License, Collaborative and Employment Agreements and Commitments (Details Textual) (USD $)	12 Months Ended						12 Months Ended										12 Months Ended				24 Months Ended		12 Months Ended	1 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2009	Dec. 31, 2012 First Year [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Second Year [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Third Year [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Ind Milestone Event [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Approval Milestone Event [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Field Expansion Fee [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Phase I Clinical Trials [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Phase Iii Clinical Trials [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Nda Submission In Us [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 European Medicines Agency Approval [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Regulatory Approval In Asian Country [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 December 31, 2014 [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 December 31, 2015 [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Office Space In Ann Arbor [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Office Space In Rockville [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Intrexon [Member]	Dec. 31, 2011 Intrexon [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Intrexon [Member]	Jan. 31, 2012 Intrexon [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Prev Abr Llc [Member]	Sep. 30, 2005 Research and Development Arrangement [Member]	Feb. 29, 2012 Dr.Kuo [Member]	Feb. 29, 2012 Jeffrey Riley [Member]	Feb. 29, 2012 C. Evan Ballantyne [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Ann Arbor, Michigan [Member]
Research and development	$ 12,287,000	$ 3,340,000																			$ 7,800,000			$ 460,000
Line of Credit Facility, Periodic Payment			197,000
Line of Credit Facility, Periodic Payment, Interest			5,000
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Equity Instruments Other than Options, Vested in Period																									(324,999)
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Vested in Period, Fair Value																										1,700,000	1,000,000
Consulting Fees																									17,000
Officers' Compensation																										348,000	298,000
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Grants in Period, Gross																										750,000	425,000
Operating Leases, Rent Expense	123,000	64,000
Lease Expiration Date	May 31, 2013
Operating Leases, Future Minimum Payments, Due in Two Years																	33,000
Operating Lease Leasing Term																	extend the term of the lease to December 31, 2014	one year operating lease that may be renewed for two additional terms of one year
Operating Leases, Future Minimum Payments Due, Next Twelve Months															50,000	25,000		35,000
Milestone Payment										50,000	100,000	250,000	100,000	100,000
Research Agreement Fixed Fee				303,287	316,438	328,758
Cash Payment For License Agreement																							100,000
Additional Cash Payment For License Agreement																							135,000
Unregistered Shares Issued To License Agreement																							625,000
Additional Consideration Payable																							50% in cash and 50% in our stock
Issuance of common stock for acquisition of program assets (in shares)																			3,552,210				625,000
Equity Issuance, Per Share Amount																			$ 0.001
Partial Consideration For Execution																				Intrexon a number of shares of our common stock equal to 9.995% of the number of shares of our common stock issued
Other Commitment, Due In Second Year	60,000																											33,000
Registration Payment Arrangement, Settlement Alternatives							The Company also agreed upon the filing of an Investigational New Drug application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for a Synthetic Product, or alternatively the filing of the first equivalent regulatory filing with a foreign regulatory agency (both as applicable, the "IND Milestone Event"), to pay Intrexon either (i) two million dollars ($2M) in cash, or (ii) that number of shares of Common Stock (the "IND Milestone Shares") having a fair market value equaling two million dollars ($2M) where such fair market value is determined using published market data of the share price for Common Stock at the close of market on the business day immediately preceding the date of public announcement of attainment of the IND Milestone Event.	Upon the first to occur of either first commercial sale of a Synthetic Product in a country or the granting of the regulatory approval of that Synthetic Product (both as applicable, the "Approval Milestone Event"), the Company agreed to pay to Intrexon either (i) three million dollars ($3M) in cash, or (ii) that number of shares of Common Stock (the "Approval Milestone Shares") having a fair market value equaling three million dollars ($3M) where such fair market value is determined using published market data of the share price for Common Stock at the close of market on the business day immediately preceding the date of public announcement of attainment of the Approval Milestone Event.	The Field Expansion Fee must be paid completely in either Common Stock or cash, and will comprise either (i) two million dollars ($2M) in cash for each target in excess of three (3) total that the Company elects, or (ii) that number of shares of Common Stock (the "Field Expansion Fee Shares") having a fair market value equaling two million dollars ($2M) for each such target that the Company elects in excess of three where such fair market value is determined using published market data establishing the volume-weighted average price for a share of Common Stock over the thirty (30) day period immediately preceding the date of the Field Expansion Fee Closing.
Registration Payment Arrangement, Term	In connection with the transactions contemplated by the Stock Purchase Agreement, and pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement executed and delivered by the Company to Intrexon, the Company agreed to file a "resale" registration statement registering the resale of the First Tranche Shares within 120 days of the closing date of such issuance.
Prepaid Expense and Other Assets, Current	$ 2,509,000	$ 16,000																				$ 2,500,000