Sunshine Biopharma Inc. 10-K

ITEM 1. BUSINESS About Sunshine Biopharma We are a pharmaceutical company offering and researching life-saving medicines in a wide variety of therapeutic areas, including oncology and antivirals. We operate two wholly owned subsidiaries: (i) Nora Pharma Inc. (“Nora Pharma”), a Canadian corporation with a portfolio consisting of 52 prescription drugs on the market in Canada, and (ii) Sunshine Biopharma Canada Inc. (“Sunshine Canada”), a Canadian corporation which develops and sells OTC supplements. In addition, we are conducting a proprietary drug development program which is comprised of (i) K1.1 mRNA targeted for liver cancer, (ii) SBFM-PL4, PLpro protease inhibitor for SARS Coronavirus infections, and (iii) Adva-27a for pancreatic cancer. Development of the latter has been paused pending further analysis of unfavorable in vitro results obtained in the second half of 2023. See “Drugs in Development,” below. History We were incorporated in the State of Colorado on August 31, 2006, and on October 15, 2009, we acquired Sunshine Biopharma, Inc. in a transaction classified as a reverse acquisition. Sunshine Biopharma, Inc. held an exclusive license to a new anticancer drug bearing the laboratory name, Adva-27a (the “License Agreement”). Upon completion of the reverse acquisition transaction, we changed our name to Sunshine Biopharma, Inc. and began operating as a pharmaceutical company focusing on the development of the licensed Adva-27a anticancer drug. In December 2015, we acquired all worldwide issued (US Patent Number 8,236,935, and 10,272,065) and pending patents under PCT/FR2007/000697 and PCT/CA2014/000029 for the Adva-27a anticancer compound and terminated the License Agreement. Development of Adva-27a has been paused pending further analysis of unexpected in vitro results obtained in the latter part of 2023. See “Drugs in Development,” below. In early 2020, we initiated a new R&D project focused on the development of a treatment for COVID-19 and on May 22, 2020, we filed a provisional patent application in the United States for the new coronavirus treatment. The patent application covers composition subject matter pertaining to small molecules for inhibition of the main Coronavirus protease, Mpro. On April 30, 2021, we filed a PCT application containing new research results and extending coverage to include the Coronavirus Papain-Like protease, PLpro. In June 2021, we initiated another R&D project in which we set out to determine if certain mRNA molecules can be used as anticancer agents. The data obtained for mRNA molecules bearing the laboratory name K1.1 became the subject of a new patent application filed in April 2022. On October 20, 2022, we acquired Nora Pharma Inc. (“Nora Pharma”), a Canadian generic pharmaceuticals company based in the greater Montreal area. Nora Pharma has 44 employees and operates in a 23,500 square foot facility certified by Health Canada. Nora Pharma currently has 52 generic prescription drugs on the market in Canada. 1 Products on the Market Through Nora Pharma we currently have the following generic prescription drugs on the market in Canada: Drug Action/Indication Reference Brand Alendronate Osteoporosis Fosamax® Amlodipine Cardiovascular Norvasc® Apixaban Cardiovascular Eliquis® Aripiprazole Antipsychotic Abilify® Atorvastatin Cardiovascular Lipitor® Azithromycin Antibacterial Zithromax® Candesartan Hypertension Atacand® Candesartan HCTZ Hypertension Atacand Plus® Celecoxib Anti-inflammatory Celebrex® Cetirizine Allergy Reactine® Ciprofloxacin Antibiotic Cipro® Citalopram Central nervous system Celexa® Clindamycin Antibiotic Dalacin® Clopidogrel Cardiovascular Plavix® Dapagliflozin Diabetes Forxiga® Donepezil Central nervous system Aricept® Duloxetine Central nervous system Cymbalta® Dutasteride Urology Avodart® Escitalopram Central nervous system Cipralex® Ezetimibe Cardiovascular Ezetrol® Finasteride Urology Proscar® Flecainide Cardiovascular Tambocor® Fluconazole Antifungal Diflucan® Fluoxetine Central nervous system Prozac® Hydroxychloroquine Antimalarial Plaquenil® Lacosamide Central nervous system Vimpat® Letrozole Oncology Femara® Levetiracetam Central nervous system Keppra® Mirtazapine Central nervous system Remeron® Metformin Diabetes Glucophage® Montelukast Allergy Singulair® Olmesartan Cardiovascular Olmetec® Olmesartan HCTZ Cardiovascular Olmetec Plus® Pantoprazole Gastroenterology Pantoloc® Paroxetine Central nervous system Paxil® Perindopril Cardiovascular Coversyl® Pravastatin Cardiovascular Pravachol® Pregabalin Central nervous system Lyrica® Quetiapine Central nervous system Seroquel® Quetiapine XR Central nervous system Seroquel XR® Ramipril Cardiovascular Altace® Rizatriptan ODT Central nervous system Maxalt® ODT Rosuvastatin Cardiovascular Crestor® Sertraline Central nervous system Zoloft® Sildenafil Urology Viagra® Tadalafil Urology Cialis® Telmisartan Cardiovascular Micardis® Telmisartan HCTZ Cardiovascular Micardis Plus® Topiramate Anticonvulsant Topamax® Tramadol Acetaminophen Central nervous system Tramacet® Zolmitriptan Central nervous system Zomig® Zopiclone Central nervous system Imovane® 2 In addition to the 52 drugs currently on the market, we have 32 additional drugs scheduled to be launched in 2024 and 2025. These new drugs will address various human health areas including cardiovascular, oncology, gastroenterology, central nervous system, diabetes, urology, endocrinology, anti-infective, and anti-inflammatory. We believe the addition of these products to our existing portfolio will strengthen our presence in the Canadian $9.7 billion a year generic drugs market and provide us with greater access to pharmacies as we become more of a go-to supplier for every-day and specialty medicines. Products in Development The following table summarizes our proprietary drugs in development: Drug Candidate Therapeutic Area Development Stage Adva-27a (Small Molecule) Oncology (Pancreatic Cancer) Paused* K1.1 (mRNA LNP) Oncology (Liver Cancer) Animal Testing SBFM-PL4 (Small Molecule) Antiviral (SARS Coronavirus) Animal Testing *See “Adva-27a Anticancer Compound,” below Adva-27a Anticancer Compound Adva-27a is a small molecule designed for the treatment of aggressive forms of cancer. A Topoisomerase II inhibitor, Adva-27a has been shown to be effective at destroying Multidrug Resistant Cancer cells including Pancreatic Cancer cells, Breast Cancer cells, Small-Cell Lung Cancer cells and Uterine Sarcoma cells (Published in ANTICANCER RESEARCH, Volume 32, Pages 4423-4432, October 2012). We are the direct owner of all patents pertaining to Adva-27a including U.S. Patents Number 8,236,935 and 10,272,065. In December 2022, we entered into a research agreement with the Jewish General Hospital (“JGH”), to conduct the IND-enabling studies of Adva-27a (the “Research Agreement”). In August 2023, we were informed by the JGH that the laboratory results on testing of the Adva-27a molecule were not favorable. After conclusion of an internal review of the laboratory results on November 2, 2023, we provided notice to JGH of termination of the Research Agreement. We have now paused the IND-enabling studies of Adva-27a pending a review of the results and the possibility of chemical modification of the compound to address the suboptimal performance of the molecule in certain studies. K1.1 Anticancer mRNA In June 2021, we initiated a new research project in which we set out to determine if certain mRNA molecules can be used as anti-cancer agents. The data collected to date have shown that a selected group of mRNA molecules are capable of destroying cancer cells in vitro including multidrug resistant breast cancer cells (MCF-7/MDR), ovarian adenocarcinoma cells (OVCAR-3), and pancreatic cancer cells (SUIT-2). Studies using non-transformed (normal) human cells (HMEC cells) showed that these mRNA molecules had little cytotoxic effects. These new mRNA molecules, bearing the laboratory name K1.1, are readily adaptable for delivery into patients using the mRNA vaccine technology. In April 2022, we filed a provisional patent application in the United States covering the subject mRNA molecules. In November 2022, we concluded an agreement with a specialized commercial partner for the purposes of formulating our K1.1 mRNA molecules into lipid nanoparticles (“LNP”) for use to conduct xenograft mice studies. The initial results of our xenograft mice studies indicate that our K1.1 mRNA-LNP is effective at reducing the size of liver cancer xenograft tumors in mice. We are currently seeking to confirm these results by conducting additional xenograft experiments on a broader scale and in more detailed dose-response studies. 3 SBFM-PL4 SARS Coronavirus Treatment The initial genome expression products following infection by Betacoronavirus, the causative agent of COVID-19, are two large polyproteins, referred to as pp1a and pp1ab. These two polyproteins are cleaved at 15 specific sites by two virus encoded proteases, called Mpro and PLpro, to generate 16 different non-structural proteins essential for viral replication. Mpro and PLpro represent attractive anti-viral drug development targets as they play a central role in the early stages of viral replication. PLpro is of particular interest as a therapeutic target in that, in addition to processing essential viral proteins, it is also responsible for suppression of the human immune system making the virus more life-threatening. PLpro is present only in Betacoronaviruses, the subgroup of Coronaviruses represented by the highly pathogenic SARS-CoV, MERS-CoV, and SARS-CoV-2. Our Anti-Coronavirus research effort has been focused on developing an inhibitor of PLpro and, on May 22, 2020, we filed a patent application in the United States covering composition subject matter pertaining to small molecules for inhibition of the Coronavirus PLpro as well as Mpro. In February 2022, we expanded our PLpro inhibitors research effort by entering into a research agreement with the University of Arizona for the purposes of conducting research focused on determining the in vivo safety, pharmacokinetics, and dose selection properties of three University of Arizona owned PLpro inhibitors, to be followed by efficacy testing in mice infected with SARS-CoV-2 (the “Research Project”). Under the agreement, the University of Arizona granted us a first option to negotiate a commercial, royalty-bearing license for all intellectual property developed by University of Arizona under the Research Project. In addition, we and the University of Arizona have entered into an option agreement (the “Option Agreement”) whereby we were granted a first option to negotiate a royalty-bearing commercial license for the underlying technology of the Research Project. On September 13, 2022, we exercised our options, and on February 24, 2023, we entered into an exclusive worldwide license agreement with the University of Arizona for all of the technology related to the Research Project. We have recently broadened our objective to include the development of an injectable drug candidate of first-in-class PLpro inhibitor to treat SARS-CoV2 and potentially SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV infection in patients who could not use Paxlovid, Molnupiravir, or Remdesivir, due to concerns about drug interactions and possible ‘rebound’ infections and other side effects. Intellectual Property We are the sole owner of all rights pertaining to Adva-27a. These patent rights are covered by PCT/FR2007/000697 and PCT/CA2014/000029. The patent applications filed under these two PCT's have been issued in the United States under US Patent Number 8,236,935 and 10,272,065. On May 22, 2020, we filed a provisional patent application in the United States for a new treatment for Coronavirus infections. Our patent application covers composition subject matter pertaining to small molecules for inhibition of the main Coronavirus protease, Mpro, an enzyme that is essential for viral replication. The patent application has a priority date of May 22, 2020. On April 30, 2021, we filed a PCT application containing new research results and extending coverage to include the Coronavirus Papain-Like protease, PLpro. The priority date of May 22, 2020 has been maintained in the newly filed PCT application. On April 20, 2022, we filed a provisional patent application in the United States covering mRNA molecules capable of destroying cancer cells in vitro. The patent application contains composition and utility subject matter pertaining to the structure and sequence of the relevant mRNA molecules. Effective February 24, 2023, we became the exclusive, worldwide licensee of the University of Arizona for three (3) patents related to small molecules which inhibit the Coronavirus protease, PLpro. Our wholly owned subsidiary, Nora Pharma, owns 152 DIN’s issued by Health Canada for prescription drugs currently on the market in Canada. These DIN’s were secured through in-licenses or cross-licenses from international manufacturers of generic pharmaceutical products. 4 In addition, we are the owner of four (4) NPN’s issued by Health Canada including (i) NPN 80089663 which authorizes us to manufacture and sell our in-house developed OTC product, Essential 9™, (ii) NPN 80093432 which authorizes us to manufacture and sell the OTC product, Calcium-Vitamin D under the brand name Essential Calcium-Vitamin D ™ , (iii) NPN 80125047 which authorizes us to manufacture and sell the OTC product, L-Citrulline, and (iv) NPN 80127436 which authorizes us to manufacture and sell the OTC product, Taurine. Manufacturing Our generic drugs are manufactured by several different international partners under long-term contracts. We currently do not have any proprietary drugs on the market. Research quantities of our proprietary drug candidates are currently manufactured at the University of Arizona located in Tucson, Arizona (Anti-Coronavirus compounds), WuXi App Tech located in Hong Kong, China (Adva-27a compound), and Arranta Bio MA LLC located in Watertown, Massachusetts (K1.1 mRNA). Our OTC products are manufactured under contract by INOV Pharma Inc. located in Montreal, Canada. Marketing and Sales Our generic drugs are currently being sold across Canada. All of our generic drug sales are conducted by Nora Pharma’s sales representatives based in key Provinces across Canada. A segment of our marketing team provides human resources, commercial and technical assistance, as well as training and education support to pharmacy owners. Our OTC products are currently sold in the U.S. and Canada through Amazon.com and Amazon.ca, respectively. Our personnel, together with outside consultants develop and place ads on various media platforms and manage our accounts with Amazon. Government Regulations All of our business operations, including our generic drugs, proprietary drugs, and OTC products operations, are subject to extensive and frequently changing federal, state, provincial and local laws and regulations. In the United States, the Federal Government agency responsible for regulating prescription drugs and nonprescription OTC supplements is the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”). The Canadian counterpart to the FDA is Health Canada. Though the FDA and Health Canada have generally similar requirements for drugs and OTC supplements to be approved or allowed to be marketed, approval in one jurisdiction does not automatically result in approval in the other. In Canada, prescription drugs and nonprescription OTC supplements are authorized through the issuance by Health Canada of a Drug Identification Number (DIN) for the former and a Natural Product Number (NPN) for the latter. In the United States, OTC supplements are required to be registered with the FDA prior to marketing. In both the U.S. and Canada, the ingredients, manufacturing processes and facilities for all drugs and OTC supplements must meet the guidelines for Good Manufacturing Practices (“GMP”). Moreover, all drug manufacturers must perform a series of tests, both during and after production, to show that every drug or supplement batch made meets the regulatory requirements for that product. Our generic prescription medicines are produced following the same Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) guidelines as for brand-name drugs. Prescription drugs dossiers are filed with Health Canada in order to obtain a manufacturing Notice of Compliance (NOC) and a Drug Identification Number (DIN). The same grant the applicant marketing authorization in Canada. In the case of Nora Pharma’s products, Nora Pharma secures cross-licenses from supply partners holding NOC’s and in turn applies to Health Canada to obtain DIN’s issued in Nora Pharma’s name in order to commercialize in Canada. In Canada, the pan-Canadian Pharmaceutical Alliance (pCPA), an alliance of the provincial, territorial and federal governments that collaborates on a range of public drug plan initiatives to increase and manage access to clinically effective and affordable drug treatments, determines generic drugs pricing based on a percentage of the brand-name reference products. 5 In the area of proprietary drug development where our Anti-Coronavirus and Anti-Cancer compounds fall, we will be subject to significant regulations in the U.S. in order to obtain approval of the FDA to offer our products for sale. The approximate procedure for obtaining FDA approval involves an initial filing of an IND application following which the FDA would review and allow for the drug developer to proceed with Phase I clinical trials. Following completion of Phase I, the results are filed with the FDA and a request is made to proceed to Phase II. Similarly, following completion of Phase II the data are filed with the FDA and a request is made to proceed to Phase III. Following completion of Phase III, a new drug application, or NDA is submitted and a request is made for marketing approval. Depending on various issues and considerations, the FDA could provide “emergency use authorization” or limited approval for “compassionate-use” if the drug treats terminally ill patients with limited or no other treatment options available. As of the date of the filing of this report, we have not made any filings with the FDA or other regulatory bodies in other jurisdictions. In connection with OTC supplements, the FDA regulates the formulation, manufacturing, packaging, storage, labeling, promotion, distribution, and sale of such products, while the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) regulates marketing and advertising claims. In August 2007, a rule issued by the FDA went into effect requiring companies that manufacture, package, label, distribute or hold OTC supplements to meet certain GMP requirements to ensure such products are of the quality specified and are properly packaged and labeled. We are committed to meeting or exceeding the standards set by the FDA and the FTC and we believe we are currently operating within both the FDA and FTC mandates. Employees As of the date of this report we have a total of 44 employees. Women compose approximately 57% of our workforce. Going forward, we are committed to maintaining fully balanced workforce that includes persons of diverse sexual orientation and ethnic backgrounds. Presently, our proprietary drug development activities are subcontracted out to specialized service providers in the U.S., Canada and overseas. We also use consultants for various other activities including marketing, accounting, and IT. Labors laws in Quebec provide for certain guaranteed minimum entitlements, including minimum wages, maternity leave, medical leave, employee termination conditions, and other similar benefits. Moreover, the Province of Quebec has various language laws governing language use. These laws require corporate operations carried out in the Province of Quebec to be conducted to a large extent, and in some cases entirely, in French. We and our Canadian subsidiaries operating in the Province of Quebec are fully compliant with these laws. Competition The Canadian generic pharmaceuticals market was valued at approximately $9.7 billion USD in 2023. Generic pharmaceutical companies produce and deliver more than 70% of the prescribed medicines with high quality at affordable prices. There are more than 35 active generic players in the market, of which, the top 3 hold approximately a 50% share of the market. Nora Pharma is relatively new in this space but has demonstrated one of the fastest year-over-year sales increase amongst its peers. 6 Our Anti-Coronavirus drug development project is in direct competition with several companies in the U.S. that have developed effective vaccines or treatment options for Covid-19. The companies focused on treatments include Pfizer, Merck, Gilead, Eli Lilly, and Regeneron. Today two leading vaccines (Pfizer’s, and Moderna’s) and two antibody treatments (Regeneron’s, and Eli Lilly’s) are in use. Gilead’s Remdesivir, an antiviral injectable, was approved by the FDA for treatment of Covid-19 in October 2020. In addition, in December 2021, Pfizer received Emergency Use Authorization (“EUA”), for its antiviral pill, Paxlovid, and, in the same month, the FDA granted Merck EUA for its antiviral pill, Molnupiravir. While the approved vaccines, pills and injectable treatments are effective, we believe that additional treatment options such as the one we are developing which targets a different part of the virus could potentially form an important component of the range of anti-coronavirus treatment options available to attending physicians. In the area of anticancer drug development, we compete with large publicly and privately held companies engaged in developing new cancer therapies. There are numerous other entities engaged in oncology therapeutics development that have greater resources than the resources presently available to us. Nearly all major pharmaceutical companies including Merck, Amgen, Roche, Pfizer, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Novartis, to name a few, have on-going anticancer drug development programs and some of the drugs they may develop could be in direct competition with our own. In addition, a number of smaller companies are working in the area of cancer therapy and could develop drugs that may be in competition with ours. Similarly, our OTC products fall directly within a very crowded and highly competitive product sector. As of the date of this report, we believe Essential 9™ is the only Essential Amino Acid product that comprises all 9 essential amino acids in capsule form. We believe this may provide us with a competitive advantage, at least for the near future but there are no assurances that this will occur.