Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2019
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Basis of Presentation and Use of Estimates	Basis of Presentation and Use of Estimates The accompanying financial statements have been prepared in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles ("U.S. GAAP"). The preparation of the accompanying financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities as of the date of the financial statements, and the reported amounts of expenses during the periods reported. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Assets and liabilities reported in the Company’s balance sheet and expenses and income reported for each of the periods presented are affected by estimates and assumptions, which are used for, but are not limited to, determining the fair value of assets and liabilities, income tax uncertainties, and measurement of stock-based compensation. Actual results could differ from such estimates or assumptions.
Liquidity and Substantial Doubt in Going Concern	On August 19, 2019, the Company entered into a sales agreement with BTIG, LLC, as sales agent (“BTIG”), to establish an at-the-market ("ATM") offering program, under which the Company was permitted to offer and sell, from time to time, shares of its common stock having a maximum aggregate offering price of up to $15.0 million. The Company was required to pay BTIG a commission of 3% of the gross proceeds from the sale of shares and has also agreed to provide BTIG with customary indemnification rights. The ATM program will remain in full force and effect until the earlier of the sale of all of the shares under the ATM program or the termination of the sales agreement by the Company or BTIG. The Company plans to raise additional funding through financing, a capital offering, a license or collaboration agreement or a combination of such sources of capital. However, there are no assurances that additional funding will be obtained and that the Company will succeed in its future operations. The Company’s inability to obtain required funding in the near future or its inability to obtain funding on favorable terms will have a material adverse effect on its operations and strategic development plan for future growth. If the Company cannot successfully raise additional capital and implement its strategic development plan, its liquidity, financial condition and business prospects will be materially and adversely affected, and it may have to cease operations. The Company will continue to evaluate its timelines, strategic needs, and working capital requirements. There can be no assurance that if the Company attempts to raise additional capital, it will be successful in doing so on terms acceptable to the Company, or at all. Further, there can be no assurance that it will be able to gain access and/or be able to execute on securing new sources of funding, new development opportunities, successfully obtain regulatory approvals for and commercialize new products, achieve significant product revenues from its products (if approved), or achieve or sustain profitability in the future. Presently, the Company does not have sufficient cash and cash equivalents to enable it to fund its anticipated level of operations and meet its obligations as they become due within twelve months following the date of issuance of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. The aforementioned factors raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of one year from the issuance of these financial statements. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty. Liquidity and Substantial Doubt in Going Concern Since inception, the Company has incurred recurring operating losses and negative cash flows from operating activities
Segment Reporting	Segment Reporting The Company operates in one reportable segment: the development of human pharmaceutical products. All long-lived assets are maintained in the United States, with the exception of $12.4 million of a construction-in-progress asset related to the Company's commercial coating and primary packaging system that is being manufactured in Germany.
Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash	Cash, Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash The Company considers all highly liquid investments purchased with an original maturity of 90 days or less to be cash equivalents.
Marketable Securities	Marketable Securities Marketable securities generally consist of debt securities with original maturities greater than 90 days and remaining maturities of less than one year. Marketable securities with an original maturity greater than one year, if any, would be considered long-term investments. All of the Company's investments are classified as available-for-sale and carried at fair value based upon quoted market price. The change in unrealized gains and losses related to fixed maturity debt securities is reported as a separate component of other comprehensive loss on the statements of operations and comprehensive loss and as a separate component of stockholders' equity on the balance sheets. Interest income includes interest, dividends, amortization and accretion of purchase premiums and discounts and realized gains and losses on sales of securities, if any. The cost of securities sold is based on the specific-identification method. The Company monitors its investment portfolio for potential impairment on a quarterly basis. If the carrying amount of an investment in marketable securities exceeds its fair value and the decline in value is determined to be other-than-temporary, the carrying amount of the security is reduced to fair value and a loss is recognized in operating results for the amount of such decline. In order to determine whether a decline in value is other-than-temporary, the Company evaluates, among other factors, the cause of the impairment, including the creditworthiness of the security issuers, the number of securities in an unrealized loss position, the severity and duration of the unrealized losses, and its intent and ability to hold the security to maturity or expected recovery.
Fair Value Instruments	Fair Value Instruments The Company records its financial assets and liabilities at fair value. Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability (an exit price) in an orderly transaction between market participants at the reporting date. The accounting guidance establishes a three-tiered hierarchy, which prioritizes the inputs used in the valuation methodologies in measuring fair value as follows: Level 1: Inputs which include quoted prices in active markets for identical assets and liabilities. Level 2: Inputs other than Level 1 that are observable, either directly or indirectly, such as quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities; quoted prices in markets that are not active; or other inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data for substantially the full term of the assets or liabilities. Level 3: Unobservable inputs that are supported by little or no market activity and that are significant to the fair value of the assets or liabilities. The carrying values of certain assets and liabilities of the Company, such as cash and cash equivalents and accounts payable, approximate fair value due to their relatively short maturities. The carrying value of the Company’s short-term financial obligations approximates their fair value as the terms of the borrowing are consistent with current market rates and the duration to maturity is short. The carrying value of the Company's long-term financial obligations approximates fair value as interest rates approximate market rates that the Company could obtain for debt with similar terms and maturities.
Concentrations of Credit Risk	Concentrations of Credit Risk Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to a concentration of credit risk consist primarily of cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities. The Company invests its excess cash in money market funds, U.S. treasuries, corporate notes and commercial paper. The Company’s investment policy limits investments to certain types of debt securities issued by the U.S. government, its agencies and institutions with investment-grade credit ratings and places restrictions on maturities and concentration by type and issuer. Other than for obligations of the U.S. government, the Company’s policy is that no single issuer in the portfolio shall exceed 10% or $1 million, whichever is greater, of the total portfolio at the time of purchase. Bank deposits are held by a single financial institution having a strong credit rating and these deposits may at times be in excess of FDIC insured limits. The Company is exposed to credit risk in the event of a default by the financial institutions holding its cash and cash equivalents to the extent recorded on the balance sheets.
Property and Equipment	Property and Equipment Property and equipment are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is calculated using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the respective assets, which range from two to five years for software, computer and office equipment and seven to nine years for furniture, fixtures, and manufacturing and laboratory equipment. Leasehold improvements are depreciated over the shorter of the lease term or the estimated useful lives of the respective assets. The Company records as construction-in-progress (“CIP”) property and equipment that has not yet been placed in service for its intended use. All costs prior to a project becoming probable of being constructed are expensed as incurred. After the construction is considered probable, all directly identifiable costs related to an asset are capitalized. Interest related to construction of assets is capitalized when the financial statement effect of capitalization is material, construction of the asset has begun, and interest is being incurred. Interest capitalization ends at the earlier of the asset being substantially complete and ready for its intended use or when interest costs are no longer being incurred. When assets are retired or otherwise disposed of, the costs and accumulated depreciation are removed from the balance sheet and any resulting gain or loss is reflected in the statement of operations and comprehensive loss in the period realized.
Leases	Leases At the inception of an arrangement, the Company determines whether the arrangement is or contains a lease based on the unique facts and circumstances present. Operating lease liabilities and their corresponding right-of-use assets are recorded based on the present value of lease payments over the expected lease term. If the interest rate implicit in the Company's lease contracts is not readily determinable, the Company utilizes its incremental borrowing rate, which is the rate incurred to borrow on a collateralized basis over a similar term, an amount equal to the lease payments in a similar economic environment. Certain adjustments to the right-of-use asset may be required for items such as initial direct costs paid or incentives received. Finance leases are reflected as a liability at the inception of the lease based on the present value of the minimum lease payments or, if lower, the fair value of the property. Assets under finance leases are recorded in property and equipment, net on the balance sheets and depreciated in a manner similar to other property and equipment.
Impairment of Long-Lived Assets	Impairment of Long-Lived Assets The Company identifies and records impairment losses on long-lived assets used in operations when events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset is likely not recoverable. Recoverability is measured by comparing the fair value to the related asset’s carrying value. If an asset is considered impaired, the asset is written down to fair value.
Deferred Financing Costs	Deferred Financing Costs Deferred financing costs represent legal, accounting and other direct costs related to the Company’s efforts to raise capital through a public or private sale of the Company’s common stock. These costs are generally deferred until the completion of the applicable offering, at which time such costs are reclassified to additional paid-in-capital as a reduction of the proceeds. In the instance where costs are incurred for a canceled or delayed offering, the deferred financing costs are recorded as expense in the period the offering is canceled or delayed beyond 90 days. The financing costs and value of any commitment shares incurred to secure an equity line of credit are recorded as deferred financing costs and amortized as interest expense over the term of the equity line of credit.
Research and Development Expenses	Research and Development Expenses Research and development costs are charged to expense as incurred and consist of costs related to seeking regulatory approval of the Company's primary product candidate, Qtrypta™ (M207), pre-commercialization efforts for Qtrypta™ (M207), clinical trial costs and furthering its research and development efforts. Research and development costs include salaries and related employee benefits, fees paid to contract manufacturing organizations ("CMOs") that conduct manufacturing activities on behalf of the Company, costs associated with clinical trials, nonclinical research and development activities, regulatory activities, costs of active pharmaceutical ingredients and raw materials and research and development related overhead expenses linical Trial Costs Clinical trial costs are a component of research and development expenses. The Company expenses clinical trial activities performed by third-parties based upon actual work completed in accordance with agreements established with clinical research organizations and clinical sites. The Company accrues clinical trial expenses each reporting period. The Company determines the actual costs through discussions with internal personnel and external service providers as to the progress or stage of completion of trials or services and the agreed-upon fee to be paid for such services.
Stock-Based Compensation	Stock-Based Compensation The Company has equity incentive plans under which various types of equity-based awards including, but not limited to, non-qualified stock options and restricted stock awards, may be granted to employees, non-employee directors, and non-employee consultants. The Company’s equity incentive plans also allow incentive stock options to be awarded to employees. The Company has also awarded inducement grants to purchase common stock to new employees outside the existing equity compensation plans in accordance with Nasdaq listing rule 5635(c)(4). The Company accounts for stock-based compensation, based on the fair value of the stock-based awards on the date that the grants are ultimately expected to vest. The fair value of employee stock option grants is estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option pricing model and is recognized as expense on a straight-line basis over the employee’s requisite service period. As the Company does not have sufficient historical stock price information to meet the expected life of the stock option grants, it uses a blended volatility that includes its common stock trading history and supplements the remaining historical information with the trading history from the common stock of a set of comparable publicly-traded biopharmaceutical companies. The Company will continue to apply this process until a sufficient amount of historical information regarding the volatility of its stock price becomes available. Due to the lack of historical exercise data to provide a reasonable basis upon which to estimate an expected term, the Company has opted to use the simplified method, which is the use of the midpoint of the vesting term and the contractual term of the award to estimate the expected term. As of April 1, 2019, the Company made an accounting policy election to recognize the impact of stock option forfeitures on stock-based compensation expense in the period the award is forfeited as permitted under Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") 2016-09, Compensation-Stock Compensation (Topic 718). Prior to April 1, 2019, the Company estimated the forfeiture rate at the initial grant date based on historical experience and its expectations regarding future pre-vesting termination of employees, and reduced stock-based compensation expense for the estimated effect of forfeitures over the requisite service period. There was no significant impact to the financial statements as a result of the change in policy. Stock-based compensation expense related to stock options granted to non-employees, if any, is recognized based on the fair value of the stock options as determined using the Black-Scholes option pricing model, as earned.
Warrants	Warrants The Company has issued freestanding warrants to purchase shares of common stock in connection with certain debt and a build-to-suit arrangement. The warrants are recorded at fair value using the Black-Scholes option pricing model.
Income Taxes	Income Taxes The Company uses the liability method to account for income taxes. Under this method, deferred tax assets and liabilities are determined based on differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their tax basis. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates applied to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. A valuation allowance is established when necessary to reduce deferred tax assets to the amount expected to be realized. Financial statement effects of uncertain tax positions are recognized when it is more-likely-than-not, based on the technical merits of the position, that they will be sustained upon examination. Interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefit, if any, would be included within the provision for income tax. As of December 31, 2019 and 2018, the Company has a full valuation allowance on its net deferred tax assets.
Interest Expense	Interest Expense Interest expense includes cash and non-cash components with the non-cash components consisting of (i) interest recognized from the amortization of debt discount and issuance costs that are generally derived from cash payments or warrants issued related to financing obligations, (ii) interest recognized from the amortization of purchase option and termination fees related to financing obligations, offset by (iii) interest capitalized for assets constructed for use in operations. The capitalized amounts related to the debt issuance costs and debt discounts are generally amortized to interest expense over the term of the related debt instruments unless they are attributable to assets constructed for use in operations and are therefore capitalized as construction-in-progress until the asset is substantially complete and ready for its intended use.
Net Loss Per Common Share	Net Loss Per Common Share Basic net loss per common share is calculated by dividing the net loss by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding during the period, without consideration for potentially dilutive securities. Diluted net loss per common share is computed by dividing the net loss attributable to common stockholders by the weighted-average number of common shares and potentially dilutive securities outstanding for the period determined using the treasury-stock and if-converted methods. For purposes of the diluted net loss per share calculation, common stock warrants and stock options are considered to be potential dilutive securities but are excluded from the calculation of diluted net loss per share because their effect would be anti-dilutive and therefore, basic and diluted net loss per share were the same for all periods presented.
Recently Accounting Pronouncements	As of December 31, 2018, the short-term portion of deferred rent was recorded in other accrued liabilities. The adoption impact was a non-cash operating activity for the twelve months ended December 31, 2019. Recent Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12, Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes. This new guidance simplifies the accounting for income taxes by removing certain exceptions to general principles, clarifying requirements and including amendments to improve consistent application of the guidance. The guidance specifically removes the exception to the incremental approach for intraperiod tax allocation when there is a loss from continuing operations and income or a gain from other items, such as discontinued operations or other comprehensive income. The guidance also requires an entity to recognize a franchise tax that is partially based on income as an income-based tax and to account for any other amounts incurred as a non-income based tax. The guidance is effective for the Company beginning January 1, 2021 using a prospective approach. Early adoption is permitted. The Company is evaluating the effect of implementation on its financial statements and disclosures. The FASB issued ASU 2019-05, Financial Instruments - Credit Losses, Targeted Transition Relief in May 2019, ASU 2019-04, Codification Improvements to Topic 326, Financial Instruments — Credit Losses, Topic 815, Derivatives and Hedging, and Topic 825, Financial Instruments in April 2019, and ASU 2018-19, Codification Improvements to Topic 326, Financial Instruments - Credit Losses in November 2018. This new guidance is intended to present credit losses on available-for-sale debt securities as an allowance rather than as a write-down. Entities are required to apply the standards' provisions as a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings as of the beginning of the first reporting period in which the guidance is adopted. ASU 2019-05, ASU 2019-04 and ASU 2018-19 are effective for the Company in the first quarter of 2020. The Company's assessment of the impact of the adoption of this standard is complete and it has determined that it will not have an impact to its financial statements upon adoption. The Company adopted this guidance effective January 1, 2020. In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-15, Intangibles - Goodwill and Other - Internal-Use Software (Subtopic 350-40), which aligns the requirements for capitalizing implementation costs incurred in a hosting arrangement that is a service contract with the requirements for capitalizing implementation costs incurred to develop or obtain internal-use software. ASU 2018-15 is effective for the Company in the first quarter of 2020. ASU 2018-15 permits either a prospective or retrospective transition approach. The Company's assessment of the impact of the adoption of this standard is complete and it has determined that it will not have a material impact to its financial statements. The Company adopted this guidance effective January 1, 2020 using a prospective approach. In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-13, Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820). The new guidance modifies the disclosure requirements on fair value measurements. ASU 2018-13 is effective for the Company beginning in the first quarter of 2020 and must be adopted on a modified retrospective basis, with certain exceptions. The Company's assessment of the impact of the adoption of this standard is complete and it has determined that it will not have a material impact to its financial statements. The Company adopted this guidance effective January 1, 2020. Recent Accounting Pronouncements Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements In February 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued authoritative guidance under ASU 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842).Topic 842 requires lessees to recognize right-of-use assets and lease liabilities for most leases on the balance sheet and to provide expanded disclosures about leasing arrangements. The Company adopted Topic 842 effective January 1, 2019 using the optional transition method and did not restate comparative periods. There was no effect on accumulated deficit at adoption. The Company elected the package of practical expedients to (i) not reassess whether expired or existing contracts are or contain leases, (ii) not reassess the lease classification for any expired or existing leases and (iii) not reassess the accounting for initial direct costs.

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2019

Basis of Presentation and Use of Estimates

The accompanying financial statements have been prepared in accordance with United States generally accepted accounting principles ("U.S. GAAP"). The preparation of the accompanying financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities as of the date of the financial statements, and the reported amounts of expenses during the periods reported. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Assets and liabilities reported in the Company’s balance sheet and expenses and income reported for each of the periods presented are affected by estimates and assumptions, which are used for, but are not limited to, determining the fair value of assets and liabilities, income tax uncertainties, and measurement of stock-based compensation. Actual results could differ from such estimates or assumptions.

Liquidity and Substantial Doubt in Going Concern

On August 19, 2019, the Company entered into a sales agreement with BTIG, LLC, as sales agent (“BTIG”), to establish an at-the-market ("ATM") offering program, under which the Company was permitted to offer and sell, from time to time, shares of its common stock having a maximum aggregate offering price of up to $15.0 million. The Company was required to pay BTIG a commission of 3% of the gross proceeds from the sale of shares and has also agreed to provide BTIG with customary indemnification rights. The ATM program will remain in full force and effect until the earlier of the sale of all of the shares under the ATM program or the termination of the sales agreement by the Company or BTIG.

The Company plans to raise additional funding through financing, a capital offering, a license or collaboration agreement or a combination of such sources of capital. However, there are no assurances that additional funding will be obtained and that the Company will succeed in its future operations. The Company’s inability to obtain required funding in the near future or its inability to obtain funding on favorable terms will have a material adverse effect on its operations and strategic development plan for future growth. If the Company cannot successfully raise additional capital and implement its strategic development plan, its liquidity, financial condition and business prospects will be materially and adversely affected, and it may have to cease operations.

The Company will continue to evaluate its timelines, strategic needs, and working capital requirements. There can be no assurance that if the Company attempts to raise additional capital, it will be successful in doing so on terms acceptable to the Company, or at all. Further, there can be no assurance that it will be able to gain access and/or be able to execute on securing new sources of funding, new development opportunities, successfully obtain regulatory approvals for and commercialize new products, achieve significant product revenues from its products (if approved), or achieve or sustain profitability in the future.

Presently, the Company does not have sufficient cash and cash equivalents to enable it to fund its anticipated level of operations and meet its obligations as they become due within twelve months following the date of issuance of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. The aforementioned factors raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of one year from the issuance of these financial statements. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.

Liquidity and Substantial Doubt in Going Concern

Since inception, the Company has incurred recurring operating losses and negative cash flows from operating activities

Segment Reporting

The Company operates in one reportable segment: the development of human pharmaceutical products. All long-lived assets are maintained in the United States, with the exception of $12.4 million of a construction-in-progress asset related to the Company's commercial coating and primary packaging system that is being manufactured in Germany.

Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash

Cash, Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash

The Company considers all highly liquid investments purchased with an original maturity of 90 days or less to be cash equivalents.

Marketable Securities

Marketable securities generally consist of debt securities with original maturities greater than 90 days and remaining maturities of less than one year. Marketable securities with an original maturity greater than one year, if any, would be considered long-term investments. All of the Company's investments are classified as available-for-sale and carried at fair value based upon quoted market price. The change in unrealized gains and losses related to fixed maturity debt securities is reported as a separate component of other comprehensive loss on the statements of operations and comprehensive loss and as a separate component of stockholders' equity on the balance sheets. Interest income includes interest, dividends, amortization and accretion of purchase premiums and discounts and realized gains and losses on sales of securities, if any. The cost of securities sold is based on the specific-identification method.

The Company monitors its investment portfolio for potential impairment on a quarterly basis. If the carrying amount of an investment in marketable securities exceeds its fair value and the decline in value is determined to be other-than-temporary, the carrying amount of the security is reduced to fair value and a loss is recognized in operating results for the amount of such decline. In order to determine whether a decline in value is other-than-temporary, the Company evaluates, among other factors, the cause of the impairment, including the creditworthiness of the security issuers, the number of securities in an unrealized loss position, the severity and duration of the unrealized losses, and its intent and ability to hold the security to maturity or expected recovery.

Fair Value Instruments

The Company records its financial assets and liabilities at fair value. Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability (an exit price) in an orderly transaction between market participants at the reporting date. The accounting guidance establishes a three-tiered hierarchy, which prioritizes the inputs used in the valuation methodologies in measuring fair value as follows:

Level 1: Inputs which include quoted prices in active markets for identical assets and liabilities.

Level 2: Inputs other than Level 1 that are observable, either directly or indirectly, such as quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities; quoted prices in markets that are not active; or other inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data for substantially the full term of the assets or liabilities.

Level 3: Unobservable inputs that are supported by little or no market activity and that are significant to the fair value of the assets or liabilities.

The carrying values of certain assets and liabilities of the Company, such as cash and cash equivalents and accounts payable, approximate fair value due to their relatively short maturities. The carrying value of the Company’s short-term financial obligations approximates their fair value as the terms of the borrowing are consistent with current market rates and the duration to maturity is short. The carrying value of the Company's long-term financial obligations approximates fair value as interest rates approximate market rates that the Company could obtain for debt with similar terms and maturities.

Concentrations of Credit Risk

Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to a concentration of credit risk consist primarily of cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities. The Company invests its excess cash in money market funds, U.S. treasuries, corporate notes and commercial paper. The Company’s investment policy limits investments to certain types of debt securities issued by the U.S. government, its agencies and institutions with investment-grade credit ratings and places restrictions on maturities and concentration by type and issuer. Other than for obligations of the U.S. government, the Company’s policy is that no single issuer in the portfolio shall exceed 10% or $1 million, whichever is greater, of the total portfolio at the time of purchase. Bank deposits are held by a single financial institution having a strong credit rating and these deposits may at times be in excess of FDIC insured limits. The Company is exposed to credit risk in the event of a default by the financial institutions holding its cash and cash equivalents to the extent recorded on the balance sheets.

Property and Equipment

Property and equipment are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is calculated using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the respective assets, which range from two to five years for software, computer and office equipment and seven to nine years for furniture, fixtures, and manufacturing and laboratory equipment. Leasehold improvements are depreciated over the shorter of the lease term or the estimated useful lives of the respective assets.

The Company records as construction-in-progress (“CIP”) property and equipment that has not yet been placed in service for its intended use. All costs prior to a project becoming probable of being constructed are expensed as incurred. After the construction is considered probable, all directly identifiable costs related to an asset are capitalized.

Interest related to construction of assets is capitalized when the financial statement effect of capitalization is material, construction of the asset has begun, and interest is being incurred. Interest capitalization ends at the earlier of the asset being substantially complete and ready for its intended use or when interest costs are no longer being incurred.

When assets are retired or otherwise disposed of, the costs and accumulated depreciation are removed from the balance sheet and any resulting gain or loss is reflected in the statement of operations and comprehensive loss in the period realized.

Leases

At the inception of an arrangement, the Company determines whether the arrangement is or contains a lease based on the unique facts and circumstances present. Operating lease liabilities and their corresponding right-of-use assets are recorded based on the present value of lease payments over the expected lease term. If the interest rate implicit in the Company's lease contracts is not readily determinable, the Company utilizes its incremental borrowing rate, which is the rate incurred to borrow on a collateralized basis over a similar term, an amount equal to the lease payments in a similar economic environment. Certain adjustments to the right-of-use asset may be required for items such as initial direct costs paid or incentives received.

Finance leases are reflected as a liability at the inception of the lease based on the present value of the minimum lease payments or, if lower, the fair value of the property. Assets under finance leases are recorded in property and equipment, net on the balance sheets and depreciated in a manner similar to other property and equipment.

Impairment of Long-Lived Assets

The Company identifies and records impairment losses on long-lived assets used in operations when events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset is likely not recoverable. Recoverability is measured by comparing the fair value to the related asset’s carrying value. If an asset is considered impaired, the asset is written down to fair value.

Deferred Financing Costs

Deferred financing costs represent legal, accounting and other direct costs related to the Company’s efforts to raise capital through a public or private sale of the Company’s common stock. These costs are generally deferred until the completion of the applicable offering, at which time such costs are reclassified to additional paid-in-capital as a reduction of the proceeds. In the instance where costs are incurred for a canceled or delayed offering, the deferred financing costs are recorded as expense in the period the offering is canceled or delayed beyond 90 days. The financing costs and value of any commitment shares incurred to secure an equity line of credit are recorded as deferred financing costs and amortized as interest expense over the term of the equity line of credit.

Research and Development Expenses

Research and development costs are charged to expense as incurred and consist of costs related to seeking regulatory approval of the Company's primary product candidate, Qtrypta™ (M207), pre-commercialization efforts for Qtrypta™ (M207), clinical trial costs and furthering its research and development efforts. Research and development costs include salaries and related employee benefits, fees paid to contract manufacturing organizations ("CMOs") that conduct manufacturing activities on behalf of the Company, costs associated with clinical trials, nonclinical research and development activities, regulatory activities, costs of active pharmaceutical ingredients and raw materials and research and development related overhead expenses

linical Trial Costs

Clinical trial costs are a component of research and development expenses. The Company expenses clinical trial activities performed by third-parties based upon actual work completed in accordance with agreements established with clinical research organizations and clinical sites. The Company accrues clinical trial expenses each reporting period. The Company determines the actual costs through discussions with internal personnel and external service providers as to the progress or stage of completion of trials or services and the agreed-upon fee to be paid for such services.

Stock-Based Compensation

The Company has equity incentive plans under which various types of equity-based awards including, but not limited to, non-qualified stock options and restricted stock awards, may be granted to employees, non-employee directors, and non-employee consultants. The Company’s equity incentive plans also allow incentive stock options to be awarded to employees. The Company has also awarded inducement grants to purchase common stock to new employees outside the existing equity compensation plans in accordance with Nasdaq listing rule 5635(c)(4).

The Company accounts for stock-based compensation, based on the fair value of the stock-based awards on the date that the grants are ultimately expected to vest. The fair value of employee stock option grants is estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option pricing model and is recognized as expense on a straight-line basis over the employee’s requisite service period. As the Company does not have sufficient historical stock price information to meet the expected life of the stock option grants, it uses a blended volatility that includes its common stock trading history and supplements the remaining historical information with the trading history from the common stock of a set of comparable publicly-traded biopharmaceutical companies. The Company will continue to apply this process until a sufficient amount of historical information regarding the volatility of its stock price becomes available. Due to the lack of historical exercise data to provide a reasonable basis upon which to estimate an expected term, the Company has opted to use the simplified method, which is the use of the midpoint of the vesting term and the contractual term of the award to estimate the expected term.

As of April 1, 2019, the Company made an accounting policy election to recognize the impact of stock option forfeitures on stock-based compensation expense in the period the award is forfeited as permitted under Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") 2016-09, Compensation-Stock Compensation (Topic 718). Prior to April 1, 2019, the Company estimated the forfeiture rate at the initial grant date based on historical experience and its expectations regarding future pre-vesting termination of employees, and reduced stock-based compensation expense for the estimated effect of forfeitures over the requisite service period. There was no significant impact to the financial statements as a result of the change in policy.

Stock-based compensation expense related to stock options granted to non-employees, if any, is recognized based on the fair value of the stock options as determined using the Black-Scholes option pricing model, as earned.

Warrants

The Company has issued freestanding warrants to purchase shares of common stock in connection with certain debt and a build-to-suit arrangement. The warrants are recorded at fair value using the Black-Scholes option pricing model.

Income Taxes

The Company uses the liability method to account for income taxes. Under this method, deferred tax assets and liabilities are determined based on differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their tax basis. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates applied to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. A valuation allowance is established when necessary to reduce deferred tax assets to the amount expected to be realized. Financial statement effects of uncertain tax positions are recognized when it is more-likely-than-not, based on the technical merits of the position, that they will be sustained upon examination. Interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefit, if any, would be included within the provision for income tax. As of December 31, 2019 and 2018, the Company has a full valuation allowance on its net deferred tax assets.

Interest Expense

Interest expense includes cash and non-cash components with the non-cash components consisting of (i) interest recognized from the amortization of debt discount and issuance costs that are generally derived from cash payments or warrants issued related to financing obligations, (ii) interest recognized from the amortization of purchase option and termination fees related to financing obligations, offset by (iii) interest capitalized for assets constructed for use in operations.

The capitalized amounts related to the debt issuance costs and debt discounts are generally amortized to interest expense over the term of the related debt instruments unless they are attributable to assets constructed for use in operations and are therefore capitalized as construction-in-progress until the asset is substantially complete and ready for its intended use.

Net Loss Per Common Share

Basic net loss per common share is calculated by dividing the net loss by the weighted-average number of common shares outstanding during the period, without consideration for potentially dilutive securities. Diluted net loss per common share is computed by dividing the net loss attributable to common stockholders by the weighted-average number of common shares and potentially dilutive securities outstanding for the period determined using the treasury-stock and if-converted methods. For purposes of the diluted net loss per share calculation, common stock warrants and stock options are considered to be potential dilutive securities but are excluded from the calculation of diluted net loss per share because their effect would be anti-dilutive and therefore, basic and diluted net loss per share were the same for all periods presented.

Recently Accounting Pronouncements

As of December 31, 2018, the short-term portion of deferred rent was recorded in other accrued liabilities. The adoption impact was a non-cash operating activity for the twelve months ended December 31, 2019.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted

In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12, Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes. This new guidance simplifies the accounting for income taxes by removing certain exceptions to general principles, clarifying requirements and including amendments to improve consistent application of the guidance. The guidance specifically removes the exception to the incremental approach for intraperiod tax allocation when there is a loss from continuing operations and income or a gain from other items, such as discontinued operations or other comprehensive income. The guidance also requires an entity to recognize a franchise tax that is partially based on income as an income-based tax and to account for any other amounts incurred as a non-income based tax. The guidance is effective for the Company beginning January 1, 2021 using a prospective approach. Early adoption is permitted. The Company is evaluating the effect of implementation on its financial statements and disclosures.

The FASB issued ASU 2019-05, Financial Instruments - Credit Losses, Targeted Transition Relief in May 2019, ASU 2019-04, Codification Improvements to Topic 326, Financial Instruments — Credit Losses, Topic 815, Derivatives and Hedging, and Topic 825, Financial Instruments in April 2019, and ASU 2018-19, Codification Improvements to Topic 326, Financial Instruments - Credit Losses in November 2018. This new guidance is intended to present credit losses on available-for-sale debt securities as an allowance rather than as a write-down. Entities are required to apply the standards' provisions as a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings as of the beginning of the first reporting period in which the guidance is adopted. ASU 2019-05, ASU 2019-04 and ASU 2018-19 are effective for the Company in the first quarter of 2020. The Company's assessment of the impact of the adoption of this standard is complete and it has determined that it will not have an impact to its financial statements upon adoption. The Company adopted this guidance effective January 1, 2020.

In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-15, Intangibles - Goodwill and Other - Internal-Use Software (Subtopic 350-40), which aligns the requirements for capitalizing implementation costs incurred in a hosting arrangement that is a service contract with the requirements for capitalizing implementation costs incurred to develop or obtain internal-use software. ASU 2018-15 is effective for the Company in the first quarter of 2020. ASU 2018-15 permits either a prospective or retrospective transition approach. The Company's assessment of the impact of the adoption of this standard is complete and it has determined that it will not have a material impact to its financial statements. The Company adopted this guidance effective January 1, 2020 using a prospective approach.

In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-13, Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820). The new guidance modifies the disclosure requirements on fair value measurements. ASU 2018-13 is effective for the Company beginning in the first quarter of 2020 and must be adopted on a modified retrospective basis, with certain exceptions. The Company's assessment of the impact of the adoption of this standard is complete and it has determined that it will not have a material impact to its financial statements. The Company adopted this guidance effective January 1, 2020.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

In February 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued authoritative guidance under ASU 2016-02, Leases (Topic 842).Topic 842 requires lessees to recognize right-of-use assets and lease liabilities for most leases on the balance sheet and to provide expanded disclosures about leasing arrangements. The Company adopted Topic 842 effective January 1, 2019 using the optional transition method and did not restate comparative periods. There was no effect on accumulated deficit at adoption.

The Company elected the package of practical expedients to (i) not reassess whether expired or existing contracts are or contain leases, (ii) not reassess the lease classification for any expired or existing leases and (iii) not reassess the accounting for initial direct costs.