payer does not
guarantee we will obtain similar acceptable coverage or reimbursement from another payer. Third-party payers increasingly are challenging prices charged for medical products and services, and many third-party payers may refuse to provide
reimbursement for particular drugs when an equivalent generic drug or suitable alternative treatment is available. Although we believe HORIZANT, REGNITE and any other products that may result from our product candidates represent an improvement over
the parent drugs upon which they are based and should be considered unique and not subject to substitution by a generic parent drug, it is possible that a third-party payer may consider HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates and the respective
generic parent drug as equivalents and only offer to reimburse patients for the generic drug. Even if we show improved efficacy or improved convenience of administration with HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates, pricing of the existing
parent drug may limit the amount we or our collaborators will be able to charge for HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates. If reimbursement is not available or is available only at limited levels, we or our collaborators may not be able to
successfully commercialize HORIZANT, REGNITE or any of our product candidates that obtain marketing approval, and may not be able to obtain a satisfactory financial return on such products.
Such reimbursement pricing pressures have increased as a result of the Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and Modernization Act of 2003,
or the 2003 MMA, due to the enhanced purchasing power of the private sector plans that negotiate on behalf of Medicare beneficiaries. Furthermore, managed care organizations, as well as Medicaid and other government agencies, continue to seek price
discounts. Some states have implemented, and other states are considering, price controls or patient access constraints under the Medicaid program, and some states are considering price-control regimes that would apply to broader segments of their
populations that are not Medicaid-eligible. If legislation were enacted to mandate rebates or provide for direct government negotiation in prescription drug benefits, access and reimbursement for HORIZANT or our product candidates upon
commercialization could be restricted.
The trend toward managed healthcare in the United States and the changes in health insurance
programs, as well as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, as amended by the Health Care and Education Affordability Reconciliation Act, or collectively, PPACA, enacted in 2010, may result in lower prices for pharmaceutical products,
including HORIZANT or any other products that may result from our product candidates. In addition, if the 2003 MMA or the PPACA were amended to impose direct governmental price controls and access restrictions, these could have a significant adverse
impact on our business, including on any product sales revenue from HORIZANT. Any future regulatory changes regarding the healthcare industry or third-party coverage and reimbursement may affect demand for HORIZANT or any other products that may
result from our product candidates and could harm our sales and profitability.
If competitors are able to develop and market
products that are more effective, safer or less costly than HORIZANT, REGNITE or any other products that we or our collaborators may develop, our commercial opportunity will be reduced or eliminated.*
We face competition from established pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, including generic competitors, as well as from academic
institutions, government agencies and private and public research institutions. Our commercial opportunity will be reduced or eliminated if competitors develop and commercialize products that are safer, more effective, have fewer side effects or are
less expensive than HORIZANT
,
REGNITE or any other products that may result from our product candidates. In addition, significant delays in the development of our product candidates could allow competitors to bring products to market before
us and impair our ability to effectively commercialize our product candidates.
Products that we believe compete with HORIZANT in the
United States include the following drugs approved for the treatment of moderate-to-severe primary RLS: MIRAPEX (pramipexole) from Boehringer Ingelheim and generic pramipexole; REQUIP (ropinirole) from GSK and generic ropinirole; and NEUPRO (a
rotigotine transdermal system), a dopamine agonist patch from UCB, Inc. In Japan, we believe that REGNITE competes with SIFROL (pramipexole) and the UCB rotigotine transdermal system, which was launched in February 2013 by Otsuka, which has
exclusive rights to market in Japan. Products that we believe compete with HORIZANT in the United States for the management of PHN include drugs that act on the same target as HORIZANT, such as LYRICA (pregabalin) and NEURONTIN (gabapentin) from
Pfizer Inc., generic gabapentin and GRALISE (once-daily formulation of gabapentin) from Depomed, Inc. HORIZANT could also experience competition from a capsaicin patch (marketed as QUTENZA by Acorda Therapeutics, Inc.) and transdermal patches
containing the anesthetic known as lidocaine (marketed as LIDODERM by Endo Pharmaceuticals, Inc.).
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Products that could compete with XP23829, our product candidate that is a prodrug of monomethyl
fumarate, or MMF, for the treatment of psoriasis include topical agents, oral systemic therapies and biological therapies. Topical therapies include corticosteroids, anthrolin and synthetic vitamin D and vitamin A. Oral systemic agents include
acitretin, cyclosporine and methotrexate. Biological therapies that are approved to treat psoriasis include ENBREL (etanercept), marketed by Amgen Inc.; HUMIRA (adalimumab), marketed by Abbott Laboratories; REMICADE (infliximab), marketed by
Johnson & Johnson and Merck & Co., Inc.; and STELARA (ustekinumab), marketed by Johnson & Johnson. There are also a number of possible competitive products that are in late-stage product development in the United States,
including apremilast, brodalumab, ixekizumab, secukinumab and tofacitinib that are being developed by Celgene Corporation, Amgen, Eli Lilly and Company, Novartis and Pfizer, respectively.
Products that could compete with XP23829 for the treatment of relapsing forms of MS include oral and injectable agents that are approved in
the United States for the treatment of relapsing forms of MS. These include oral agents such as AUBAGIO (teriflunomide), marketed by Genzyme Corporation, a Sanofi company; GILENYA (fingolimod), marketed by Novartis AG; and TECFIDERA (dimethyl
fumarate), marketed by Biogen Idec Inc. In addition, several injectable products are approved in the United States and include AVONEX (interferon beta 1a), marketed by Biogen Idec; BETASERON (interferon beta 1b) and EXTAVIA (interferon beta 1b),
marketed by Bayer AG/Novartis; COPAXONE (glatiramer acetate), marketed by Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.; REBIF (interferon beta 1a), marketed by Merck Serono S.A.; and TYSABRI (natralizumab), marketed by Biogen Idec. There are also potentially
competitive products in late-stage product development in the United States, including BIIB017 (Peginterferon beta1a) from Biogen Idec, ZENAPAX (daclizumab) from Abbott/Biogen Idec, laquinimod from Teva and LEMTRADA (alemtuzumab) from
Genzyme/Sanofi-Aventis.
If resources permit and we choose to develop XP21279 as a potential treatment for idiopathic Parkinsons
Disease, products that could compete with XP21279, our product candidate that is a Transported Prodrug of levodopa, include: SINEMET (levodopa/carbidopa) that is distributed in the United States by Bristol Meyers Squibb; and generic
levodopa/carbidopa drugs and other drugs approved for the treatment of Parkinsons disease, including STALEVO, a combination therapy of levodopa/carbidopa/entacapone that is marketed in the United States by Novartis; dopamine agonists such as
MIRAPEX (pramipexole) as well as REQUIP (ropinirole) and REQUIP XL (ropinirole extended-release tablets), which are marketed by Boehringer Ingelheim and GSK, respectively; generic dopamine agonists, including pramipexole and ropinirole; and NEUPRO
(a rotigotine transdermal system), a dopamine agonist patch from UCB. Impax submitted a new drug application, or NDA, for RYTARY (previously known as IPX066), an extended-release formulation of levodopa/carbidopa, that is currently under FDA review.
Other therapies under development in the United States include levodopa/carbidopa formulations such as a levodopa/carbidopa gel delivered by a portable pump directly into the duodenum being developed by Abbott Laboratories, as well as DM-1992 and
OS-320 (extended-release formulations of levodopa/carbidopa being developed by Depomed and Osmotica, respectively).
There may be other
compounds of which we are not aware that are at an earlier stage of development and may compete with our products or product candidates. If any of those compounds are successfully developed and approved, they could compete directly with our products
or product candidates.
Many of our and our collaborators competitors have significantly greater financial resources and expertise
in research and development, manufacturing, preclinical testing, conducting clinical trials, obtaining regulatory approvals and marketing, distributing and selling approved products than we do. Established pharmaceutical companies may invest heavily
to quickly discover and develop novel compounds that could make HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates obsolete. Larger pharmaceutical companies also may have significantly greater sales forces, distribution capabilities and marketing
expertise, which may result in more effective communication and awareness of their products. Smaller or early-stage companies may also prove to be significant competitors, particularly through business arrangements with large and established
companies. In addition, these third parties compete with us in recruiting and retaining qualified scientific and management personnel, establishing clinical trial sites and patient registration for clinical trials, as well as in acquiring
technologies and technology licenses complementary to our programs or advantageous to our business. Accordingly, competitors may succeed in obtaining patent protection, receiving FDA approval or discovering, developing and commercializing medicines
before we or our collaborators do. We are also aware of other companies that may currently be engaged in the discovery of medicines that will compete with HORIZANT, REGNITE or products that may result from our product candidates. In addition, in the
markets that we are targeting, we expect to compete against current market-leading medicines. If we are not able to compete effectively against our current and future competitors, our business will not grow and our financial condition will suffer.
Off-label sale or use of generic gabapentin products could lead to pricing pressure or decrease sales of HORIZANT.
U.S. physicians are permitted to prescribe legally available drugs for uses that are not described in the drugs labeling and that differ
from those uses tested and approved by the FDA. The occurrence of such off-label uses in the practice of medicine could significantly reduce our ability to market and sell HORIZANT or any other products that we may develop.
We believe that in the United States, the composition-of-matter patents relating to gabapentin have expired. Off-label prescriptions written
for gabapentin for indications for which we are marketing or may develop HORIZANT could adversely affect
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our ability to generate revenue from the sales of HORIZANT. This could result in reduced sales and increased pricing pressure on HORIZANT, which in turn would reduce our ability to generate
meaningful revenue and have a negative impact on our results of operations.
If product liability lawsuits are brought against us,
we will incur substantial liabilities and may be required to limit commercialization of HORIZANT or any other products that we may develop. *
We face an inherent risk of product liability exposure related to the commercial use of HORIZANT and the testing of HORIZANT or our product
candidates in human clinical trials. If we cannot successfully defend ourselves against claims that HORIZANT, our product candidates or products that may result from our product candidates caused injuries, we will incur substantial liabilities.
Regardless of merit or eventual outcome, liability claims may result in:
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decreased demand for HORIZANT or any product candidates or products that may result from our product candidates;
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injury to our reputation;
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costly recalls of HORIZANT or other products that may result from our product candidates;
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withdrawal of clinical trial participants;
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costs to defend the related litigation;
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substantial monetary awards to clinical trial participants or patients;
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the inability to commercialize any future products that may result from our product candidates.
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We have product liability insurance that covers our commercial use and clinical trials up to a $10.0 million annual aggregate limit. Insurance
coverage is increasingly expensive, and we may not be able to maintain insurance coverage at a reasonable cost and we may not be able to obtain insurance coverage that will be adequate to satisfy any liability that may arise.
If third parties do not manufacture HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates in sufficient quantities or at an acceptable cost,
commercialization of HORIZANT and REGNITE and clinical development and commercialization of our product candidates would be harmed or delayed.*
We do not own or operate manufacturing facilities for the production of clinical or commercial quantities of HORIZANT
,
REGNITE or any of
our product candidates. We also have limited management expertise in commercial supply operations. For our product candidates, we have relied on, and we expect to continue to rely on, a limited number of third-party drug substance and drug product
manufacturers. We do not have commercial supply agreements with any of these third parties for our product candidates, and our agreements with these parties are generally terminable at will by either party at any time. For HORIZANT, GSK supplied us
with HORIZANT through October 2013, and also performed certain validation work with respect to the 300 mg dosage form of HORIZANT and other services for us through December 2013. Currently, we rely on Patheon as our single source supplier of
commercial product pursuant to a commercial supply agreement. Our purchase price for the manufacture and supply of HORIZANT is volume-based. Both parties have early termination rights with notice periods of varying lengths for various causes,
including for the counterpartys uncured breach. Patheon also has the right to terminate the supply agreement upon 18 months prior notice if we sell, assign or otherwise transfer rights to HORIZANT to a competitor of Patheon. If, for any
reason, Patheon or these thirdparty drug substance and drug product manufacturers are unable or unwilling to perform under our agreements or enter into new agreements, we may not be able to locate alternative manufacturers or enter into
favorable agreements with them. In addition, qualifying and then successfully registering a new HORIZANT manufacturer with the FDA is time consuming and could require at least about 18 months to carry out. Our inability to acquire sufficient
quantities of HORIZANT could result in future stockouts and existing patients not having access to drug product. Any inability to acquire sufficient quantities of our product candidates in a timely manner from these third parties could delay
clinical trials and prevent us from developing and commercializing these product candidates in a cost-effective manner or on a timely basis, if at all.
If we are unable to manufacture or contract to manufacture sufficient quantities of HORIZANT
,
the commercialization of HORIZANT could
be impaired or interrupted. For example, manufacturing delays resulted in a stockout of HORIZANT in 2013. As a result of the manufacturing delays, our full commercial promotion of HORIZANT was delayed for approximately one month. If we or Patheon
experience other delays or issues, our ability to commercialize HORIZANT could be further impaired. As part of the termination and transition agreement, GSK provided its inventory of gabapentin enacarbil drug substance to us. Although the inventory
of drug substance has reached the end of its specified shelf life, we believe that such inventory will remain in specification and will be usable, or in the alternative, we believe the drug substance can be re-crystallized into usable form. GSK
relied on a single source supplier of gabapentin enacarbil drug substance, and its agreement with such manufacturer has expired. If we are incorrect about the usability of the gabapentin enacarbil drug substance, are unable to have it meet
specifications upon re-crystallization or are unable to enter into an agreement with the contract manufacturer or qualify an alternative manufacturer, we may be limited in the amount of HORIZANT we could have manufactured and the
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commercialization of HORIZANT could be impaired or interrupted. Under the terms of our collaboration arrangement with Astellas, Astellas is solely responsible for the manufacture of REGNITE to
support its commercialization in Japan. To our knowledge, Astellas is currently relying on single source suppliers for commercial supplies of REGNITE. As a result, if Astellas fails to manufacture or contract to manufacture sufficient quantities of
REGNITE, commercialization of REGNITE could be impaired in Japan.
Under the terms of our license agreement with Reckitt, Reckitt is
solely responsible for the manufacture of AP to support its development and commercialization of AP Products. If Reckitt fails to identify and qualify one or more suitable manufacturers of AP, or if such manufacturers terminate their agreement with
Reckitt and Reckitt is otherwise unable to manufacture or contract to manufacture sufficient quantities of AP, development and commercialization of AP Products could be impaired or delayed.
We rely on a single source supplier of MMF, which is used to make XP23829, under purchase orders issued from time to time. We are aware of
several alternative suppliers of MMF, and we believe at least one alternative manufacturer could potentially supply MMF in the event that our supplier determines to not sell MMF to us at a price that is commercially attractive. If we are unable to
qualify an alternative supplier of MMF, this could delay the development of, and impair our ability to commercialize, XP23829.
We rely on
a single source supplier of XP23829 drug substance under a manufacturing services and supply agreement, and we have purchased XP23829 formulated in different forms from multiple suppliers at specified transfer prices under quotations agreed upon by
the parties as part of master services agreements. In the event that such suppliers terminate our respective agreements under specified circumstances, we would not be able to manufacture drug substance or XP23829 until alternative suppliers are
identified and qualified, which could also delay the development of, and impair our ability to commercialize, XP23829.
We rely on a
single source supplier of levodopa, which is used to make XP21279, under purchase orders issued from time to time. We are aware of several alternative suppliers of levodopa, and we believe at least one alternative manufacturer could potentially
supply levodopa in the event that our supplier determines to not sell levodopa to us at a price that is commercially attractive. If we are unable to qualify an alternative supplier of levodopa, this could further delay the development of, and impair
our ability to commercialize, XP21279.
We rely on a single source supplier of XP21279 drug substance under a manufacturing services and
product supply agreement. In the event that such supplier terminates the agreement under specified circumstances, we would not be able to manufacture drug substance until a qualified alternative supplier is identified and qualified, which could also
further delay the development of, and impair our ability to commercialize, this product candidate.
We have purchased XP21279 formulated
in sustained-release tablets from a single source supplier at specified transfer prices under quotations agreed upon by the parties as part of a master services agreement. We have also qualified another supplier for the manufacture of XP21279 with
carbidopa bi-layer tablets to be supplied under quotations agreed upon by the parties as part of a master services agreement. In the event that either supplier terminates its agreement under specified circumstances for the manufacture of XP21279
sustained-release tablets or carbidopa bi-layer tablets, we would not be able to manufacture XP21279 until an alternative supplier is qualified. This could further delay the development of, and impair our ability to commercialize, XP21279.
If we or our collaborators are required to obtain alternate third-party manufacturers, it could delay or prevent the clinical
development and commercialization of HORIZANT or our product candidates.*
We or our collaborators may not be able to maintain or
renew existing, or obtain new, third-party manufacturing arrangements on acceptable terms, if at all. If we or our collaborators are unable to continue relationships with suppliers for HORIZANT/gabapentin enacarbil, XP23829, AP and XP21279, or to
continue relationships at an acceptable cost or if these suppliers fail to meet our requirements for HORIZANT or these product candidates for any reason, we or our collaborators would be required to obtain alternative suppliers. Any inability to
obtain qualified alternative suppliers, including an inability to obtain, or delay in obtaining, approval of an alternative supplier from the FDA, would delay or prevent the clinical development and commercialization of HORIZANT or our product
candidates.
Use of third-party manufacturers may increase the risk that we or our collaborators will not have adequate supplies of
HORIZANT or our product candidates. *
Reliance on third-party manufacturers by us or our collaborators will create exposure that
could result in disruptions to the supply chain, product stockouts, patients not having access to their regular treatment, higher costs or lost product revenues, or it could delay or prevent:
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the commercialization of our products or products that may result from our product candidates;
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the initiation or completion of clinical trials;
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the submission of applications for regulatory approvals; and
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the approval of our product candidates by the FDA or foreign regulatory authorities.
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In
particular, our or our collaborators contract manufacturers:
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could encounter difficulties in achieving volume production, quality control and quality assurance or suffer shortages of qualified personnel, which could result in their inability to manufacture sufficient quantities
of drugs to meet commercial needs or clinical supplies of HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates;
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could terminate or choose not to renew manufacturing agreements, based on their own business priorities, at a time that is costly or inconvenient for us or our collaborators;
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could fail to establish and follow FDA-mandated current good manufacturing practices, or cGMPs, which are required for FDA approval of our product candidates, or fail to document their adherence to cGMPs, either of
which could require costly recalls of products already having received approval, lead to significant delays in the availability of material for clinical study or delay or prevent marketing approval for our product candidates;
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could encounter financial difficulties that would interfere with their obligations to supply HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates; and
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could breach, or fail to perform as agreed under, manufacturing agreements.
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For example, in
2013, due to manufacturing delays by GSK and Patheon, there was an insufficient amount of HORIZANT in the supply chain to meet the demand of orders of HORIZANT by pharmacies and wholesalers, leading to a one-month delay in our full commercial
promotion of HORIZANT.
If we or our collaborators are not able to obtain and maintain adequate supplies of HORIZANT, REGNITE or our
product candidates, it will have a significant impact on the commercialization efforts for HORIZANT or REGNITE, and will make it more difficult to develop our product candidates. HORIZANT, REGNITE, our product candidates and any products that we may
develop may compete with other products and product candidates for access to manufacturing facilities.
In addition, the manufacturing
facilities of certain of our suppliers, as well as a storage facility of drug substance, are located outside of the United States. This may give rise to difficulties in importing our products or product candidates or their components into the United
States or other countries as a result of, among other things, shipping losses, regulatory agency import inspections, incomplete or inaccurate import documentation, customs detention or seizures or defective packaging.
If our or our collaborators preclinical studies do not produce successful results or clinical trials do not demonstrate safety and
efficacy in humans, we or our collaborators will not be able to commercialize our product candidates. *
To obtain the requisite
regulatory approvals to market and sell any of our product candidates, we and our collaborators must demonstrate, through extensive preclinical studies and clinical trials, that the product candidate is safe and effective in humans. Preclinical and
clinical testing is expensive, can take many years and has an uncertain outcome. A failure of one or more of our or our collaborators clinical trials could occur at any stage of testing. For example, in July 2010, GSK announced top-line
results from a 30-week, double-blind, placebo-controlled, Phase 2 clinical trial of HORIZANT as a potential prophylactic treatment for migraine headaches in which HORIZANT did not demonstrate a statistically significant improvement on the primary
endpoint when compared to placebo. In addition, long-term safety concerns may prevent the approval of any of our product candidates by a regulatory authority. For example, in February 2010, safety concerns related to a preclinical finding of
pancreatic acinar cell tumors in rats delayed FDA approval of the HORIZANT NDA at that time. Furthermore, success in preclinical testing and early clinical trials does not ensure that later clinical trials will be successful, and interim results of
a clinical trial do not necessarily predict final results. In addition, the results of clinical trials by third parties evaluating a prodrug sharing the same parent drug as our prodrug candidates, including prodrugs of MMF such as TECFIDERA,
developed by Biogen Idec and approved by the FDA in March 2013, may not be indicative of the results in clinical trials that we may conduct with our prodrug candidate, including XP23829. Further, unfamiliarity with novel patient-reported outcome
tools, trial assessments or endpoints or with certain patient populations, including related subject drop-out rates, could result in additional cost, delay or failure of our clinical trials. For example, in 2013, we announced that our first Phase 3
clinical trial in MS patients was unsuccessful in demonstrating that AP provided statistically significant improvement relative to placebo in the co-primary endpoints of the study. We have since discontinued any further investment in AP as a
treatment for spasticity in patients with MS.
We or our collaborators may experience numerous unforeseen events during, or as a result
of, preclinical testing and the clinical trial process, which could delay or prevent our or our collaborators ability to commercialize our product candidates, including:
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regulators or institutional review boards may not authorize us to commence a clinical trial at a prospective trial site;
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preclinical testing or clinical trials may produce negative or inconclusive results, which may require the conduct of additional preclinical or clinical testing or abandonment of projects that we expect to be promising;
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we or our collaborators may suspend or terminate our clinical trials if the participating patients are being exposed to unacceptable health risks;
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risks associated with clinical trial design may result in a failure of the clinical trial to show statistically significant results even if the product candidate is effective;
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regulators or institutional review boards may suspend or terminate clinical research for various reasons, including noncompliance with regulatory requirements; and
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the effects of our product candidates may not be the desired effects or may include undesirable side effects.
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Any failure or delay in commencing or completing clinical trials for our product candidates could severely harm our business.*
The commencement and completion of clinical trials for our product candidates may be delayed or terminated as a result of many
factors, including:
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a clinical hold on an IND;
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delays in patient enrollment, unanticipated high patient drop-out rates and variability in the number and types of patients available for clinical trials, all of which we have experienced in the past;
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our or our collaborators inability to manufacture or obtain from third parties materials sufficient for use in preclinical studies and clinical trials;
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difficulty in maintaining contact with patients after treatment, resulting in incomplete data;
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poor effectiveness of product candidates during clinical trials;
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unforeseen safety issues or side effects; and
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governmental or regulatory delays and changes in regulatory requirements, policies and guidelines.
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Any delay in commencing or completing clinical trials for our product candidates would delay commercialization of our product candidates and
severely harm our business and financial condition. In addition, unforeseen safety issues or side effects could result from our collaborators current or future clinical trials, which could delay or negatively impact commercialization of our
product candidates. It is also possible that none of our product candidates will complete clinical trials in any of the markets in which we or our collaborators intend to sell those product candidates. Accordingly, we or our collaborators would not
receive the regulatory approvals needed to market our product candidates, which would severely harm our business and financial condition.
We rely on third parties to conduct preclinical and clinical trials on our behalf. If these third parties do not perform as
contractually required or expected, we may not be able to obtain regulatory approval for, or commercialize, our product candidates.
We do not have the ability to independently conduct clinical trials, and we must rely on third parties, such as contract research
organizations, medical institutions, clinical investigators, collaborators and contract laboratories, to conduct our clinical trials. We have, in the ordinary course of business, entered into agreements with these third parties, and we will continue
to do so. Nonetheless, we, as the sponsor, are responsible for confirming that each of our clinical trials is conducted in accordance with its general investigational plan and protocol. Moreover, the FDA requires us to comply with regulations and
standards, commonly referred to as good clinical practices, for conducting and recording and reporting the results of clinical trials to assure that data and reported results are credible and accurate and that the trial participants are adequately
protected. Our reliance on third parties that we do not control does not relieve us of these responsibilities and requirements. For example, we need to prepare, and ensure our compliance with, various procedures required under good clinical
practices, even though third-party contract research organizations have prepared and are complying with their own, comparable procedures. If these third parties do not successfully carry out their contractual duties or regulatory obligations or meet
expected deadlines, if the third parties need to be replaced or if the quality or accuracy of the data they obtain is compromised due to the failure to adhere to our clinical protocols or regulatory requirements or for other reasons, our preclinical
development activities or clinical trials may be extended, delayed, suspended or terminated, and we may not be able to obtain regulatory approval for our product candidates, or successfully commercialize HORIZANT.
As an illustrative example, in 2011, the FDA announced that certain bioanalytical studies conducted by a contract research organization may
need to be repeated or confirmed by the pharmaceutical company sponsors of the marketing applications that included such studies. The FDAs decision was the result of two inspections and an internal audit at a facility that identified
significant instances of misconduct and violations of federal regulations, including falsification of documents and manipulation of samples. Although we have not contracted with this contract research organization for any studies or clinical trials,
if one of the contract research organizations that conducted trials on our behalf were found to have similar or other violations, the FDA may require such trials to be repeated or it may affect the approvability of our product candidates and harm
our business.
HORIZANT and REGNITE remain, and future products, if any, will remain, subject to ongoing regulatory review. If we or
our collaborators fail to comply with continuing regulations, these approvals could be rescinded and the sale of our products could be suspended.*
Any regulatory approval to market a product could be conditioned on conducting additional, costly, post-approval studies or implementing a risk
evaluation and mitigation strategy or could contain strict limits on the indicated uses included in the labeling. For example, the FDA approval of HORIZANT for the treatment of moderate-to-severe primary RLS included requirements for GSK to conduct
a program of post-marketing commitments, or PMCs, and post-marketing requirements, or PMRs, in adults, including: a 12-week, double-blind, placebo-controlled efficacy study evaluating 300 mg, 450 mg and 600 mg tablets of HORIZANT dosed once per day
(low-dose efficacy study); two simulated driving studies; a drug-drug interaction study with morphine; and a cardiovascular safety, or QTc, study. GSK also agreed to conduct a pediatric program for subjects 13 years and older. The
pediatric clinical program,
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which was not completed by GSK and is scheduled to commence after requested adult data is obtained and reviewed by the FDA, includes: a pharmacokinetics, or PK, study; a parallel, fixed-dose
response efficacy study; a long-term safety study; and a simulated driving study. The specific protocol submission and trial completion dates for these PMCs/PMRs range from April 2011 through July 2024. Although GSK completed some of these
PMCs/PMRs, including conduct of the low-dose efficacy study, we are responsible for fulfilling the remaining, and any additional future, post-marketing study requirements, which will be expensive and time-consuming and may divert management time and
resources away from our commercialization efforts or the development of our product candidates.
HORIZANT has certain warnings and
precautions in the label, including information that HORIZANT may cause significant driving impairment. A medication guide, which contains information about the labeling intended for the patient, is also required to be distributed with HORIZANT.
Moreover, a product may later cause adverse effects that limit or prevent its widespread use, force us to withdraw it from the market or impede or delay our ability to obtain regulatory approvals in additional countries or indications. In addition,
the contract manufacturer of a product and its facilities will continue to be subject to FDA review and periodic inspections to ensure adherence to applicable regulations, and the manufacturing, labeling, packaging, adverse event reporting, storage,
advertising, promotion and record keeping related to HORIZANT
,
REGNITE and any future products remain subject to extensive regulatory requirements.
We and our collaborators are also subject to regulation by regional, national, state and local agencies, including the Department of Justice,
the Federal Trade Commission, the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and other regulatory bodies, as well as governmental authorities in those foreign countries in which we may commercialize our products.
The FDCA, the Public Health Service Act and other federal and state statutes and regulations govern to varying degrees the research, development, manufacturing and commercial activities relating to prescription pharmaceutical products, including
preclinical testing, approval, production, labeling, sale, distribution, import, export, post-market surveillance, advertising, dissemination of information and promotion. These statutes and regulations include, but are not limited to, anti-kickback
statutes and false claims statutes.
The federal Anti-Kickback Statute prohibits, among other things, knowingly and willfully offering,
paying, soliciting or receiving remuneration, directly or indirectly, to induce or in return for purchasing, leasing, ordering or arranging for the purchase, lease or order of any healthcare good, facility, item or service reimbursable under
Medicare, Medicaid or other federally financed healthcare programs. This statute has been interpreted to apply to arrangements between pharmaceutical companies on the one hand and prescribers, purchasers and formulary managers on the other. Although
there are a number of statutory exceptions and regulatory safe harbors protecting identified common activities from prosecution, the exceptions and safe harbors are drawn narrowly, and practices that involve remuneration intended to induce
prescribing, purchases or recommendations may be subject to scrutiny if they do not qualify for an exception or safe harbor.
Federal
false claims laws prohibit, among other things, any person or entity from knowingly presenting, or causing to be presented, a false or fraudulent claim for payment or approval to the federal government, or knowingly making, or causing to be made, a
false statement to get a false claim paid.
Recently, several pharmaceutical and other healthcare companies have been prosecuted under
these laws for, among other things, allegedly providing free product to customers with the expectation that the customers would bill federal programs for the product. Other companies have been prosecuted for causing false claims to be submitted
because of the companys marketing of the product for unapproved, and thus non-reimbursable, uses. Pharmaceutical and other healthcare companies have also been prosecuted on other legal theories of Medicare fraud. Federal law requires
applicable manufacturers of covered drugs to report payments and other transfers of value to physicians and teaching hospitals, and several states have similar healthcare professional aggregate spend reporting obligations or prohibitions. Other
states require the posting of information relating to clinical studies. In addition, California requires pharmaceutical companies to implement a comprehensive compliance program that includes a limit on expenditures for, or payments to, individual
medical or health professionals. We have adopted a comprehensive compliance program that we believe complies with California law. Several additional states are considering similar proposals.
In addition to the federal Anti-Kickback Statute and federal false claims laws, the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability
Act of 1996, or HIPAA, created new federal criminal statutes that prohibit executing a scheme to defraud any healthcare benefit program or making false statements relating to healthcare matters. HIPAA, as amended by the Health Information Technology
for Economic and Clinical Health Act of 2009, or HITECH, and its implementing regulations, also imposes certain requirements relating to the privacy, security and transmission of individually identifiable personal information, including health
information. State and foreign laws governing the privacy and security of health information in certain circumstances differ from each other in significant ways and often are not preempted by HIPAA, thus complicating compliance efforts.
The majority of states also have statutes or regulations similar to the federal healthcare laws that apply to items and services reimbursed
under Medicaid and other state programs, or, in several states, apply regardless of the payer.
It is possible that some of our business
activities could be subject to challenge under one or more of such laws. Such a challenge could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and growth prospects. If we or our operations are found to be
in violation of any of the laws described above or any other governmental regulations that apply to us, we may be subject to
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penalties, including potentially significant criminal, civil and/or administrative penalties, damages, fines, individual imprisonment, exclusion of products from reimbursement under U.S. federal
or state healthcare programs, contractual damages, reputational harm, administrative burdens, diminished profits and future earnings and the curtailment or restructuring of our operations, any of which could materially adversely affect our ability
to operate our business and our financial results.
Although compliance programs can mitigate the risk of investigation and prosecution
for violations of these laws, the risks cannot be entirely eliminated. Any action against us for violation of these laws, even if we successfully defend against it, could cause us to incur significant legal expenses and divert our managements
attention from the operation of our business. Moreover, achieving and sustaining compliance with these laws may prove costly.
We have
contracted with a contract sales organization that currently employs the sales representatives who promote HORIZANT, and we plan to use the same contract sales organization to employ additional sales representatives through our planned sales force
expansion. In addition, although we are in the process of establishing a XenoPort-employed sales force by hiring our existing sales representatives from our contract sales organization, we plan to continue to rely on that organization to provide
back office support for theXenoPort-employed sales force. However, we expect that government and regulatory agencies will hold us responsible for any actions by such sales representatives regardless of whether they are employed directly by XenoPort
or by our contract sales organization. If we or our contract sales organization fails to comply with the regulatory requirements of the FDA and other applicable U.S. and foreign regulatory authorities or if previously unknown problems with our
products, manufacturers or manufacturing processes are discovered, we and our collaborators could be subject to administrative or judicially imposed sanctions, including:
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restrictions on the products, manufacturers or manufacturing processes;
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civil or criminal penalties or fines;
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product seizures, detentions or import bans;
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voluntary or mandatory product recalls and publicity requirements;
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suspension or withdrawal of regulatory approvals;
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total or partial suspension of production; and
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refusal to approve pending applications for marketing approval of new drugs or supplements to approved applications.
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If we or our collaborators are not able to obtain or maintain required regulatory approvals, we or our collaborators will not be able to
commercialize HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates, our ability to generate revenue will be materially impaired and our business will not be successful. *
Our product candidates and the activities associated with their development and commercialization are subject to comprehensive regulation by
the FDA and other agencies in the United States and by comparable authorities in other countries. The inability to obtain or maintain FDA approval or approval from comparable authorities in other countries would prevent us and our collaborators from
commercializing HORIZANT
,
REGNITE or our product candidates in the United States or other countries. Although HORIZANT and REGNITE have been approved for commercial sale in the United States and Japan, respectively, we may never receive
regulatory approval for the commercial sale of our product candidates. In addition, even if a product candidate ultimately receives regulatory approval, the regulatory process may include significant delays that could harm our business. For example,
in 2010, GSK received a Complete Response letter from the FDA in which a preclinical finding of pancreatic acinar cell tumors in rats precluded approval of the HORIZANT NDA for the treatment of moderate-to-severe primary RLS at that time. GSK
responded to questions raised by the FDA in the Complete Response letter with an NDA resubmission and amended the NDA from a Section 505(b)(1) to a 505(b)(2) application in order for the FDA to be able to consider published gabapentin
nonclinical data in their assessment of HORIZANT. HORIZANT subsequently received approval from the FDA in 2011. However, our business was harmed due to the delay in obtaining approval for HORIZANT as a treatment for moderate-to-severe primary RLS.
Moreover, if the FDA requires that any of our products or product candidates be scheduled by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency, or DEA, we or our collaborators will be unable to continue or begin commercial sale of that product until the DEA
completes scheduling proceedings. If any of our products or product candidates is classified as a controlled substance by the DEA, we or our collaborators would have to register annually with the DEA and those products or product candidates would be
subject to additional regulation.
We have only limited experience in preparing and filing the applications necessary to gain regulatory
approvals. The process of applying for regulatory approval is expensive, often takes many years and can vary substantially based upon the type, complexity and novelty of the product candidates involved. The application process begins with the
submission of an NDA that the FDA initially reviews and either accepts or rejects for filing. NDA submissions are complex electronic filings, which include vast compilations of data sets, integrated documents and data calculations. The FDA has
substantial discretion in the submission process and may refuse to accept an NDA submission for any reason, including insufficient information or if there are errors or omissions relating to the electronic transmittal process, data entry, data
compilation or formatting. For example, in 2008, GSK withdrew a previously submitted NDA for HORIZANT for the treatment of moderate-to-severe primary RLS in connection with the FDAs request that the data from a single study be reformatted.
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Changes in the regulatory approval policy during the development period, changes in, or the
enactment of, additional regulations or statutes or changes in regulatory review for each submitted product application may cause delays in the approval or rejection of an NDA. If the FDA were to miss a Prescription Drug User Fee Act, or PDUFA,
timing goal for one of our product candidates, the development and commercialization of the product candidate could be delayed or impaired. For example, in 2009, the FDA notified GSK that it was extending the PDUFA timing goal for HORIZANT for the
treatment of moderate-to-severe primary RLS for three months. In addition, the FDA may convene an advisory committee at any time during the review process. The advisory committee review process can be a lengthy and uncertain process that could delay
the FDAs NDA approval and delay or impair the development and commercialization of our product candidates.
The FDA has substantial
discretion in the approval process and may refuse to approve any application or decide that our data is insufficient for approval and require additional preclinical, clinical or other studies. Varying interpretations of the data obtained from
preclinical and clinical testing or other studies could delay, limit or prevent regulatory approval of any of our product candidates. As part of their review process, the FDA could require additional studies or trials to satisfy particular safety
concerns. For example, although we had discussions with the FDA in 2012 regarding the studies required by the FDA to support an NDA submission for XP21279 for the potential treatment of advanced idiopathic Parkinsons disease, when or if we
decide to pursue these studies and the approval of XP21279, the FDA could change their guidance or require additional studies, causing delay or the expenditure of additional resources. Even if the FDA or other regulatory agency approves a product
candidate, the approval may impose significant restrictions on the indicated uses, conditions for use, labeling, advertising, promotion, marketing and/or production of such product and may impose ongoing commitments or requirements for post-approval
studies, including additional research and development and clinical trials, and we or our collaborators may be unable to maintain regulatory approvals for our products. In addition, the FDA and other agencies also may impose various civil or
criminal sanctions for failure to comply with regulatory requirements, including withdrawal of product approval.
We and our collaborators
will need to obtain regulatory approval from authorities in foreign countries to market our product candidates in those countries. Approval by one regulatory authority does not ensure approval by regulatory authorities in other jurisdictions. If we
or our collaborators fail to obtain approvals from foreign jurisdictions, the geographic market for our product candidates would be limited.
An NDA submitted under Section 505(b)(2) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act subjects us to the risk that we may be subject
to a patent infringement lawsuit that would delay or prevent the review and approval of our product candidate.
Certain product
candidates that we develop, including XP23829, could potentially be submitted to the FDA for approval under Section 505(b)(2) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, as amended, or FDCA, which was enacted as part of the Drug Price
Competition and Patent Term Restoration Act of 1984, also known as the Hatch-Waxman Act. Section 505(b)(2) permits the submission of an NDA where at least some of the information required for approval comes from studies not conducted by, or
for, the applicant and for which the applicant has not obtained a right of reference.
For NDAs submitted under Section 505(b)(2) of
the FDCA, the patent certification and related provisions of the Hatch-Waxman Act apply. In accordance with the Hatch-Waxman Act, such NDAs may be required to include certifications, known as Paragraph IV certifications, that certify that any
patents listed in the Patent and Exclusivity Information Addendum of the FDAs publication,
Approved Drug Products with Therapeutic Equivalence Evaluations
, commonly known as the Orange Book, with respect to any product referenced in the
Section 505(b)(2) application, are invalid, unenforceable or will not be infringed by the manufacture, use or sale of the product that is the subject of the Section 505(b)(2) application. Under the Hatch-Waxman Act, the holder of patents
that the Section 505(b)(2) application references may file a patent infringement lawsuit after receiving notice of the Paragraph IV certification. Filing of a patent infringement lawsuit within 45 days of the patent owners receipt of
notice triggers a one-time, automatic, up to 30-month stay of the FDAs ability to approve the 505(b)(2) application. For example, we are aware that there are seven patents listed in the Orange Book for TECFIDERA that have expiration dates
between April 2018 and February 2028. If we file a Section 505(b)(2) application referencing TECFIDERA data, we will have to provide a Paragraph IV certification against any such listed patents if they have not expired by that time. Although we
believe that an approved XP23829 product would not infringe the claims in the listed patents, that the listed patents would expire before any such potential Section 505(b)(2) submission would otherwise occur based on our current anticipated
product development timelines, and/or that the claims in the listed patents are invalid and/or unenforceable, if we provide a Paragraph IV certification, the patent holder may file a patent infringement lawsuit, triggering up to a 30-month stay on
the FDAs ability to approve our Section 505(b)(2) application. Accordingly, we may invest a significant amount of time and expense in the development of one or more products only to be subject to significant delay and patent litigation
before such products may be commercialized, if at all. A Section 505(b)(2) application may also not be approved until any non-patent exclusivity, such as exclusivity for obtaining approval of a new chemical entity, or NCE, listed in the Orange
Book for the referenced product has expired. The FDA may also require us to perform one or more additional clinical studies or measurements to support the change from the approved product. To avoid such potential delay or for other reasons, we may
pursue a full development pathway of such product candidate under Section 505(b)(1) of the FDCA, which could be more expensive and time consuming. In this regard, while we are in discussions with the FDA about potentially pursuing XP23829
development under the Section 505(b)(2) pathway, we believe at this time that it is likely that we will pursue a full development pathway for XP23829 under Section 505(b)(1) of the FDCA. Even if we submit an NDA under
Section 505(b)(2), the FDA may reject our future Section 505(b)(2) submissions and require us to file such submissions under Section 505(b)(1). These factors, among others, may limit our ability to successfully commercialize our
product candidates.
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Current healthcare laws and regulations and future legislative or regulatory reforms to the
healthcare system may affect our ability to profitably sell any products that we may develop.
The United States and some foreign
jurisdictions are considering, or have enacted, a number of legislative and regulatory proposals designed to change the healthcare system in ways that could affect our ability to sell our products profitably. Among policy makers and payers 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 and/or expanding access. In the United States, the pharmaceutical industry
has been a particular focus of these efforts and has been significantly affected by major legislative initiatives.
In 2010, PPACA became
law in the United States. PPACA has the potential to substantially change healthcare financing and delivery by both governmental and private insurers, and significantly impact the pharmaceutical industry. Among the provisions of PPACA of importance
to the pharmaceutical industry are the following:
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an annual, nondeductible fee on any entity that manufactures or imports certain branded prescription drugs and biologic agents, apportioned among these entities according to their market share in certain government
healthcare programs;
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an increase in the rebates a manufacturer must pay under the Medicaid Drug Rebate Program, retroactive to January 1, 2010, to 23.1% and 13% of the average manufacturer price for branded (with certain exceptions)
and generic drugs, respectively;
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a new Medicare Part D coverage gap discount program, in which manufacturers must agree to offer 50% point-of-sale discounts off negotiated prices of applicable brand drugs to eligible beneficiaries during their coverage
gap period, as a condition for the manufacturers outpatient drugs to be covered under Medicare Part D;
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extension of manufacturers Medicaid rebate liability to covered drugs dispensed to individuals who are enrolled in Medicaid managed care organizations;
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expansion of eligibility criteria for Medicaid programs by, among other things, allowing states to offer Medicaid coverage to additional individuals and by adding new mandatory eligibility categories for certain
individuals with income at or below 133% of the federal poverty level beginning in 2014, thereby potentially increasing manufacturers Medicaid rebate liability;
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expansion of the entities eligible for discounts under the Public Health Service pharmaceutical pricing program;
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new requirements to report annually certain payments or transfers of value provided to physicians and teaching hospitals, as each is defined in PPACA and its implementing regulations, and to report any
ownership and investment interests held by physicians and their immediate family members during the preceding calendar year, with data collection requirements that began on August 1, 2013 and to report to the Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services on an annual basis;
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a new requirement to track and annually report certain drug samples that manufacturers and distributors provide to licensed practitioners;
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expansion of healthcare laws, including the False Claims Act and the Anti-Kickback Statute, new government investigative powers and enhanced penalties for noncompliance under certain healthcare laws;
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a licensure framework for follow-on biologic products; and
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a new Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute to oversee, identify priorities in, and conduct comparative clinical effectiveness research, along with funding for such research.
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In addition, other legislative changes have been proposed and adopted since PPACA was enacted. In 2011, the Budget Control Act of 2011, among
other things, created measures for spending reductions by Congress. A Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, tasked with recommending a targeted deficit reduction of at least $1.2 trillion for the years 2013 through 2021, was unable to reach
required goals, thereby triggering the legislations automatic reduction to several government programs. This includes aggregate reductions to Medicare payments to providers of up to 2% per fiscal year, starting in 2013. In January 2013,
President Obama signed into law the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, or the ATRA, which, among other things, reduced Medicare payments to several providers, including hospitals, imaging centers and cancer treatment centers, and increased the
statute of limitations period for the government to recover overpayments to providers from three to five years. These new laws may result in additional reductions in Medicare and other healthcare funding, which could have a material adverse effect
on our customers and accordingly, our financial operations.
Additionally, other recent federal legislation imposes new obligations on
manufacturers of pharmaceutical products, among others, related to product tracking and tracing. Among the requirements of this new legislation, manufacturers are required to provide certain information regarding the drug product to individuals and
entities to which product ownership is transferred, label drug product with a product identifier, and keep certain records regarding the drug product. Further, under this new legislation, manufacturers will have drug
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product investigation, quarantine, disposition, notification and purchaser license verification responsibilities related to counterfeit, diverted, stolen, and intentionally adulterated products,
as well as products that are the subject of fraudulent transactions or which are otherwise unfit for distribution such that they would be reasonably likely to result in serious health consequences or death.
We anticipate that PPACA, as well as other healthcare reform measures that may be adopted in the future, may result in more rigorous coverage
criteria and an additional downward pressure on the price that we receive for HORIZANT and any other approved product, and could seriously harm our business. Any reduction in reimbursement from Medicare or other government programs may result in a
similar reduction in payments from private payers. Insurers may also refuse to provide any coverage of uses of approved products for medical indications other than those for which the FDA has granted market approvals. As a result, significant
uncertainty exists as to whether and how much third-party payers will reimburse for HORIZANT and any newly-approved drugs, which in turn will put pressure on the pricing of drugs.
We also cannot be certain that HORIZANT or any other products that may result from our product candidates will successfully be placed on the
list of drugs covered by particular health plan formularies, nor can we predict the negotiated price for such products, which will be determined by market factors. Many states have also created preferred drug lists and include drugs on those lists
only when the manufacturers agree to pay a supplemental rebate. If HORIZANT or other products that may result from our product candidates are not included on these preferred drug lists, physicians may not be inclined to prescribe them to their
patients, thereby diminishing the potential market for such products. Astellas will face similar pricing and reimbursement restrictions in Japan for REGNITE, and further efforts to reform the Japanese healthcare system may increase such
restrictions.
If some or all of our patents expire, are invalidated or are unenforceable, or if some or all of our patent
applications do not yield issued patents or yield patents with narrow claims, competitors may develop competing products using our intellectual property and our business will suffer. *
Our success will depend in part on our ability to obtain and maintain patent and trade secret protection for our technologies, HORIZANT,
REGNITE and our product candidates both in the United States and other countries. We have a number of U.S. and foreign patents, patent applications and rights to patents related to our compounds, product candidates, products and technology, but we
cannot guarantee that issued patents will be enforceable or that pending or future patent applications will result in issued patents. Alternatively, a third party may successfully circumvent our patents. Our rights under any issued patents may not
provide us with sufficient protection against competitive products or otherwise cover commercially valuable products or processes.
The
degree of future protection for our proprietary technologies, HORIZANT, REGNITE and our product candidates is uncertain because legal means afford only limited protection and may not adequately protect our rights or permit us to gain or keep our
competitive advantage. For example:
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it is 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;
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we might not have been the first to make the inventions covered by each of our pending patent applications and issued patents;
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we might not have been the first to file patent applications for these inventions;
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others may independently develop similar or alternative technologies or duplicate any of our technologies;
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it is possible that any one or more of our pending patent applications will not result in issued patents;
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it is possible that the claims of our pending patent applications will be narrowed during prosecution, which may limit the scope of patent protection that may be obtained;
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any patents issued to us or our collaborators may not provide a basis for commercially viable products or may be challenged by third parties; or
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the patents of others may have an adverse effect on our ability to do business.
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Even if valid
and enforceable patents cover HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates and technologies, the patents will provide protection only for a limited amount of time.
Our and our collaborators ability to obtain patents is highly uncertain because, to date, some legal principles remain unresolved, there
has not been a consistent policy regarding the breadth or interpretation of claims allowed in patents in the United States and the specific content of patents and patent applications that are necessary to support and interpret patent claims is
highly uncertain due to the complex nature of the relevant legal, scientific and factual issues. Furthermore, the policies governing biotechnology patents outside the United States are even more uncertain. Changes in either patent laws or
interpretations of patent laws in the United States and other countries may diminish the value of our intellectual property or narrow the scope of our patent protection. For example, in 2011, the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act, or the Leahy-Smith
Act, was signed into law. The Leahy-Smith Act includes a number of significant changes to United States patent law. These include provisions that affect the way patent applications will be prosecuted and may also affect patent litigation. The United
38
States Patent Office has developed new and untested regulations and procedures to govern the full implementation of the Leahy-Smith Act, and many of the substantive changes to patent law
associated with the Leahy-Smith Act, and in particular, the first to file provisions, only became effective in March 2013. Accordingly, it is too early to tell what, if any, impact the Leahy-Smith Act will have on the operation of our business.
However, the Leahy-Smith Act and its implementation could increase the uncertainties and costs surrounding the prosecution of our patent applications and the enforcement or defense of our issued patents, all of which could have a material adverse
effect on our business and financial condition. In addition, the laws of some foreign countries do not protect intellectual property rights to the same extent as federal and state laws in the United States. Consequently, we and our collaborators may
not be able to prevent third parties from practicing our and our collaborators inventions in countries outside the United States, or from selling or importing products made using our and our collaborators inventions in and into the
United States or other jurisdictions. Competitors may use our and our collaborators technologies in jurisdictions where we have not obtained patent protection to develop their own products and may export otherwise infringing products to
territories where we and our collaborators have patent protection, but enforcement is not as strong as that in the United States. These products may compete with our products and our and our collaborators patents or other intellectual property
rights may not be effective or sufficient to prevent them from competing.
Our issued patents regarding HORIZANT and REGNITE and any
future patents that may issue regarding these products or our product candidates or methods of using them can be challenged by our competitors who can argue such patents are invalid and/or unenforceable. For example, in 2008, a law firm on behalf of
an undisclosed client filed an opposition against the patent grant of one of our European patent applications covering gabapentin enacarbil. The European Patent Office in opposition proceedings in 2010, undertook a formal review of the issues raised
by the opponent and decided to maintain the grant of our European patent covering the composition of matter of gabapentin enacarbil. While the law firm that filed the opposition initially appealed the ruling on behalf of the undisclosed client, that
appeal was withdrawn in 2010. Patents also may not protect HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates if competitors devise ways of making them or similar products without legally infringing our patents. The FDCA and FDA regulations and policies
provide incentives to manufacturers to challenge patent validity and these same types of incentives encourage manufacturers to submit NDAs that rely on literature and clinical data not prepared for or by the drug sponsor.
We may obtain patents for certain product candidates many years before marketing approval is obtained for those products. Because patents have
a limited life, which may begin to run prior to the commercial sale of the related product, the commercial value of the patent may be limited. However, we may be able to apply for patent term extensions.
As part of the approval process of our product candidates in the United States, the FDA may determine that the product candidates be granted
an exclusivity period during which other manufacturers applications for approval of generic versions of our products will not be accepted and/or approved. Generic manufacturers can submit an abbreviated NDA, or ANDA, referencing an approved
product at any time after the acceptance exclusivity period has tolled for the approved product, and thereby initiate a challenge to the approved products listed patents under a Paragraph IV certification. In addition, the FDA can approve an
ANDA any time after the approval exclusivity period (if different from the acceptance exclusivity) has tolled. For example, the FDA granted HORIZANT five years of data exclusivity based on it being an NCE. The FDA could accept an ANDA that contains
unauthorized reference to HORIZANT after the first four years of the exclusivity period, and the FDA could approve such ANDA submissions after the full five-year exclusivity period has tolled. It is possible that generic manufacturers are
considering attempts to seek FDA approval for a similar or identical drug as HORIZANT through an ANDA, which would require a Paragraph IV certification, thereby triggering challenges to our Orange Book-listed patents. If our patents are subject to
such challenges, we may need to spend significant resources to defend such challenges and we may not be able to defend our patents successfully.
In June 2012, HORIZANT was granted orphan drug designation by the FDA for treatment of PHN. As a result of this designation, we are entitled
to seven years of orphan drug exclusive approval of HORIZANT for the management of PHN in adults. As the holder of this orphan drug exclusivity, we are required to assure the availability of sufficient quantities of HORIZANT to meet the needs of
patients. Failure to do so could result in withdrawal of our orphan drug exclusivity.
Obtaining and maintaining our patent protection
depends on compliance with various procedural, document submission, fee payment and other requirements imposed by governmental patent agencies, and our patent protection could be reduced or eliminated for non-compliance with these requirements.
Periodic maintenance and annuity fees on any issued patent are due to be paid to the USPTO and foreign patent agencies in several stages over the lifetime of the patent. 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. While an inadvertent 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 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 or our
collaborators fail to maintain the patents and patent applications covering HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates, our competitors might be able to enter the market, which would have a material adverse effect on our business.
We also rely on trade secrets to protect our technology, especially where we do not believe that patent protection is appropriate or
obtainable. However, trade secrets are difficult to protect. Our employees, consultants, contractors, outside scientific collaborators and other advisors may unintentionally or willfully disclose our confidential information to competitors.
Enforcing a claim that a third party illegally obtained and is using our trade secrets is expensive and time-consuming, and the outcome is unpredictable. Failure to obtain or maintain trade secret protection could adversely affect our competitive
business position.
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Our research and development collaborators may have rights to publish data and other information
in which we have rights. In addition, we sometimes engage individuals or entities to conduct research that may be relevant to our business. The ability of these individuals or entities to publish or otherwise publicly disclose data and other
information generated during the course of their research is subject to certain contractual limitations. In most cases, these individuals or entities are, at the least, precluded from publicly disclosing our confidential information and are only
allowed to disclose other data or information generated during the course of the research after we have been afforded an opportunity to consider whether patent and/or other proprietary protection should be sought. If we do not apply for patent
protection prior to such publication or if we cannot otherwise maintain the confidentiality of our technology and other confidential information, then our ability to receive patent protection or protect our proprietary information may be
jeopardized.
We may become involved in lawsuits and other proceedings to protect, defend or enforce our patents or other
intellectual property, which could be expensive, time consuming and unsuccessful.
Competitors and other third parties may
misappropriate, infringe or otherwise violate our intellectual property rights including our patent, trademark, copyright and know-how rights. To counter such infringement or other violations, we may be required to file legal actions such as claims,
suits, proceedings and/or litigation, which can be expensive, distracting and time consuming. Any such legal actions could provoke the relevant parties to assert counterclaims against us, including claims alleging that we infringe their patents,
have misappropriated their proprietary know-how or otherwise violated their own intellectual property rights. In addition, in a patent infringement proceeding, a court may decide that one or more of the patents we assert against a third party is
invalid or unenforceable, in whole or in part, construe the patents claims narrowly or refuse to prevent the other party from using the technology at issue on the grounds that our patents do not cover the activities. Similarly, if we assert
trademark infringement claims, a court may determine that the marks we have asserted are invalid or unenforceable or that the party against whom we have asserted trademark infringement has superior rights to the marks in question. In such a case, we
could ultimately be forced to cease our use of such marks. We may also become involved in other disputes relating to our intellectual property rights, such as opposition, post-grant review, derivation, interference or re-examination proceedings
before the USPTO or its foreign counterparts and, if we are unable to successfully resolve any such disputes, we could lose rights in our valuable intellectual property. In any intellectual property disputes, even if we are successful, any award of
monetary damages, injunction or other remedy we receive may not be commercially valuable. 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.
Third-party claims of intellectual
property infringement would require us to spend significant time and money and could prevent us from developing or commercializing our products. *
Our commercial success depends in part on not infringing the patents and proprietary rights of other parties and not breaching any licenses
that we have entered into with regard to our technologies and products. Because others may have filed, and in the future are likely to file, patent applications covering products or other technologies of interest to us that are similar or identical
to ours, patent applications or issued patents of others may have priority over our patent applications or issued patents. For example, we are aware of a family of third-party patent applications relating to prodrugs of gabapentin. We believe the
applications have been abandoned in the United States, the European Patent Office, Canada, Australia and the United Kingdom. Additionally, with respect to the development of XP23829, we are aware of third-party patents and patent applications
relating to the use of fumarates in the treatment of MS and psoriasis, including several such patents held by Biogen Idec and included in the TECFIDERA Orange Book listing. With respect to the claims contained in these patent applications and
patents, we believe that an approved XP23829 product would not infringe the claims of the patents at issue, that the patents would expire before any infringement would otherwise occur based on our current anticipated product development timelines,
and/or that the claims in the third-party patents or patent applications are invalid and/or unenforceable. In addition, we believe that in all countries in which we hold or have licensed rights to patents or patent applications related to HORIZANT,
REGNITE or gabapentin enacarbil, the composition-of-matter patents relating to gabapentin have expired. However, it is possible that a judge or jury will disagree with our conclusions regarding non-infringement, invalidity and/or expiration of these
patents that may relate to XP23829 and HORIZANT, and we could incur substantial costs in litigation if we are required to defend against patent suits brought by third parties or if we initiate these suits. In addition, there could be other
third-party patents or patent applications covering certain aspects of our planned development or commercialization activities that we are not yet aware of. Any legal action against our current or potential future collaborators or us claiming
damages and seeking to enjoin commercial activities relating to the affected products and processes could, in addition to subjecting us to potential injunction that could prevent us from selling the affected products, expose us to potential
liability for damages and require our current or potential future collaborators or us to obtain a license to continue to manufacture or market the affected products and processes. Licenses required under any of these patents may not be available on
commercially acceptable terms, if at all. Failure to obtain such licenses could materially and adversely affect our ability to develop, commercialize and sell HORIZANT
,
REGNITE or our product candidates. Such legal actions against us could
also include the theory of contributory infringement, or claiming that because our prodrugs are broken down in the body into an active metabolite and other substances, that we have infringed on patents that cover the use of the active metabolite. We
believe that there may continue to be significant litigation in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industry regarding patent and other intellectual property rights. If we become involved in litigation, it could consume a substantial portion of our
management and financial resources and we may not prevail in any such litigation
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Furthermore, our commercial success will depend, in part, on our and our collaborators
ability to develop additional product candidates in current indications of interest or opportunities in other indications. Some of these activities may involve the use of genes, gene products, screening technologies and other research tools that are
covered by third-party patents. Court decisions have indicated that the exemption from patent infringement afforded by the Hatch-Waxman Act does not encompass all research and development activities associated with product development. In some
instances, we may be required to obtain licenses to such third-party patents to conduct our development activities, including activities that may have already occurred. It is not known whether any license required under any of these patents would be
made available on commercially acceptable terms, if at all. Failure to obtain such licenses could materially and adversely affect our ability to maintain a pipeline of potential product candidates and to bring new products to market. If we are
required to defend against patent suits brought by third parties relating to third-party patents that may be relevant to our development activities, or if we initiate such suits, we could incur substantial costs in litigation. Moreover, an adverse
result from any legal action in which we are involved could subject us to damages and/or prevent us from conducting some of our development activities.
We may expend our limited resources to market or sell a product or pursue the development of a particular candidate or indication and
fail to capitalize on other products or product candidates or indications that may be more profitable or for which there is a greater likelihood of success.
Because we have limited financial and managerial resources, we must focus on products and product candidates for the specific indications that
we believe are the most promising. As a result, we may forego or delay pursuit of opportunities with other product candidates or other indications that later prove to have greater commercial potential. Our resource allocation decisions may cause us
to fail to capitalize on viable commercial products, including HORIZANT, or profitable market opportunities. In addition, we may spend valuable time and managerial and financial resources on marketing or promoting a product that is not commercially
viable or developing product candidates for specific indications that ultimately do not yield any commercially viable products. If we do not accurately evaluate the commercial potential or target market for a particular product or product candidate,
we may relinquish valuable rights to that product or product candidate through collaboration arrangements in situations where it would have been more advantageous for us to retain sole rights to development and commercialization.
Safety issues with HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates, or the parent drugs or other components of HORIZANT, REGNITE or our
product candidates, or with approved products of third parties that are similar to HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates, could decrease sales of HORIZANT and REGNITE, or give rise to delays in the regulatory approval process, restrictions on
labeling or product withdrawal.
Discovery of previously unknown problems, or increased focus on a known problem, with an approved
product may result in restrictions on its permissible uses, including withdrawal of the medicine from the market. The label for HORIZANT currently includes warnings and precautions related to driving impairment, somnolence/sedation and dizziness,
lack of interchangeability with gabapentin, suicidal behavior or ideation, multiorgan hypersensitivity, discontinuation and tumorigenic potential. If we or others later identify undesirable side effects caused by HORIZANT or any of our other product
candidates that receive marketing approval:
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regulatory authorities may require the addition of labeling statements, specific warnings, contraindications or field alerts to physicians and pharmacies;
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regulatory authorities may withdraw their approval of the product and require us to take our approved drug off the market;
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we may be required to change the way the product is administered, conduct additional clinical trials, change the labeling of the product or conduct a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategies, or REMS, program;
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we may have limitations on how we promote our drugs;
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sales of products may decrease significantly;
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we may be subject to litigation or product liability claims; and
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our reputation may suffer.
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Any of these events could prevent us from achieving or maintaining
market acceptance of the affected product or could substantially increase our commercialization costs and expenses, which in turn could delay or prevent us from generating significant revenues from its sale.
HORIZANT, REGNITE and our product candidates may also be affected by the safety of the parent drugs or drugs related to our products or
product candidates. Although gabapentin, baclofen (which includes the R-isomer of baclofen) and levodopa, the parent drugs of HORIZANT
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REGNITE
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gabapentin enacarbil, AP and XP21279, respectively, have been used successfully in patients
for many years, newly observed toxicities or worsening of known toxicities, in preclinical studies of, or in patients receiving, gabapentin, baclofen or
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levodopa, or reconsideration of known toxicities of gabapentin, baclofen or levodopa in the setting of new indications, could result in increased regulatory scrutiny of
HORIZANT
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REGNITE
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gabapentin enacarbil, AP and XP21279, respectively. For example, the label for baclofen, the R-isomer of which is the parent drug of AP, includes a warning that hallucinations and seizures have occurred on abrupt
withdrawal of baclofen dosing without proper tapering in spasticity patients. As another example, although a product called FUMADERM, which contains fumaric acid ester compounds, including dimethyl fumarate, or DMF (another prodrug of MMF), has been
approved and used in Germany for the treatment of psoriasis, FUMADERM has not been approved in the United States. In addition, in March 2013, the FDA approved Biogen Idecs TECFIDERA as a treatment for relapsing forms of MS. Any safety concerns
or other problems noted by regulators with respect to DMF, TECFIDERA or MMF could increase the risk of regulatory scrutiny of XP23829, possibly delaying or preventing any regulatory approval of XP23829. For example, it has been reported that some
patients taking FUMADERM developed progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy, or PML, a progressive brain disease. Although Biogen Idec has not reported any events of PML in their clinical trials of TECFIDERA, in its SEC filings, Biogen Idec notes
the potential risk of PML cases that may develop in patients previously treated with TYSABRI who switched to therapy with TECFIDERA. If a link between PML and TECFIDERA, DMF or MMF is established in the future, it could increase regulatory scrutiny
of XP23829 or delay or prevent its approval.
The FDA has substantial discretion in the NDA approval process and may refuse to approve any
application if the FDA concludes that the risk/benefit analysis of a potential drug treatment for a specific indication does not warrant approval. For example, in 2010, safety concerns related to a preclinical finding of pancreatic acinar cell
tumors in rats precluded FDA approval of the HORIZANT NDA in RLS in its form at that time. Although there were similar findings of rat pancreatic acinar cell tumors following treatment with gabapentin, the parent drug of HORIZANT, the FDA has, to
date, not prevented the use of gabapentin. In the 2010 Complete Response letter, the FDA noted that they had concluded that the seriousness and severity of refractory epilepsy and the benefit to patients provided by gabapentin justified the
potential risk at that time. Thus, although the parent drug for, or a drug related to, one of our product candidates may be approved by the FDA in a particular indication, the FDA may conclude that our product candidates risk/benefit profile
does not warrant approval in a different indication, and the FDA may delay or refuse to approve our product candidate. Such conclusion and refusal would prevent us from developing and commercializing our product candidates and severely harm our
business and financial condition. For example, even with the approval of TECFIDERA for relapsing forms of MS, the FDA may not agree that the risk/benefit profile of XP23829 for the treatment of psoriasis or other potential indications, if
established, would warrant approval in such indications. HORIZANT, REGNITE and our product candidates are engineered to be broken down by the bodys natural metabolic processes and to release the active drug and other substances. While these
breakdown products are generally regarded as safe, it is possible that there could be unexpected toxicity associated with these breakdown products that will cause any or all of HORIZANT
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REGNITE
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gabapentin enacarbil, XP23829, XP21279
and AP to be poorly tolerated by, or toxic to, humans. Any unexpected toxicity of, or suboptimal tolerance to, our product or product candidates could reduce sales of HORIZANT and REGNITE, and delay or prevent commercialization of our product
candidates.
Additionally, problems with approved products marketed by third parties that utilize the same therapeutic target or that
belong to the same therapeutic class as the parent drug of HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates could adversely affect the commercialization of HORIZANT or REGNITE or the development of our product candidates. For example, if either
gabapentin or pregabalin, drugs from Pfizer that are marketed as NEURONTIN and LYRICA, respectively, encounters unexpected toxicity problems in humans, the FDA may restrict the use of HORIZANT since it is believed to share the same therapeutic
target as gabapentin and pregabalin. In 2008, the FDA added warnings to 11 antiepileptic drugs, including gabapentin, regarding an increased risk of suicide or suicidal thoughts. In 2009, the FDA approved safety label changes for all approved
antiepileptic drugs, except those indicated only for short-term use, to include a warning about an increased risk of suicidal thoughts or actions. In addition, in 2011, the FDA added warnings to the labels of antiepileptic drugs regarding an
increased risk of drug reaction with Eosinophilia and Systemic Symptoms, or DRESS, also known as multiorgan hypersensitivity, which has been reported in patients taking antiepileptic drugs. HORIZANT, as a compound that is believed to share the same
therapeutic target as antiepileptic drugs such as gabapentin and pregabalin, has similar warnings regarding suicidality and DRESS in its label. Additional scrutiny could be placed on HORIZANT if it is found have an increased risk of suicides or
suicidal behavior. In 2010, the FDA released draft guidance recommending that prospective suicidality assessments be performed in clinical trials of any drug with central nervous system activity. We expect that the FDA will follow this guidance, and
we will be required to perform suicidality assessments in all of our clinical trials, including Phase 1 trials, of any of our product candidates with central nervous system activity. Finally, if the FDA determines that a drug may present a risk of
substance abuse, it can recommend to the DEA that the drug be scheduled under the Controlled Substances Act. While gabapentin is not a scheduled drug at the present time, pregabalin has been scheduled as a controlled substance. Since pregabalin is a
scheduled drug, it is possible that the FDA may require additional testing of HORIZANT in the future, the results of which could lead the FDA to conclude that HORIZANT should be scheduled as well. Scheduled substances are subject to DEA regulations
relating to manufacturing, storage, distribution and physician prescription procedures, and the DEA regulates the amount of a scheduled substance that is available for clinical trials and commercial distribution. Accordingly, any scheduling action
that the FDA or DEA may take with respect to HORIZANT may limit HORIZANT
s
marketing approval. In addition, any failure or delay in commencing or completing clinical trials or obtaining regulatory approvals for our product candidates
would delay commercialization of our product candidates, and severely harm our business and financial condition.
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If we do not establish collaborations for our product candidates, we may have to alter our
development and commercialization plans. *
Our strategy includes selectively collaborating with leading pharmaceutical and
biotechnology companies to assist us in furthering development and potential commercialization of some of our product candidates. We intend to do so, especially for indications that involve a large, primary care market that must be served by large
sales and marketing organizations or to develop and commercialize product candidates that fall outside our core focus or our core development capabilities. We face significant competition in seeking appropriate collaborators, and these
collaborations are complex and time consuming to negotiate and document. We may not be able to negotiate additional collaborations on acceptable terms, or at all. We are unable to predict when, if ever, we will enter into any additional
collaborations because of the numerous risks and uncertainties associated with establishing additional collaborators. If we are unable to negotiate additional collaborations, we may not be able to maximize the market opportunity of a product, or we
may have to curtail the development of a particular product candidate, reduce or delay its development program or one or more of our other development programs, delay its potential commercialization, reduce the scope of our sales or marketing
activities or increase our expenditures and undertake development or commercialization activities at our own expense. If we elect to increase our expenditures to fund development or commercialization activities on our own, we may need to obtain
additional capital, which may not be available to us on acceptable terms, or at all. If we do not have sufficient funds, we will not be able to bring our product candidates to market and generate product revenues. For example, we do not intend to
pursue any further development of XP21279 unless we have sufficient funds to do so or we enter into collaborations with third parties for such development. Accordingly, if we are unable to establish collaborations for these product candidates, we
may determine to abandon these product candidates entirely in which case we would not receive any return on our investments in these product candidates.
We may not develop additional prodrug product candidates.
As part of a restructuring in 2010, we eliminated our discovery research department, which prevents our ability to discover additional product
candidates at this time. If we are unable to develop suitable product candidates from our internal efforts, we may pursue additional product candidates through in-licensing. Any growth through in-licensing would depend upon the availability of
suitable product candidates at favorable prices and upon advantageous terms and conditions. To obtain additional product candidates, we may also reconstitute our discovery research department, which would require the expenditure of significant
resources and the identification and hiring of a number of highly-skilled employees. Such efforts could divert the time and resources from the later-stage development or commercialization of HORIZANT or our product candidates.
If we are unable to develop or obtain suitable product candidates, we will not be able to increase our revenues in future periods, which could
result in significant harm to our financial position and adversely impact our stock price.
If we fail to attract and keep senior
management and key scientific personnel, we may be unable to successfully develop or commercialize HORIZANT or our product candidates.*
Our success depends on our continued ability to attract, retain and motivate highly qualified management, commercial, clinical and scientific
personnel and on our ability to develop and maintain important relationships with leading clinicians. If we are not able to retain our key personnel, we may not be able to successfully commercialize HORIZANT, or develop or commercialize our product
candidates. Competition may limit our ability to hire and retain highly qualified personnel on acceptable terms. Moreover, none of our employees have employment commitments for any fixed period of time and could leave our employment at will. We do
not carry key person insurance covering members of senior management or key scientific personnel. If we fail to identify, attract and retain qualified personnel, we may be unable to continue our development and commercialization
activities.
If we use biological and hazardous materials in a manner that causes contamination or injury or violates laws, we may
be liable for damages.
Our development activities involve the use of potentially harmful biological materials as well as hazardous
materials, chemicals and various radioactive compounds. We cannot completely eliminate the risk of accidental contamination or injury from the use, storage, handling or disposal of these materials. In the event of contamination or injury, we could
be held liable for damages that result, and any liability could exceed our resources. We, the third parties that conduct clinical trials on our behalf and the third parties that manufacture HORIZANT or our product candidates are subject to federal,
state and local laws and regulations governing the use, storage, handling and disposal of these materials and waste products. The cost of compliance with these laws and regulations could be significant. The failure to comply with these laws and
regulations could result in significant fines and work stoppages and may harm our business.
Our facility is located in Californias
Silicon Valley, in an area with a long history of industrial activity and use of hazardous substances, including chlorinated solvents. Environmental studies conducted prior to our leasing of the site found levels of metals and volatile organic
compounds in the soils and groundwater at our site. While these constituents of concern predated our occupancy, certain environmental laws, including the U.S. Comprehensive, Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980, impose
strict, joint and several liabilities on current operators of real property for the cost of removal or remediation of hazardous substances. These laws often impose liability even if the owner or operator did not know of, or was not responsible for,
the release of such hazardous substances. As a result, while we have not been, we cannot rule out the possibility that we could in the future be held liable for costs to address contamination at the property beneath our facility, which costs could
be material.
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Our facility is located near known earthquake fault zones, and the occurrence of an
earthquake, extremist attack or other catastrophic disaster could cause damage to our facilities and equipment, which could require us to cease or curtail operations.
Our facility is located near known earthquake fault zones and, therefore, is vulnerable to damage from earthquakes. In 1989, a major earthquake
struck this area and caused significant property damage and a number of fatalities. We are also vulnerable to damage from other types of disasters, including power loss, attacks from extremist organizations, fire, floods and similar events. If any
disaster were to occur, our ability to operate our business could be seriously impaired. We may not have adequate insurance to cover our losses resulting from disasters or other similar significant business interruptions, and we do not plan to
purchase additional insurance to cover such losses due to the cost of obtaining such coverage. Any significant losses that are not recoverable under our insurance policies could seriously impair our business and financial condition.
Significant disruptions of information technology systems or breaches of data security could adversely affect our business.
Our business is increasingly dependent on critical, complex and interdependent information technology systems, including Internet-based
systems, to support business processes as well as internal and external communications. The size and complexity of our computer systems make them potentially vulnerable to breakdown, malicious intrusion and computer viruses that may result in the
impairment of production and key business processes.
In addition, our systems are potentially vulnerable to data security
breacheswhether by employees or othersthat may expose sensitive data to unauthorized persons. Such data security breaches could lead to the loss of trade secrets or other intellectual property, or could lead to the public exposure of
personal information (including sensitive personal information) of our employees, clinical trial patients, customers and others.
Such
disruptions and breaches of security could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our ability to use our net operating loss carryforwards and certain other tax attributes may be limited.
Under Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, if a corporation undergoes an ownership change, generally
defined as a greater than 50% change (by value) in its equity ownership over a three-year period, the corporations ability to use its pre-change net operating loss carryforwards and other pre-change tax attributes (such as research tax
credits) to offset its post-change taxable income or taxes may be limited. Our equity offerings, including our January 2014 equity offering, and other changes in our stock ownership, some of which are outside of our control, may have resulted or
could in the future result in an ownership change. If a limitation were to apply, utilization of a portion of our domestic net operating loss and tax credit carryforwards could be limited in future periods and a portion of the carryforwards could
expire before being available to reduce future income tax liabilities.
Risks Related to Ownership of our Common Stock
Our stock price is volatile, and purchasers of our common stock could incur substantial losses.*
The market price of our common stock, and the market prices of securities of biopharmaceutical companies in general, have been highly volatile.
In this regard, the market price of our common stock is likely to continue to be subject to wide fluctuations. The market price of our common stock may be influenced by many factors, including:
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the commercial sales of HORIZANT, REGNITE or any of our other products that may result from our product candidates that may in the future be approved by the FDA or its foreign counterparts;
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the costs to maintain adequate sales, marketing and commercial capabilities to commercialize HORIZANT;
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adverse results or delays in clinical trials;
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the timing of achievement of our clinical, regulatory, collaborating and other milestones, such as the commencement of clinical development, the completion of a clinical trial, the filing for regulatory approval or the
establishment of commercial collaborations for one or more of our product candidates;
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announcement of FDA approvability, approval or non-approval of our product candidates, and the timing of the FDA review process;
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actions taken by regulatory agencies with respect to HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates, our clinical trials or our sales and marketing activities;
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actions taken by regulatory agencies with respect to products or drug classes related to HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates;
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problems in our manufacturing or supply chain that limit or exhaust the quantity of supplies of HORIZANT that are available to patients;
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changes in our collaborators business strategies;
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developments in our relationship with Astellas and/or Reckitt, including potential disputes or the termination or further modification of our agreements with Astellas and/or Reckitt;
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regulatory developments in the United States and foreign countries;
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changes in the structure of healthcare payment systems;
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any intellectual property matter involving us, including infringement lawsuits;
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actions taken by regulatory agencies with respect to our or our collaborators compliance with regulatory requirements;
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announcements or actions by stockholder activists;
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hedging or arbitrage trading activity that may develop involving our common stock;
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announcements of technological innovations or new products by us or our competitors;
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market conditions for equity investments in general, or the biotechnology or pharmaceutical industries in particular;
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changes in financial estimates or recommendations by securities analysts;
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sales of large blocks of our common stock;
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sales of our common stock by our executive officers, directors and significant stockholders;
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restatements of our financial results and/or material weaknesses in our internal controls; and
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the loss of any of our key scientific or management personnel.
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The stock markets in general
and the markets for biotechnology stocks in particular, have experienced extreme volatility that has often been unrelated to the operating performance of particular companies. These broad market fluctuations may adversely affect the trading price of
our common stock. In the past, purported class action lawsuits have often been instituted against companies, including our company, whose securities have experienced periods of volatility in market price. Any such litigation brought against us could
result in substantial costs, which would hurt our financial condition and results of operations, divert managements attention and resources and possibly delay our clinical trials or commercialization efforts.
Fluctuations in our operating results could cause our stock price to decline.*
Our operating results will be difficult to predict and will likely fluctuate from quarter to quarter and year to year. Due to our acquisition
of the HORIZANT business in May 2013 and the relative lack of our own historical sales data, HORIZANT sales may be difficult to predict from period to period and as a result, you should not rely on HORIZANT sales results in any period as being
indicative of future performance, and sales of HORIZANT may be below the expectation of securities analysts or investors in the future.
The following factors are likely to result in fluctuations of our operating results from quarter to quarter and year to year:
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the level and timing of commercial sales of HORIZANT, REGNITE or any of our other products that may result from our product candidates approved by the FDA or its foreign counterparts;
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the costs to maintain adequate sales, marketing and commercial capabilities to commercialize HORIZANT, and the costs associated with fulfilling the remaining, and any additional future, PMCs and PMRs for HORIZANT;
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changes in the amount of deductions from gross sales, including government-mandated rebates, chargebacks and discounts that can vary because of changes to the government discount percentage or due to different levels of
utilization by entities entitled to government rebates and discounts and changes in patient demographics;
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adverse results or delays in our or our collaborators clinical trials;
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the timing and achievement of our clinical, regulatory, collaborating and other milestones, such as the commencement of clinical development, the completion of a clinical trial, the filing for regulatory approval or the
establishment of a commercial collaboration for one or more of our product candidates;
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announcement of FDA approvability, approval or non-approval of our product candidates and the timing of the FDA review process;
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actions taken by regulatory agencies with respect to HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates, our clinical trials or our sales and marketing activities;
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actions taken by regulatory agencies with respect to products or drug classes related to HORIZANT, REGNITE or our product candidates;
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problems in our manufacturing or supply chain that limit or exhaust the quantity of supplies of HORIZANT that are available to patients;
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changes in our collaborators business strategies;
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developments in our relationship with our collaborators, including potential disputes or the termination or modification of our agreements;
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actions taken by regulatory agencies with respect to our or our collaborators compliance with regulatory requirements;
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regulatory developments in the United States and foreign countries;
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changes in the structure of healthcare payment systems;
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any intellectual property matter involving us, including patent infringement lawsuits; and
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announcements of technological innovations or new products by us or our competitors.
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Due to
these fluctuations in our operating results, a period-to-period comparison of our results of operations may not be a good predictor of our future performance. For example, due primarily to the recognition of revenues from up-front, milestone and
contingent event-based payments from our agreements with Astellas and GSK, we were profitable for the year ended December 31, 2007 and in the three months ended June 30, 2011. However, while recognition of these revenues resulted in a
profitable year or quarter for those periods, we incurred net losses in each full year since 2007. In any particular financial period, the actual or anticipated fluctuations could be below the expectations of securities analysts or investors and our
stock price could decline.
We may become subject to increased stockholder activism efforts that each could cause a material
disruption to our business.*
Certain influential institutional investors and hedge funds have taken steps to involve themselves in
the governance and strategic direction of certain companies due to governance or strategic-related disagreements between such companies and such stockholders. For example, Clinton Relational Opportunity Master Fund, L.P. conducted a proxy contest
with respect to matters voted upon at our 2014 annual meeting of stockholders, which contest followed multiple communications to us urging a change in our capital allocation strategy away from our HORIZANT commercialization efforts and a change in
our management. Responding to this proxy contest was time-consuming and was a significant distraction for our board of directors, management and employees, and diverted the attention of our board of directors and senior management from the pursuit
of our business strategy. The expenses for legal and advisory fees and expenses and associated costs incurred in connection with this proxy contest were substantial and increased our operating expenses for the first half of 2014 by approximately
$1.2 million. Increased or future stockholder activism efforts could result in substantial costs and a further diversion of managements attention and resources, which could harm our business and adversely affect the market price of our common
stock.
Failure to maintain effective internal controls in accordance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 could
have a material adverse effect on our stock price.
Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the related rules and
regulations of the SEC require annual management assessments of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting and a report by our independent registered public accounting firm attesting to, and reporting on, the effectiveness of
our internal control over financial reporting. If we fail to maintain the adequacy of our internal control over financial reporting, as such standards are modified, supplemented or amended from time to time, or if we fail to maintain effective
internal control over financial reporting around our commercial promotion of HORIZANT, we may not be able to ensure that we can conclude on an ongoing basis that we have effective internal control over financial reporting in accordance with
Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and the related rules and regulations of the SEC. If we cannot favorably assess, or our independent registered public accounting firm is unable to provide an unqualified attestation report on, the
effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, investor confidence in the reliability of our financial reports may be adversely affected, which could have a material adverse effect on our stock price.
Because a small number of existing stockholders own a large percentage of our voting stock, they may be able to exercise significant
influence over our affairs, acting in their best interests and not necessarily those of other stockholders.
As of July 15,
2014, our executive officers, directors and holders of 5% or more of our outstanding common stock, based upon information known to us and derived from Schedules 13G filed with the SEC, beneficially owned approximately 45% of our common stock. The
interests of this group of stockholders may not always coincide with our interests or the interests of other stockholders. This concentration of ownership could also have the effect of delaying or preventing a change in our control or otherwise
discouraging a potential acquiror from attempting to obtain control of us, which in turn could reduce the price of our common stock.
Our stockholder rights plan and anti-takeover provisions in our charter documents and under Delaware law could make an acquisition of
us, which may be beneficial to our stockholders, more difficult and may prevent attempts by our stockholders to replace or remove our current management.
Provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and bylaws may delay or prevent an acquisition of us, a change in our
management or other changes that stockholders may consider favorable. These provisions include:
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a classified board of directors;
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a prohibition on actions by our stockholders by written consent;
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the ability of our board of directors to issue preferred stock without stockholder approval, which could be used to make it difficult for a third party to acquire us;
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notice requirements for nominations for election to the board of directors; and
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limitations on the removal of directors.
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Moreover, we are governed by the provisions of Section 203 of the Delaware General
Corporation Law, which prohibits a person who owns in excess of 15% of our outstanding voting stock from merging or combining with us for a period of three years after the date of the transaction in which the person acquired in excess of 15% of our
outstanding voting stock, unless the merger or combination is approved in a prescribed manner.
We have adopted a rights agreement under
which certain stockholders have the right to purchase shares of a new series of preferred stock, at an exercise price of $140.00 per one one-hundredth of a share, if a person acquires more than 15% of our common stock. The rights plan could make it
more difficult for a person to acquire a majority of our outstanding voting stock. The rights plan could also reduce the price that investors might be willing to pay for shares of our common stock and result in the market price of our common stock
being lower than it would be without the rights plan. In addition, the existence of the rights plan itself may deter a potential acquiror from acquiring us. As a result, either by operation of the rights plan or by its potential deterrent effect,
mergers and acquisitions of us that our stockholders may consider in their best interests may not occur.
These provisions, alone or
together, could delay or prevent hostile takeovers and changes in control or changes in our management, and could under certain circumstances, reduce the market price of our common stock.
If there are large sales of our common stock, the market price of our common stock could drop substantially.
If our existing stockholders sell a large number of shares of our common stock or the public market perceives that existing stockholders might
sell shares of our common stock, the market price of our common stock could decline significantly. As of July 15, 2014, we had 62,211,589 outstanding shares of common stock, substantially all of which may be sold in the public market without
restriction.