aTYR PHARMA INC 10-Q

Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations The following discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with our unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q (Quarterly Report), our audited consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes thereto for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021 and the related Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations, which are contained in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), on March 15, 2022 (2021 Annual Report). This Quarterly Report contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, (the Securities Act), and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the Exchange Act). Such forward looking statements, which represent our intent, belief or current expectations, involve risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results and the timing of certain events to differ materially from future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terms such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “predict,” “potential,” “believe,” “should” and similar expressions. Factors that could cause or contribute to differences in results include, but are not limited to those set forth under “Risk Factors” under Part II, Item 1A, and elsewhere in this Quarterly Report. Except as required by law we undertake no obligation to update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this Quarterly Report or to reflect actual outcomes. Overview We are a biotherapeutics company engaged in the discovery and development of innovative medicines based on our proprietary tRNA synthetase biology platform. We have concentrated our research and development efforts on a newly discovered area of biology, the extracellular functionality and signaling pathways of tRNA synthetases. Built on more than a decade of foundational science on extracellular tRNA synthetase biology and its effect on immune responses, we have built a global intellectual property estate directed to a potential pipeline of protein compositions derived from 20 tRNA synthetase genes and their extracellular targets, such as neuropilin-2 (NRP2). Our primary focus is efzofitimod, a clinical-stage product candidate which binds to the NRP2 extracellular target and is designed to downregulate immune engagement in fibrotic lung disease. We are developing efzofitimod as a potential disease-modifying therapy for patients with fibrotic lung diseases with high unmet medical need. This includes interstitial lung disease (ILD), a group of rare immune-mediated disorders that cause progressive fibrosis of the lung. In December 2018, we designed a Phase 1b/2a multiple-ascending dose, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial in patients with pulmonary sarcoidosis, a major form of ILD, to evaluate the safety, tolerability, immunogenicity and steroid-sparing effect of efzofitimod, and conduct other exploratory assessments of efficacy, such as lung function. In September 2021, we announced positive results and clinical proof-of-concept from the Phase 1b/2a clinical trial in 37 patients with pulmonary sarcoidosis. Efzofitimod was safe and well-tolerated at all doses administered with no serious drug-related adverse events or signal of immunogenicity. Additionally, the study demonstrated consistent dose response for efzofitimod on key efficacy endpoints and improvements compared to placebo, including measures of steroid reduction, lung function, pulmonary sarcoidosis symptom measures and inflammatory biomarkers. Based on the results of this study, we met with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in February 2022 and presented these data and our plans for subsequent clinical development and path to registration for efzofitimod for the treatment of pulmonary sarcoidosis. As a result of the meeting, we intend to initiate a planned registrational trial of efzofitimod in the third quarter of 2022. Based on the results of the Phase 1b/2a clinical trial, we believe efzofitimod has potential applications in the treatment of other ILD, such as chronic hypersensitivity pneumonitis (CHP) and connective tissue disease related ILD (CTD-ILD). In January 2020, we entered into a collaboration and license agreement (Kyorin Agreement) with Kyorin Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (Kyorin) for the development and commercialization of efzofitimod for the treatment of ILD in Japan. Under the Kyorin Agreement, Kyorin received an exclusive right to develop and commercialize efzofitimod in Japan for all forms of ILD, and is obligated to fund all research, development, regulatory, marketing and commercialization activities in Japan. In September 2020, Kyorin began dosing patients in a Phase 1 clinical trial of efzofitimod (known as KRP-R120 in Japan) and completed the last subject visit in December 2020. The Phase 1 clinical trial, which was conducted and funded by Kyorin, was a placebo-controlled clinical trial to evaluate the safety, pharmacokinetics (PK) and immunogenicity of efzofitimod in 32 healthy Japanese male volunteers. Efzofitimod was observed to be generally well-tolerated with no drug-related serious adverse events, and PK findings were consistent with previous studies of efzofitimod. We received an $8.0 million upfront payment in January 2020 and a $2.0 million milestone payment in January 2021 following completion of the last subject visit in December 2020 in Kyorin’s Phase 1 clinical trial, and we are eligible to receive up to an additional $165.0 million in the aggregate upon achievement of certain development, regulatory and sales milestones, as well as tiered royalties ranging from the mid-single digits to mid-teens on net sales in Japan. In January 2022, the FDA granted efzofitimod an orphan drug designation for the treatment of sarcoidosis and in April 2022, for the treatment of systemic sclerosis (also known as scleroderma). 15 In parallel with our clinical development of efzofitimod, we have been advancing our discovery pipeline of NRP2 antibodies and tRNA synthetases. ATYR2810 is our lead Investigational New Drug ( IND ) candidate in oncology from our NRP2 antibody program. ATYR2810 is a fully humanized monoclonal antibody that is designed to selectively and functionally block the interaction between NRP2 and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). NRP2 is a pleiotropic cell surface receptor that is highly expressed on certain tumors and increased NRP2 expression is associated with worse outcomes in many cancers, such as overall survival, metastasis and resistance to targeted therapies. VEGF is a validated mediator of tumor growth and plays a role in immune evasion in the tumor microenvironment. The role of NRP2 and VEGF signaling in the tumor microenvironment and its importance in the progression of certain aggressive cancers is becoming increasingly validated. ATYR2810 is in preclinical development for the potential treatment of certain aggressive cancers where NRP2 is implicated, and we plan to initiate a Phase 1 clinical trial in the second half of 2022 . In March 2020, our subsidiary, Pangu BioPharma Limited (Pangu BioPharma), together with the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) was awarded a grant of approximately $750,000 to build a high-throughput platform for the development of bi-specific antibodies. The project is being funded by the Hong Kong government’s Innovation and Technology Commission (ITC) under the Partnership Research Program (PRP). The PRP aims to support research and development projects undertaken by companies in collaboration with local universities and public research institutions. The ITC funded approximately 50% of the total estimated project cost, and we contributed the remaining 50%. The term of the project was initially for two years and in December 2021, due to complications arising from the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, was extended for an additional six months with no additional cost. In May 2021, we announced that Pangu and HKUST achieved certain milestones for the first year of the project. In February 2021, we announced two new discovery programs from our tRNA synthetase platform. These programs will investigate the functionality of selected fragments of Alanyl-tRNA synthetase (AARS) and Aspartyl-tRNA synthetase (DARS) in immunology, fibrosis and cancer. We are also advancing our preclinical pipeline of tRNA synthetases and NRP2 targeting candidates through internal research efforts, industry and academic collaborations. The impacts of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic on our business have included the delay in enrollment of our now completed Phase 1b/2a clinical trial in patients with pulmonary sarcoidosis and the discontinuation of some patients in that trial, temporary closures of portions of our facilities and those of our licensees and collaborators, disruptions or restrictions on our employees’ ability to travel and delays in certain research and development activities. Other potential impacts to our business include, but are not limited to disruptions to or delays in other clinical trials, third-party manufacturing supply and other operations, the potential diversion of healthcare resources away from the conduct of clinical trials to focus on pandemic concerns, interruptions or delays in the operations of the FDA or other regulatory authorities, and our ability to raise capital and conduct business development activities. Liquidity and Capital Resources We have incurred losses and negative cash flows from operations since our inception. As of March 31, 2022, we had an accumulated deficit of $384.4 million and we expect to continue to incur net losses for the foreseeable future. As of March 31, 2022, we had cash, cash equivalents and available-for-sale investments of $98.7 million. We believe that our current cash, cash equivalents and available-for-sale investments will be sufficient to meet our material cash requirements from known contractual and other obligations for a period of at least one year from the date of this Quarterly Report. We believe we will meet longer-term material cash requirements from known contractual and other obligations through a combination of cash, cash equivalents and available-for-sale investments. In addition to the factors discussed under “Material Cash Requirements,” our ability to fund our longer-term operating needs will depend on our ability to raise additional funding through equity or debt offerings, grant funding, collaborations, strategic partnerships and/or licensing arrangements, and other factors, including those discussed in Part II, Item 1A. “Risk Factors – We will need to raise additional capital or enter into strategic partnering relationships to fund our operations.” Sources of Cash From our inception through March 31, 2022, we have financed our operations primarily through the sale of equity securities and convertible debt, venture debt, term loans and through license and collaboration agreement revenues. Public Offerings In September 2021, we completed an underwritten follow-on public offering of 10,781,250 shares of our common stock, including the full exercise of the underwriters’ option to purchase additional shares, at a price to the public of $8.00 per share. The total net proceeds from the offering were approximately $80.6 million, after deducting underwriting discounts, commissions and offering expenses payable by us. In February 2020, we completed an underwritten follow-on public offering of 4,235,294 shares of our common stock at a price to the public of $4.25 per share. In March 2020, the underwriters fully exercised their option to purchase additional shares resulting in the issuance of an additional 635,294 shares of common stock. The total net proceeds from the offering were approximately $18.8 million, after deducting underwriting discounts, commissions and offering expenses payable by us. 16 At-the-Market Offering Programs In April 2022, we entered into an Open Market Sale Agreement SM with Jefferies LLC (Jefferies) implementing an “at-the-market” offering program (ATM Offering Program), pursuant to which we may offer and sell, from time to time and at our option, up to an aggregate of $65.0 million of shares of our common stock through Jefferies, acting as sales agent. Jefferies is entitled to a fixed commission rate of up to 3.0% of the gross sales proceeds of shares sold under the ATM Offering Program. In March 2021, we entered into a Capital on Demand TM Sales Agreement with JonesTrading Institutional Services LLC (JonesTrading) for an at-the-market offering program (Prior ATM Offering Program), pursuant to which we were entitled to sell from time to time, at our option, up to an aggregate of $25.0 million of shares of our common stock through JonesTrading, as sales agent or principal. JonesTrading was entitled to a commission at a fixed rate equal of up to 3.0% of the gross proceeds. During 2021, we sold an aggregate of 986,267 shares of common stock at an average price of $4.75 per share for net proceeds of $4.4 million under the Prior ATM Offering Program. For the three months ended March 31, 2022, we sold an aggregate of 260,455 shares of common stock at an average price of $6.07 per share for net proceeds of $1.5 million under the Prior ATM Offering Program. On April 22, 2022, we terminated the Prior ATM Offering Program. Purchase Agreement In September 2020 , we entered into a common stock purchase agreement (Purchase Agreement) with Aspire Capital Fund, LLC (Aspire Capital), which provides that, upon the terms and subject to the conditions and limitations set forth therein, Aspire Capital is committed to purchase up to an aggregate of $20.0 million of shares of our common stock at our request from time to time during the 30 month term of the Purchase Agreement. Concurrently with entering into the Purchase Agreement, we also entered into a registration rights agreement with Aspire Capital, in which we agreed to file one or more registration statements, as permissible and necessary to register under the Securities Act for the resale of the shares of our common stock that have been and may be issued to Aspire Capital under the Purchase Agreement. During 2021, we sold an aggregate of 3,000,000 shares of common stock at an average price of $5.09 per share for net proceeds of $15.2 million under this Purchase Agreement. During the three months ended March 31, 2022, there were no issuances or sales under the Purchase Agreement. Kyorin Agreement Milestone Payments We received an $8.0 million upfront payment in January 2020 and a $2.0 million milestone payment in January 2021 following completion of the last subject visit in Kyorin’s Phase 1 clinical trial, and we are eligible to receive up to an additional $165.0 million in the aggregate upon achievement of certain development, regulatory and sales milestones, as well as tiered royalties ranging from the mid-single digits to mid-teens on net sales in Japan. During the three months ended March 31, 2022, there were no activities that triggered additional license and collaboration agreement revenue under the Kyorin Agreement. HKUST Grant Agreement In March 2020, our subsidiary, Pangu BioPharma Limited (Pangu BioPharma), together with the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) was awarded a grant of approximately $750,000 to build a high-throughput platform for the development of bi-specific antibodies. The project is being funded by the Hong Kong government’s Innovation and Technology Commission (ITC) under the Partnership Research Program (PRP). The PRP aims to support research and development projects undertaken by companies in collaboration with local universities and public research institutions. The ITC funded approximately 50% of the total estimated project cost, and we contributed the remaining 50%. During the three months ended March 31, 2022, we did not receive any further grants from the ITC or otherwise. Cash Flows The following table sets forth a summary of the net cash flow activity for each of the periods indicated (in thousands): March 31, 2022 2021 Net cash provided by (used in): Operating activities $ (10,119 ) $ (5,827 ) Investing activities 14,626 (23,395 ) Financing activities 1,481 24,857 Net change in cash and cash equivalents $ 5,988 $ (4,365 ) Operating activities. Net cash used in operating activities for the three months ended March 31, 2022 and 2021 was $10.1 million and $5.8 million, respectively. The fluctuation in net cash used in operating activities resulted primarily from our net loss adjusted for non-cash stock-based compensation expense and net cash inflows or outflows from the changes in our operating assets and liabilities. 17 Investing activities. Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities for the three months ended March 31 , 2022 and 2021 was $ 14.6 million and $ (23.4) million, respectively. The fluctuation in net cash provided by ( used in ) investing activities resulted primarily from the timing differences in investment purchases, sales and maturities, and the fluctuation of our portfolio mix between cash equivalents and investment holdings. The average term to maturity in our investment portfolio is less than two years. Financing activities. Net cash provided by financing activities for the three months ended March 31, 2022 consisted primarily of $1.5 million in proceeds from the issuance of common stock through the Prior ATM Offering Program, net of offering costs. Net cash provided by financing activities for the three months ended March 31, 2021 consisted primarily of $9.6 million proceeds from the issuance of common stock through the Prior ATM Offering Program, net of offering costs and $15.2 million proceeds from issuance of common stock through the Purchase Agreement, net of offering costs. Material Cash Requirements To date, we have not generated any revenues from product sales. We expect our expenses to increase in connection with our ongoing activities, particularly as we continue to advance efzofitimod in clinical development, including manufacturing and technology transfer activities for efzofitimod , continue IND-enabling studies and manufacturing activities for ATYR2810, continue our research and development activities with respect to other potential therapies based on tRNA synthetase biology and NPR2 biology, and seek marketing approval for product candidates that we may develop. In addition, if we obtain marketing approval for any of our product candidates, we expect to incur significant commercialization expenses related to product sales, marketing, manufacturing and distribution. We currently have no sales or marketing capabilities and would need to expand our organization to support these activities. Accordingly, we will need to obtain substantial additional funding in connection with our continuing operations. Our forecast of the period of time through which our financial resources will be adequate to support our operations is a forward-looking statement that involves risks and uncertainties, and actual results could vary materially. Our future capital requirements are difficult to forecast and will depend on many factors, including: • the type, number, scope progress, expansions, results, costs and timing of, our clinical trials and preclinical studies for our product candidates or other potential product candidates or indications which we are pursuing or may choose to pursue in the future; • the costs, timing and outcome of regulatory review of our product candidates; • delays of our planned clinical trials of efzofitimod and ATYR2810; • any resulting cost increases as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic; • the number and characteristics of product candidates that we pursue; • the scope, progress, results and costs of preclinical development, and clinical trials for other product candidates; • the manufacturing of preclinical study and clinical trial materials, including technology transfers to additional contract development and manufacturing organizations (CDMO); • our ability to maintain existing and enter into new collaboration and licensing arrangements and the timing of any payments we may receive under such arrangements; • the costs and timing of preparing, filing and prosecuting patent applications, maintaining and enforcing our intellectual property rights and defending any intellectual property-related claims; • the costs and timing of future commercialization activities, including product manufacturing, marketing, sales and distribution, for any of our product candidates for which we receive marketing approval; and • the extent to which we acquire or in-license other products and technologies. Until such time, if ever, as we can generate substantial product revenues, we expect to finance our cash needs through a combination of equity offerings, grant funding, collaborations, strategic partnerships and/or licensing arrangements, and when we are closer to commercialization of our product candidates potentially through debt financings. To the extent we raise additional capital through the sale of equity, the ownership interest of our stockholders will be diluted, and the terms of these securities may include liquidation or other preferences that adversely affect the rights of our common stockholders. If we raise additional funds through collaborations, strategic partnerships or licensing arrangements with third parties, we may have to relinquish valuable rights to our product candidates, our other technologies, future revenue streams or research programs or grant licenses on terms that may not be favorable to us. The incurrence of additional indebtedness would increase our fixed payment obligations and may require us to agree to certain restrictive covenants, such as limitations on our ability to incur additional debt, limitations on our ability to acquire, sell or license intellectual property rights and other operating restrictions that could adversely impact our ability to conduct our business. We may be unable to raise additional funds on acceptable terms or at all. As a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and actions taken to slow its spread, the global credit and financial markets have experienced extreme volatility and disruptions, including 18 severely diminished liquidity and credit availability, declines in consumer confidence, declines i n economic growth, increases in unemployment rates, inflation, and uncertainty about economic stability. If the equity and credit markets deteriorate, it may make any necessary debt or equity financing more difficult, more costly and more dilutive. If we are unable to raise additional funds, we may be required to delay, limit, reduce or terminate our product development or future commercialization efforts or grant rights to develop and market our product candidates even if we would otherwise prefer to develop and market such product candidates ourselves. As of March 31, 2022, our material cash requirements from known contractual and other obligations consisted primarily of a non-cancelable facility lease that is subject to base lease payments, which escalate over the term of the lease, additional charges for common area maintenance and other costs. In July 2018, we entered into a lease amendment that reduced the space we lease from 24,494 square feet to 20,508 square feet and extended the lease term to May 2023. With the lease amendment, we do not have an option to extend the lease. As of March 31, 2022, the aggregate present value of the lease payments was $1.1 million of which $1.0 million will be incurred in 2022 and $0.1 million will be incurred in 2023. O ur material cash requirements from known contractual obligations have not otherwise changed materially since our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021. We did not have any off-balance sheet arrangements as of March 31, 2022. Financial Operations Overview Organization and Business; Principles of Consolidation We conduct substantially all of our activities through aTyr Pharma, Inc., a Delaware corporation, at our facility in San Diego, California. aTyr Pharma, Inc. was incorporated in the State of Delaware in September 2005. The condensed consolidated financial statements in this Quarterly Report include our accounts and our 98% majority-owned subsidiary in Hong Kong, Pangu BioPharma as of March 31, 2022. All intercompany transactions and balances are eliminated in consolidation. Revenue Recognition In January 2020, we entered into the Kyorin Agreement with Kyorin for the development and commercialization of efzofitimod for ILD in Japan. Under the Kyorin Agreement, Kyorin received an exclusive right to develop and commercialize efzofitimod in Japan for all forms of ILD, and Kyorin is obligated to fund all research, development, regulatory, marketing and commercialization activities in Japan. In September 2020, Kyorin began dosing of its Phase 1 trial of efzofitimod and completed the last subject visit in December 2020. This achievement triggered a $2.0 million milestone payment, which we received in January 2021. The Phase 1 trial, which was conducted and funded by Kyorin, was a placebo-controlled study to evaluate the safety, PK and immunogenicity of efzofitimod in 32 healthy Japanese male volunteers. Efzofitimod was observed to be generally well-tolerated with no drug-related serious adverse events and PK findings were consistent with previous studies of efzofitimod . We received an $8.0 million upfront payment and a $2.0 milestone payment and we are eligible to receive an additional $165.0 million in the aggregate upon achievement of certain development, regulatory and sales milestones, as well as tiered royalties ranging from the mid-single digits to mid-teens on net sales in Japan. For each of the three months ended March 31, 2022 and 2021, there were no activities that triggered additional license and collaboration agreement revenue under the Kyorin Agreement. Research and Development Expenses To date, our research and development expenses have related primarily to the development of, and clinical trials for, our product candidates, and to research efforts targeting the potential therapeutic application of other tRNA synthetase-based immuno-modulators and, more recently research efforts related to NRP2 biology. These expenses consist primarily of: • salaries and employee-related expenses, including stock-based compensation and benefits for personnel in research and product development functions; • costs associated with conducting our preclinical, development and regulatory activities, including fees paid to third-party professional consultants, service providers and our scientific, therapeutic and clinical advisory board; • costs to acquire, develop and manufacture preclinical study and clinical trial materials; • costs incurred under clinical trial agreements with clinical research organizations (CROs) and investigative sites; • costs for laboratory supplies; and • allocated facilities, depreciation and other allocable expenses. 19 Product candidates in later stages of clinical development generally have higher development costs than those in earlier stages of clinical development, primarily due to the increased size and duration of later-stage clinical trials. We expect that the levels of our research and development expenses will continue to increase in future years and will consist primarily of costs related to our clinical development and manufacturing of efzofitimod for patients with pulmonary sarcoidosis, including the costs associated with technology transfer to an additional CDMO of efzofitimod , our preclinical development, planned clinical development and manufacturing of ATYR2810 and other potential therapeutics based on tRNA synthetase biology and NRP2 biology. We cannot determine with certainty the timing of initiation, the duration or the completion costs of current or future preclinical studies and clinical trials of our product candidates. For instance, as a result of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, many clinical trial sites in our completed Phase 1b/2a clinical trial in patients with pulmonary sarcoidosis temporarily suspended dosing of previously-enrolled patients and/or enrollment of new patients and some patients discontinued from the trial. At this time, due to the inherently unpredictable nature of preclinical and clinical development and given the early stage of our programs, we are unable to estimate with any certainty the costs we will incur or the timelines we will require in the continued development of our product candidates. Clinical and preclinical development timelines, the probability of success and development costs can differ materially from expectations. We anticipate that we will make determinations as to which product candidates to pursue and how much funding to direct to each product candidate on an ongoing basis in response to the results of ongoing and future preclinical studies and clinical trials, regulatory developments and our ongoing assessments as to each product candidate’s commercial potential. In addition, we cannot forecast which programs or product candidates may be subject to future collaborations, when such arrangements will be secured, if at all, and to what degree such arrangements would affect our development plans and capital requirements. General and Administrative Expenses General and administrative expenses consist primarily of salaries and related costs for employees in executive, finance and administration, corporate development and administrative support functions, including stock-based compensation expenses and benefits. Other significant general and administrative expenses include accounting, legal services, expenses associated with applying for and maintaining patents, cost of insurance, cost of various consultants, occupancy costs, information systems costs and depreciation. Critical Accounting Policies and Significant Judgments and Estimates Our management’s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations is based on our condensed consolidated financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States. The preparation of these condensed consolidated financial statements requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities as of the date of the condensed consolidated financial statements, as well as the reported expenses during the reporting periods. We monitor and analyze these items for changes in facts and circumstances, and material changes in these estimates could occur in the future. We base our estimates on our historical experience and on various other factors we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying value of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Changes in estimates are reflected in reported results for the period in which they become known. Actual results may differ materially from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions. Though the impact of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic to our business and operating results presents additional uncertainty, we continue to use the best information available to us in our critical accounting estimates. We discuss our accounting policies and assumptions that involve a higher degree of judgment and complexity within Note 2 to our audited consolidated financial statements in our 2021 Annual Report. There have been no material changes to our critical accounting policies and estimates as disclosed in our 2021 Annual Report. Results of Operations Comparison of the Three Months Ended March 31, 2022 and 2021 The following table summarizes our results of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2022 and 2021 (in thousands): Three Months Ended March 31, Increase/ 2022 2021 (Decrease) Research and development expenses $ 8,896 $ 4,516 $ 4,380 General and administrative expenses 3,482 2,686 796 Other income (expense), net 224 47 177 20 Research and development expenses. Research and development expenses were $8.9 million and $4.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. The increase of $4.4 million was due primarily to an increase of $3.2 million in product development and manufacturing costs for efzofitimod and ATYR2810, an increase of $0.7 million in preclinical development for ATYR2810 and our discovery programs and an increase of $0.7 million in compensation related expenses. The increase was offset by a decrease of $0.2 million in clinical trial expenses due to the completion of the Phase 1b/2a sarcoidosis clinical trial. General and administrative expenses. General and administrative expenses were $3.5 million and $2.7 million for the three months ended March 31, 2022 and 2021 respectively. The increase of $0.8 million was due primarily to an increase of $0.5 million in compensation related expenses and an increase of $0.3 million in professional fees. Other income, net. Other income, net was $0.2 million and $47,000 for the three months ended March 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. The change was primarily a result of higher cash, cash equivalents and available-for-sale investments balances at March 31, 2022 as compared to the same period in the prior year, which resulted from an underwritten follow-on offering in September 2021. Recent Accounting Pronouncements For discussion of recently issued accounting pronouncements, refer to Part I, Item 1, Notes to Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited) – Note 1 – Recent Accounting Pronouncements of this Quarterly Report. Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk Not Applicable.