11.

Stock-Based Compensation

2015

Equity Plan

The

2015

Equity Plan, as amended in

July 2016,

currently allows for the issuance of up to a maximum of

500,000

shares of common stock in connection with the grant of stock-based awards, including stock options, restricted stock, restricted stock units, stock appreciation rights and other types of awards as deemed appropriate,

not

including shares subject to awards assumed in connection with certain transactions, including the Merger. As of

December

31,

2017,

there were

104,291

shares of common stock available for future issuance under the

2015

Equity Plan. In addition, beginning on

January 1, 2017,

on each

January 1

through the term of the plan, up to

4.0%

of the total shares of the Company’s common stock outstanding as of

December 31

will be added to the plan reserve, unless a lesser amount is stipulated by the Compensation Committee of the Company’s Board of Directors. On

January 1, 2018,

the maximum number of shares of the

2015

Equity Plan increased by

580,785

shares, or

4.0%

of the total shares of the Company’s common stock outstanding at

December

31,

2017.

The Company recorded stock-based compensation expense in the following expense categories of its consolidated statements of operations for the periods indicated:

	Year ended December 31,
	2017		2016
Research and development	$	95,040	$	674,643
General and administrative		1,145,511		716,425
Total stock-based compensation expense	$	1,240,551	$	1,391,068

The following table summarizes the activity related to all stock option grants to employees and non-employees:

	Number of Options			Weighted average exercise price per share		Weighted average remaining contractual life (in years)		Aggregate Intrinsic Value (A)
Balance at January 1, 2016		1,495,615		$	3.92
RestorGenex options outstanding		301,156		$	40.13
Cancelled		(48,190	)	$	61.30
Granted		458,828		$	6.25
Balance at January 1, 2017		2,207,409		$	8.09		7.8	$	94,599
Granted		350,041			2.46
Expired		(1,461	)		15.00
Outstanding at December 31, 2017		2,555,989		$	7.32		7.13	$	4,734
Exercisable at December 31, 2017		1,858,073		$	8.25		6.49	$	4,734
Vested and expected to vest at December 31, 2017		2,555,989		$	7.32		7.13	$	4,734

(A)

The difference, if positive, between the stock option

’s exercise price and the closing price of the Company’s common stock at

December

31,

2017.

Generally, the options have a

ten

(

) year

contractual term and vest in equal monthly installments over

three

(

) years. In

August 2016,

the Company granted an option to purchase

204,907

shares of Common Stock to a director in connection with the director’s appointment to the board of directors. The options will vest in equal quarterly installments over

ten

(

) years and any options exercised are restricted from being sold until

August 2021.

Non-employee Stock Options

Non-employee options are remeasured to fair value each period through operations using a Black-Scholes option-pricing model until the options vest. There were

9,394

stock options granted to non-employees during the year ended

December

31,

2017.

The total fair value of non-employee stock options vested during the years ended

December

31,

2017

and

2016

was approximately

$90,000

and

$0.8

million, respectively. At

December

31,

2017,

there was

$14,000

of unrecognized compensation cost related to

14,080

unvested stock options and subject to re-measurement until vested. The total unrecognized compensation expense will be recognized as expense over a weighted-average period of

1.5

years.

Employee Stock Options

The weighted average grant date fair value of stock option awards granted to employees was

$2.10

and

$5.55

during the years ended

December

31,

2017

and

2016,

respectively. The total fair value of options vested during the years ended

December

31,

2017

and

2016

were

$1.1

million and

$0.6

million, respectively.

options were exercised during any of the periods presented. At

December

31,

2017,

there was

$2.6

million of unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested options that will be recognized as expense over a weighted-average period of

5.37

years.

The grant date fair value of employee stock options is determined using the Black-Scholes model. The following assumptions were used during the years ended

December

31,

2017

and

2016:

	2017			2016
Expected term (in years)	5.27	—	6.00	5.76	—	7.48
Risk-free interest rate	1.8%	—	2.4%	1.2%	—	2.0%
Expected volatility	109.8%	—	136.7%	106.8%	—	125.5%
Dividend yield	—			—

Restricted Stock Awards

As of

December

31,

2017,

there were

3,066

unvested shares of restricted stock. During the year ended

December

31,

2017,

6,132

shares vested. The fair value as of the respective vesting dates of the restricted stock awards was both

$12,000

for

2017

and

2016.

The grant date fair value of each restricted stock award granted during the year ended

December

31,

2016

was

$1.97.

There were

restricted stock awards granted in

2017.

December

31,

2017,

there was

$6,000

of unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested restricted stock that will be recognized as expense over a weighted average period of less than

year.