Filed Pursuant to Rule 424(b)(3)
Registration No. 333-83978
UP TO 210,000 SHARES OF
GERON CORPORATION
COMMON STOCK
Our common stock is traded on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol “GERN.” On April 10, 2002, the closing price of our common stock was $8.08.
This prospectus relates to the sale of up to 210,000 shares of our common stock by Lynx Therapeutics, Inc. We will not receive any of the proceeds from the sale of these shares covered by this prospectus.
Investing in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. See “Risk Factors” beginning on page 1.
Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or passed upon the accuracy or adequacy of the prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
The date of this prospectus is April 11, 2002.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
| Page | ||||
ABOUT GERON |
1 | |||
RISK FACTORS |
1 | |||
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS |
12 | |||
USE OF PROCEEDS |
13 | |||
SELLING STOCKHOLDER |
13 | |||
PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION |
14 | |||
VALIDITY OF COMMON STOCK |
15 | |||
EXPERTS |
15 | |||
LIMITATION ON LIABILITY AND DISCLOSURE OF COMMISSION POSITION ON
INDEMNIFICATION FOR SECURITIES ACT LIABILITIES |
15 | |||
WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION |
16 | |||
ABOUT GERON
We are a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing therapeutic and diagnostic products for applications in oncology and regenerative medicine, and research tools for drug discovery. Our product development programs are based upon three patented core technologies: telomerase, human embryonic stem cells and nuclear transfer. Telomeres are the ends of chromosomes that protect chromosomes from degradation and act as a molecular “clock” for cellular aging. Telomerase is an enzyme that restores telomere length and rewinds the molecular “clock,” thereby extending the cell’s ability to multiply or replicate. By activating telomerase, we seek to increase the lifespan of normal cells which have prematurely aged in the body to treat certain chronic degenerative diseases. Conversely, by inhibiting or targeting telomerase we hope to kill cancer cells in which telomerase is abnormally turned on and to diagnose cancer by measuring telomerase activity. Human embryonic stem cells can develop and differentiate into all cells and tissues in the body. As such, they are a potential source for the manufacture of replacement cells and tissues for organ repair applications in regenerative medicine. Nuclear transfer is a method for generating whole animals from genetic material derived solely from the nucleus of a single cell obtained from a single animal. We are actively licensing this technology to others for applications in agriculture and production of biologicals.
We were incorporated in 1990 under the laws of Delaware. Our principal executive offices are located at 230 Constitution Drive, Menlo Park, California 94025 and our telephone number is (650) 473-7700. References in this prospectus to “we,” “us,” “our,” and “Geron” refer to Geron Corporation and its subsidiaries.
RISK FACTORS
Our business is subject to various risks, including those described below. You should carefully consider these risk factors, together with all of the other information included in this Prospectus. Any of these risks could materially adversely affect our business, operating results and financial condition.
Our business is at an early stage of development.
The study of the mechanisms of cellular aging and cellular immortality, including telomere biology and telomerase, human embryonic stem cells, and the process of nuclear transfer are relatively new areas of research. Our business is at an early stage of development. Our ability to produce products that progress to and through clinical trials is subject to our ability to, among other things:
| • | continue to have success with our research and development efforts; | ||
| • | select therapeutic compounds for development; | ||
| • | obtain the required regulatory approvals; and | ||
| • | manufacture and market resulting products. |
When potential lead drug compounds or product candidates are identified through our research programs, they will require significant preclinical and clinical testing prior to regulatory approval in the United States and elsewhere. In addition, we will also need to determine whether any of these potential products can be manufactured in commercial quantities at an acceptable cost. Our efforts may not result in a product that can be marketed. Because of the significant scientific, regulatory and commercial milestones that must be reached for any of our research programs to be successful, any program may be abandoned, even after significant resources have been expended.
We have a history of operating losses and anticipate future losses; continued losses could impair our ability to sustain operations.
We have incurred net operating losses every year since our operations began in 1990. As of December 31, 2001, our accumulated deficit was approximately $191.9 million. Losses have resulted principally from costs incurred in connection with our research and development activities and from general and administrative costs associated with our operations. We expect to incur additional operating losses over the next several years as our research and development efforts and preclinical testing activities are expanded. Substantially all of our revenues to date have been research support payments under the collaboration agreements with Kyowa Hakko and Pharmacia. In 2001,
we regained our right to telomerase inhibitors from Pharmacia and we will not receive future payments from Pharmacia. Kyowa Hakko provided additional research funding in 2001 and is not contractually obligated to provide any further research funding. We may be unsuccessful in entering into any new corporate collaboration that results in revenues. Even if we are able to obtain new collaboration arrangements with third parties the revenues generated from these arrangements will be insufficient to continue or expand our research activities and otherwise sustain our operations.
We are unable to estimate at this time the level of revenue to be received from the sale of diagnostic products and telomerase-immortalized cell lines, and do not currently expect to receive significant revenues from the sale of these products. Our ability to continue or expand our research activities and otherwise sustain our operations is dependent on our ability, alone or with others to, among other things, manufacture and market therapeutic products.
We may never receive material revenues from product sales or if we do receive revenues, such revenues may not be sufficient to continue or expand our research activities and otherwise sustain our operations.
We will need additional capital to conduct our operations and develop our products, and our ability to obtain the necessary funding is uncertain.
We will require substantial capital resources in order to conduct our operations and develop our products. While we estimate that our existing capital resources, interest income and equipment financing arrangements will be sufficient to fund our current level of operations through June 30, 2003, we cannot guarantee that this will be the case. The timing and degree of any future capital requirements will depend on many factors, including:
| • | the accuracy of the assumptions underlying our estimates for our capital needs in 2002 and beyond; | ||
| • | continued scientific progress in our research and development programs; | ||
| • | the magnitude and scope of our research and development programs; | ||
| • | our ability to maintain and establish strategic arrangements for research, development, clinical testing, manufacturing and marketing; | ||
| • | our progress with preclinical and clinical trials; • the time and costs involved in obtaining regulatory approvals; | ||
| • | the costs involved in preparing, filing, prosecuting, maintaining, defending and enforcing patent claims; and | ||
| • | the potential for new technologies and products. |
We intend to acquire additional funding through strategic collaborations, public or private equity financings, capital lease transactions or other financing sources that may be available. Additional financing may not be available on acceptable terms, or at all. Additional equity financings could result in significant dilution to stockholders. Further, in the event that additional funds are obtained through arrangements with collaborative partners, these arrangements may require us to relinquish rights to some of our technologies, product candidates or products that we would otherwise seek to develop and commercialize ourselves. If sufficient capital is not available, we may be required to delay, reduce the scope of or eliminate one or more of our research or development programs, each of which could have a material adverse effect on our business.
We may be unable to identify a safe and effective inhibitor of telomerase which may prevent us from developing a viable cancer treatment product, which would adversely impact our future business prospects.
As a result of our drug discovery efforts to date, we have identified compounds in laboratory studies that demonstrate potential for inhibiting telomerase in humans. Kyowa Hakko has selected one of these compounds, GRN163, as a lead compound for preclinical development as a telomerase inhibitor for cancer. Further research is required to determine if this compound can be fully developed as an efficacious, safe and commercially viable treatment for cancer.
This compound, and other compounds we have identified, may prove to have undesirable and unintended side effects or other characteristics adversely affecting its safety or efficacy that would likely prevent or limit its commercial use. Accordingly, it may not be appropriate for us to proceed with clinical development, to obtain regulatory approval or to market a telomerase inhibitor for the treatment of cancer. If we abandon our research for
2
cancer treatment for any of these reasons or for other reasons, our business prospects would be materially and adversely affected.
If our access to necessary tissue samples, information or licensed technologies is restricted, we will not be able to develop our business.
To continue the research and development of our therapeutic and diagnostic products, we need access to normal and diseased human and other tissue samples, other biological materials and related clinical and other information. We compete with many other companies for these materials and information. We may not be able to obtain or maintain access to these materials and information on acceptable terms, if at all. In addition, government regulation in the United States and foreign countries could result in restricted access to, or prohibiting the use of, human and other tissue samples. If we lose access to sufficient numbers or sources of tissue samples, or if tighter restrictions are imposed on our use of the information generated from tissue samples, our business will be materially harmed.
Some of our competitors may develop technologies that are superior to or more cost-effective than ours, which may impact the commercial viability of our technologies and which may significantly damage our ability to sustain operations.
The pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries are intensely competitive. We believe that other pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies and research organizations currently engage in or have in the past engaged in efforts related to the biological mechanisms of cell aging and cell immortality and potential applications in regenerative medicine, including the study of telomeres, telomerase, human embryonic stem cells, and nuclear transfer. In addition, other products and therapies that could compete directly with the products that we are seeking to develop and market currently exist or are being developed by pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies and by academic and other research organizations.
Many companies are also developing alternative therapies to treat cancer and, in this regard, are competitors of ours. Many of the pharmaceutical companies developing and marketing these competing products have significantly greater financial resources and expertise than we do in:
| • | research and development; | ||
| • | manufacturing; | ||
| • | preclinical and clinical testing; | ||
| • | obtaining regulatory approvals; and | ||
| • | marketing. |
Smaller companies may also prove to be significant competitors, particularly through collaborative arrangements with large and established companies. Academic institutions, government agencies and other public and private research organizations may also conduct research, seek patent protection and establish collaborative arrangements for research, clinical development and marketing of products similar to ours. These companies and institutions compete with us in recruiting and retaining qualified scientific and management personnel as well as in acquiring technologies complementary to our programs. There is also competition for access to libraries of compounds to use for screening. Should we fail to secure and maintain access to sufficiently broad libraries of compounds for screening potential targets, our business would be materially harmed.
In addition to the above factors, we expect to face competition in the following areas:
| • | product efficacy and safety; | ||
| • | the timing and scope of regulatory consents; | ||
| • | availability of resources; | ||
| • | reimbursement coverage; | ||
| • | price; and | ||
| • | patent position, including potentially dominant patent positions of others. |
3
As a result of the foregoing, our competitors may develop more effective or more affordable products, or achieve earlier patent protection or product commercialization than we do. Most significantly, competitive products may render the products that we develop obsolete.
The ethical, legal and social implications of our research using embryonic stem cells and nuclear transfer could prevent us from developing or gaining acceptance for commercially viable products in this area.
Our programs in regenerative medicine may involve the use of human pluripotent stem cells that would be derived from human embryonic or fetal tissue. The use of human embryonic stem cells gives rise to ethical, legal and social issues regarding the appropriate use of these cells. In the event that our research related to human embryonic stem cells becomes the subject of adverse commentary or publicity, the market price for our common stock could be significantly harmed.
Some groups have voiced opposition to our technology and practices. The concepts of cell regeneration, cell immortality, and genetic cloning have stimulated significant debate in social and political arenas. We use human pluripotent stem cells derived through a process that uses either donated embryos that are no longer necessary following a successful in vitro fertilization procedure or donated fetal material as the starting material. Further, many research institutions, including some of our scientific collaborators, have adopted policies regarding the ethical use of human embryonic and fetal tissue. These policies may have the effect of limiting the scope of research conducted using human embryonic stem cells, resulting in reduced scientific progress. In addition, the United States government and its agencies have in recent years refused to fund research which involves the use of human embryonic tissue. President Bush, however, announced on August 9, 2001 that he would permit federal funding of research on human embryonic stem cells using the limited number of embryonic stem cell lines that had already been created. A newly created president’s council will monitor stem cell research, and the guidelines and regulations it recommends may include restrictions on the scope of research using human embryonic or fetal tissue. Our inability to conduct research using human embryonic stem cells due to such factors as government regulation or otherwise could have a material adverse effect on us. Finally, we acquired Roslin Bio-Med to gain the rights to nuclear transfer technology. The Roslin Institute produced Dolly the sheep in 1997 — the first mammal cloned from an adult cell. Geron acquired exclusive rights to this technology for all areas except human reproductive cloning and certain other limited applications. Although we will not be pursuing human reproductive cloning, we continue to develop techniques for use in agricultural cloning. Government imposed restrictions with respect to any or all of these practices could:
| • | harm our ability to establish critical partnerships and collaborations; | ||
| • | prompt government regulation of our technologies; | ||
| • | cause delays in our research and development; and | ||
| • | cause a decrease in the price of our stock. |
If human therapeutic cloning is restricted or banned (as it would be under bill H.R. 2505 recently passed by the U.S. House of Representatives), our ability to commercialize those applications could be significantly harmed. Also, if regulatory bodies were to ban nuclear transfer processes, our research using nuclear transfer technology could be cancelled and our business could be significantly harmed.
Public attitudes towards gene therapy may negatively affect regulatory approval or public perception of our products.
The commercial success of our product candidates will depend in part on public acceptance of the use of gene therapies for the prevention or treatment of human diseases. Public attitudes may be influenced by claims that gene therapy is unsafe, and gene therapy may not gain the acceptance of the public or the medical community. Adverse events in the field of gene therapy that have occurred or may occur in the future also may result in greater governmental regulation of our product candidates and potential regulatory delays relating to the testing or approval of our product candidates.
Negative public reaction to gene therapy in the development of certain of our therapies could result in greater government regulation, stricter clinical trial oversight, commercial product labeling requirements of gene therapies and could cause a decrease in the demand for any products that we may develop. The subject of genetically
4
modified organisms has received negative publicity in Europe, which has aroused public debate. The adverse publicity in Europe could lead to greater regulation and trade restrictions on imports of genetically altered products. If similar adverse public reaction occurs in the United States, genetic research and resultant products could be subject to greater domestic regulation and could cause a decrease in the demand for our potential products.
Entry into clinical trials with one or more products may not result in any commercially viable products.
We do not expect to generate any significant revenues from product sales for a period of several years. We may never generate revenues from product sales or become profitable because of a variety of risks inherent in our business, including risks that:
| • | clinical trials may not demonstrate the safety and efficacy of our products; | ||
| • | completion of clinical trials may be delayed, or costs of clinical trials may exceed anticipated amounts; | ||
| • | we may not be able to obtain regulatory approval of our products, or may experience delays in obtaining such approvals; | ||
| • | we may not be able to manufacture our drugs economically on a commercial scale; | ||
| • | we and our licensees may not be able to successfully market our products; | ||
| • | physicians may not prescribe our products, or patients may not accept such products; | ||
| • | others may have proprietary rights which prevent us from marketing our products; and | ||
| • | competitors may sell similar, superior or lower-cost products. |
Impairment of our intellectual property rights may limit our ability to pursue the development of our intended technologies and products.
Protection of our proprietary technology is critically important to our business. Our success will depend in part on our ability to obtain and enforce our patents and maintain trade secrets, both in the United States and in other countries. The patent positions of pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies, including ours, are highly uncertain and involve complex legal and technical questions. In particular, legal principles for biotechnology patents in the United States and in other countries are evolving, and the extent to which we will be able to obtain patent coverage to protect our technology, or enforce issued patents, is uncertain. Further, our patents may be challenged, invalidated or circumvented, and our patent rights may not provide proprietary protection or competitive advantages to us. In the event that we are unsuccessful in obtaining and enforcing patents, our business would be negatively impacted.
Publication of discoveries in the scientific or patent literature tends to lag behind actual discoveries by at least several months and sometimes several years. Therefore, the persons or entities that we or our licensors name as inventors in our patents and patent applications may not have been the first to invent the inventions disclosed in the patent applications or patents, or file patent applications for these inventions. As a result, we may not be able to obtain patents from discoveries that we otherwise would consider patentable and that we consider to be extremely significant to our future success.
Where several parties seek patent protection for the same technology, the U.S. Patent Office may declare an interference proceeding in order to ascertain the party to which the patent should be issued. Patent interferences are typically complex, highly contested legal proceedings, subject to appeal. They are usually expensive and prolonged, and can cause significant delay in the issuance of patents. Moreover, parties that receive an adverse decision in an interference can lose important patent rights. In our Form 10-K filings for 1999 and 2000, we reported that the U.S. Patent Office had suspended examination of two of our patent applications relating to telomerase pending a possible declaration of interference. The U.S. Patent Office has now lifted those suspensions and, in 2001, issued to us a U.S. patent with claims covering cloned human telomerase. While this was a positive development, it does not mean that the risk of an interference has been eliminated.
The interference process can also be used to challenge a patent that has been issued to another party. As noted previously, the U.S. Patent Office has granted a request from Geron for the declaration of an interference between one of our pending applications and an issued patent in the area of nuclear transfer. We requested this interference in order to clarify our patent rights in the nuclear transfer area, and, based on a review of publicly available information, believe that the technology at issue was invented first at the Roslin Institute and is encompassed within
5
our nuclear transfer license. However, we do not have access to the other party’s invention records, and, as in any legal proceeding, the outcome is uncertain.
If interferences or other challenges to our patent rights are not resolved promptly in our favor, our existing business relationships may be jeopardized and we could be delayed or prevented from entering into new collaborations or from commercializing certain products, which could materially harm our business.
Patent litigation may also be necessary to enforce patents issued or licensed to us or to determine the scope and validity of our proprietary rights or the proprietary rights of another. We may not be successful in any patent litigation. Patent litigation can be extremely expensive and time-consuming, even if the outcome is favorable to us. An adverse outcome in a patent litigation or any other proceeding in a court or patent office could subject our business to significant liabilities to other parties, require disputed rights to be licensed from other parties or require us to cease using the disputed technology.
If we fail to meet our obligations under license agreements, we may face loss of our rights to key technologies on which our business depends.
Our business depends on our three core technology platforms, each of which is based in part on patents licensed from third parties. Those third-party license agreements impose obligations on us, such as payment obligations and obligations to diligently pursue development of commercial products under the licensed patents. If a licensor believes that we have failed to meet our obligations under a license agreement, the licensor could seek to limit or terminate our license rights, which would most likely lead to costly and time-consuming litigation. During the period of any such litigation our ability to carry out the development and commercialization of potential products could be significantly and negatively affected. If our license rights were ultimately lost, our ability to carry on our business based on the affected technology platform would be severely affected.
We may be subject to litigation that will be costly to defend or pursue and uncertain in its outcome.
Our business may bring us into conflict with our licensees, licensors, or others with whom we have contractual or other business relationships, or with our competitors or others whose interests differ from ours. If we are unable to resolve those conflicts on terms that are satisfactory to all parties, we may become involved in litigation brought by or against us. That litigation is likely to be expensive and may require a significant amount of management’s time and attention, at the expense of other aspects of our business. The outcome of litigation is always uncertain, and in some cases could include judgments against us that require us to pay damages, enjoin us from certain activities, or otherwise affect our legal or contractual rights, which could have a significant effect on our business.
We may be subject to infringement claims that are costly to defend, and which may limit our ability to use disputed technologies and prevent us from pursuing research and development or commercialization of potential products.
Our commercial success depends significantly on our ability to operate without infringing patents and proprietary rights of others. Our technologies may infringe the patents or proprietary rights of others. In addition, we may become aware of discoveries and technology controlled by third parties that are advantageous to our research programs. In the event our technologies do infringe on the rights of others or we require the use of discoveries and technology controlled by third parties, we may be prevented from pursuing research, development or commercialization of potential products or may be required to obtain licenses to those patents or other proprietary rights or develop or obtain alternative technologies. We may not be able to obtain alternative technologies or any required license on commercially favorable terms, if at all. If we do not obtain the necessary licenses or alternative technologies, we may be delayed or prevented from pursuing the development of some potential products. Our failure to obtain alternative technologies or a license to any technology that we may require to develop or commercialize our products will significantly and negatively affect our business.
Patent law relating to the scope and enforceability of claims in the technology fields in which we operate is still evolving, and the degree of future protection for any of our proprietary rights is highly uncertain. In this regard, patents may not issue from any of our patent applications or our existing patents may be found to be invalid by a court. In addition, our success may become dependent on our ability to obtain licenses for using the patented discoveries of others. We are aware of patent applications and patents that have been filed by others with respect to
6
our technologies and we may have to obtain licenses to use these technologies. Moreover, other patent applications may be granted priority over patent applications that we or any of our licensors have filed. Furthermore, others may independently develop similar or alternative technologies, duplicate our technologies or design around the patented technologies we have developed. In the event that we are unable to acquire licenses to critical technologies that we cannot patent ourselves, we may be required to expend significant time and resources to develop alternative technology, and we may not be successful in this regard. If we cannot acquire or develop the necessary technology, we may be prevented from pursuing some of our business objectives. Moreover, one or more of our competitors could acquire or license the necessary technology. Any of these events could materially harm our business.
Much of the information and know-how that is critical to our business is not patentable and we may not be able to prevent others from obtaining this information and establishing competitive enterprises.
We sometimes rely on trade secrets to protect our proprietary technology, especially in circumstances in which patent protection is not believed to be appropriate or obtainable. We attempt to protect our proprietary technology in part by confidentiality agreements with our employees, consultants, collaborators and contractors. We cannot assure you that these agreements will not be breached, that we would have adequate remedies for any breach, or that our trade secrets will not otherwise become known or be independently discovered by competitors, any of which would harm our business significantly.
We depend on our collaborators to help us complete the process of developing and testing our products and our ability to develop and commercialize products may be impaired or delayed if our collaborative partnerships are unsuccessful.
Our strategy for the development, clinical testing and commercialization of our products requires entering into collaborations with corporate partners, licensors, licensees and others. We are dependent upon the subsequent success of these other parties in performing their respective responsibilities and the continued cooperation of our partners. Our collaborators may not cooperate with us or perform their obligations under our agreements with them. We cannot control the amount and timing of our collaborators’ resources that will be devoted to our research activities related to our collaborative agreements with them. Our collaborators may choose to pursue existing or alternative technologies in preference to those being developed in collaboration with us.
Our ability to successfully develop and commercialize a telomerase inhibitor in Asia depends on our corporate alliance with Kyowa Hakko. Our ability to successfully develop and commercialize telomerase diagnostic products depends on our corporate alliance with Roche Diagnostics. Under our collaborative agreements with these collaborators, we rely significantly on them, among other activities, to:
| • | design and conduct advanced clinical trials in the event that we reach clinical trials; | ||
| • | fund research and development activities with us; | ||
| • | pay us fees upon the achievement of milestones; and | ||
| • | market with us any commercial products that result from our collaborations. |
The development and commercialization of products from these collaborations will be delayed if Kyowa Hakko or Roche Diagnostics fail to conduct these collaborative activities in a timely manner or at all. In addition, Kyowa Hakko or Roche Diagnostics could terminate their agreements with us and we may not receive any development or milestone payments. If we do not achieve milestones set forth in the agreements, or if Kyowa Hakko or Roche Diagnostics or any of our future collaborators breach or terminate collaborative agreements with us, our business may be materially harmed.
Our reliance on the research activities of our non-employee scientific advisors and other research institutions, whose activities are not wholly within our control, may lead to delays in technological developments.
We rely extensively and have relationships with scientific advisors at academic and other institutions, some of whom conduct research at our request. These scientific advisors are not our employees and may have commitments to, or consulting or advisory contracts with, other entities that may limit their availability to us. We have limited control over the activities of these advisors and, except as otherwise required by our collaboration and consulting agreements, can expect only limited amounts of their time to be dedicated to our activities. If our scientific advisors
7
are unable or refuse to contribute to the development of any of our potential discoveries, our ability to generate significant advances in our technologies will be significantly harmed.
In addition, we have formed research collaborations with many academic and other research institutions throughout the world, including the Roslin Institute. These research facilities may have commitments to other commercial and non-commercial entities. We have limited control over the operations of these laboratories and can expect only limited amounts of time to be dedicated to our research goals.
The loss of key personnel could slow our ability to conduct research and develop products.
Our future success depends to a significant extent on the skills, experience and efforts of our executive officers and key members of our scientific staff. Competition for personnel is intense and we may be unable to retain our current personnel or attract or assimilate other highly qualified management and scientific personnel in the future. The loss of any or all of these individuals could harm our business and might significantly delay or prevent the achievement of research, development or business objectives.
We also rely on consultants and advisors, including the members of our Scientific Advisory Board, who assist us in formulating our research and development strategy. We face intense competition for qualified individuals from numerous pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, as well as academic and other research institutions. We may not be able to attract and retain these individuals on acceptable terms. Failure to do so would materially harm our business.
We may not be able to obtain or maintain sufficient insurance on commercially reasonable terms or with adequate coverage against potential liabilities in order to protect ourselves against product liability claims.
Our business exposes us to potential product liability risks that are inherent in the testing, manufacturing and marketing of human therapeutic and diagnostic products. We may become subject to product liability claims if the use of our products is alleged to have injured subjects or patients. This risk exists for products tested in human clinical trials as well as products that are sold commercially. We currently have no clinical trial liability insurance and we may not be able to obtain and maintain this type of insurance for any of our clinical trials. In addition, product liability insurance is becoming increasingly expensive. As a result, we may not be able to obtain or maintain product liability insurance in the future on acceptable terms or with adequate coverage against potential liabilities which could have a material adverse effect on us.
Because we or our collaborators must obtain regulatory approval to market our products in the United States and foreign jurisdictions, we cannot predict whether or when we will be permitted to commercialize our products.
Federal, state and local governments in the United States and governments in other countries have significant regulations in place that govern many of our activities. The preclinical testing and clinical trials of the products that we develop ourselves or that our collaborators develop are subject to extensive government regulation and may prevent us from creating commercially viable products from our discoveries. In addition, the sale by us or our collaborators of any commercially viable product will be subject to government regulation from several standpoints, including the processes of:
| • | manufacturing; | ||
| • | advertising and promoting; | ||
| • | selling and marketing; | ||
| • | labeling; and | ||
| • | distributing. |
We may not obtain regulatory approval for the products we develop and our collaborators may not obtain regulatory approval for the products they develop. Regulatory approval may also entail limitations on the indicated uses of a proposed product. Because certain of our product candidates involve the application of new technologies and may be based upon a new therapeutic approach, such products may be subject to substantial additional review by various government regulatory authorities, and, as a result, we may obtain regulatory approvals for such products
8
more slowly than for products based upon more conventional technologies. If, and to the extent that, we are unable to comply with these regulations, our ability to earn revenues will be materially and negatively impacted.
The regulatory process, particularly for biopharmaceutical products like ours, is uncertain, can take many years and requires the expenditure of substantial resources. Any product that we or our collaborative partners develop must receive all relevant regulatory agency approvals or clearances, if any, before it may be marketed in the United States or other countries. Generally, biological drugs and non-biological drugs are regulated more rigorously than medical devices. In particular, human pharmaceutical therapeutic products are subject to rigorous preclinical and clinical testing and other requirements by the Food and Drug Administration in the United States and similar health authorities in foreign countries. The regulatory process, which includes extensive preclinical testing and clinical trials of each product in order to establish its safety and efficacy, is uncertain, can take many years and requires the expenditure of substantial resources.
Data obtained from preclinical and clinical activities is susceptible to varying interpretations that could delay, limit or prevent regulatory agency approvals or clearances. In addition, delays or rejections may be encountered as a result of changes in regulatory agency policy during the period of product development and/or the period of review of any application for regulatory agency approval or clearance for a product. Delays in obtaining regulatory agency approvals or clearances could:
| • | significantly harm the marketing of any products that we or our collaborators develop; | ||
| • | impose costly procedures upon our activities or the activities of our collaborators; | ||
| • | diminish any competitive advantages that we or our collaborative partners may attain; or | ||
| • | adversely affect our ability to receive royalties and generate revenues and profits. |
Even if we commit the necessary time and resources, economic and otherwise, the required regulatory agency approvals or clearances may not be obtained for any products developed by or in collaboration with us. If regulatory agency approval or clearance for a new product is obtained, this approval or clearance may entail limitations on the indicated uses for which it may be marketed that could limit the potential commercial use of the product. Furthermore, approved products and their manufacturers are subject to continual review, and discovery of previously unknown problems with a product or its manufacturer may result in restrictions on the product or manufacturer, including withdrawal of the product from the market. Failure to comply with regulatory requirements can result in severe civil and criminal penalties, including but not limited to:
| • | recall or seizure of products; | ||
| • | injunction against manufacture, distribution, sales and marketing; and | ||
| • | criminal prosecution. |
The imposition of any of these penalties could significantly impair our business, financial condition and results of operations.
To be successful, our products must be accepted by the health care community, which can be very slow to adopt or unreceptive to new technologies and products.
Our products and those developed by our collaborative partners, if approved for marketing, may not achieve market acceptance since physicians, patients or the medical community in general may decide to not accept and utilize these products. The products that we are attempting to develop may represent substantial departures from established treatment methods and will compete with a number of traditional drugs and therapies manufactured and marketed by major pharmaceutical companies. The degree of market acceptance of any of our developed products will depend on a number of factors, including:
| • | our establishment and demonstration to the medical community of the clinical efficacy and safety of our product candidates; | ||
| • | our ability to create products that are superior to alternatives currently on the market; | ||
| • | our ability to establish in the medical community the potential advantage of our treatments over alternative treatment methods; and | ||
| • | reimbursement policies of government and third-party payors. |
9
If the health care community does not accept our products for any of the foregoing reasons, or for any other reason, our business would be materially harmed.
The reimbursement status of newly-approved health care products is uncertain and failure to obtain reimbursement approval could severely limit the use of our products.
Significant uncertainty exists as to the reimbursement status of newly approved health care products, including pharmaceuticals. If we fail to generate adequate third party reimbursement for the users of our potential products and treatments, then we may be unable to maintain price levels sufficient to realize an appropriate return on our investment in product development.
In both domestic and foreign markets, sales of our products, if any, will depend in part on the availability of reimbursement from third-party payors, examples of which include:
| • | government health administration authorities; | ||
| • | private health insurers; | ||
| • | health maintenance organizations; and | ||
| • | pharmacy benefit management companies. |
Both federal and state governments in the United States and foreign governments continue to propose and pass legislation designed to contain or reduce the cost of health care through various means. Legislation and regulations affecting the pricing of pharmaceuticals and other medical products may change or be adopted before any of our potential products are approved for marketing. Cost control initiatives could decrease the price that we receive for any product we may develop in the future. In addition, third-party payors are increasingly challenging the price and cost-effectiveness of medical products and services and any of our potential products and treatments may ultimately not be considered cost effective by these third parties. Any of these initiatives or developments could materially harm our business.
Our activities involve hazardous materials and improper handling of these materials by our employees or agents could expose us to significant legal and financial penalties.
Our research and development activities involve the controlled use of hazardous materials, chemicals and various radioactive compounds. As a consequence, we are subject to numerous environmental and safety laws and regulations, including those governing laboratory procedures, exposure to blood-borne pathogens and the handling of biohazardous materials. We may be required to incur significant costs to comply with current or future environmental laws and regulations and may be adversely affected by the cost of compliance with these laws and regulations.
Although we believe that our safety procedures for using, handling, storing and disposing of hazardous materials comply with the standards prescribed by state and federal regulations, the risk of accidental contamination or injury from these materials cannot be eliminated. In the event of such an accident, state or federal authorities could curtail our use of these materials and we could be liable for any civil damages that result, the cost of which could be substantial. Further, any failure by us to control the use, disposal, removal or storage of, or to adequately restrict the discharge of, or assist in the cleanup of, hazardous chemicals or hazardous, infectious or toxic substances could subject us to significant liabilities, including joint and several liability under certain statutes, and any liability could exceed our resources and could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Additionally, an accident could damage our research and manufacturing facilities and operations.
Additional federal, state and local laws and regulations affecting us may be adopted in the future. We may incur substantial costs to comply with and substantial fines or penalties if we violate any of these laws or regulations.
Our stock price has historically been very volatile.
Stock prices and trading volumes for many biopharmaceutical companies fluctuate widely for a number of reasons, including some reasons which may be unrelated to their businesses or results of operations such as media coverage, legislation and regulatory measures and the activities of various interest groups or organizations. This
10
market volatility, as well as general domestic or international economic, market and political conditions, could materially and adversely affect the market price of our common stock and the return on your investment.
Historically, our stock price has been extremely volatile. Between January 1998 and December 31, 2001, our stock has traded as high as $75.88 per share and as low as $3.50 per share. The significant market price fluctuations of our common stock are due to a variety of factors, including:
| • | depth of the market for the common stock; | ||
| • | the experimental nature of our prospective products; | ||
| • | fluctuations in our operating results; | ||
| • | market conditions relating to the biopharmaceutical and pharmaceutical industries; | ||
| • | any announcements of technological innovations, new commercial products or clinical progress or lack thereof by us, our collaborative partners or our competitors; or | ||
| • | announcements concerning regulatory developments, developments with respect to proprietary rights and our collaborations. |
In addition, the stock market is subject to other factors outside our control that can cause extreme price and volume fluctuations. Securities class action litigation has often been brought against companies, including many biotechnology companies, which then experience volatility in the market price of their securities. Litigation brought against us could result in substantial costs and a diversion of management’s attention and resources, which could adversely affect our business.
The sale of a substantial number of shares, including shares that will become eligible for sale in the near future, may adversely affect the market price for our common stock.
Sales of substantial number of shares of our common stock in the public market could significantly and negatively affect the market price for our common stock. As of December 31, 2001, we had 24,481,774 shares of common stock outstanding. Of these shares, approximately 10,534,534 shares were issued (including shares issuable upon conversion or exercise of convertible notes or warrants) since December 1998 pursuant to private placements. Of these shares, approximately 9,623,463 shares have been registered pursuant to shelf registration statements and therefore may be resold (if not sold prior to the date hereof) in the public market and approximately 911,071 of the remaining shares may be resold pursuant to Rule 144 into the public markets as early as March 9, 2002 upon the expiration of a lockup agreement with us.
Our undesignated preferred stock may inhibit potential acquisition bids; this may adversely affect the market price for our common stock and the voting rights of the holders of common stock.
Our certificate of incorporation provides our Board of Directors with the authority to issue up to 3,000,000 shares of undesignated preferred stock and to determine the rights, preferences, privileges and restrictions of these shares without further vote or action by the stockholders. As of March 7, 2002, the Board of Directors still has authority to designate and issue up to 2,950,000 shares of preferred stock. The rights of the holders of common stock will be subject to, and may be adversely affected by, the rights of the holders of any preferred stock that may be issued in the future. The issuance of shares of preferred stock may delay or prevent a change in control transaction without further action by our stockholders. As a result, the market price of our common stock may be adversely affected. The issuance of preferred stock may also result in the loss of voting control by others.
Provisions in our share purchase rights plan, charter and bylaws, and provisions of Delaware law, may inhibit potential acquisition bids for us, which may prevent holders of our common stock from benefiting from what they believe may be the positive aspects of acquisitions and takeovers.
Our Board of Directors has adopted a share purchase rights plan, commonly referred to as a “poison pill”. This plan entitles existing stockholders to rights, including the right to purchase shares of common stock, in the event of an acquisition of 15% or more of our outstanding common stock. Our share purchase rights plan could prevent stockholders from profiting from an increase in the market value of their shares as a result of a change of control of Geron by delaying or preventing a change of control. In addition, our Board of Directors has the authority, without
11
further action by our stockholders, to issue additional shares of common stock, to fix the rights and preferences of, and to issue authorized but undesignated shares of preferred stock.
In addition to our share purchase rights plan and the undesignated preferred stock, provisions of our charter documents and bylaws may make it substantially more difficult for a third party to acquire control of us and may prevent changes in our management, including provisions that:
| • | prevent stockholders from taking actions by written consent; | ||
| • | divide the Board of Directors into separate classes with terms of office that are structured to prevent all of the directors from being elected in any one year; and | ||
| • | set forth procedures for nominating directors and submitting proposals for consideration at stockholders’ meetings. |
Provisions of Delaware law may also inhibit potential acquisition bids for us or prevent us from engaging in business combinations. Either collectively or individually, these provisions may prevent holders of our common stock from benefiting from what they may believe are the positive aspects of acquisitions and takeovers, including the potential realization of a higher rate of return on their investment from these types of transactions.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference into this prospectus contain forward-looking statements that are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry, management’s beliefs, and assumptions made by management. Words such as “anticipates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “seeks,” “estimates,” and variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. These statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions that are difficult to predict; therefore, actual results may differ materially from those expressed or forecasted in any forward-looking statements. The risks and uncertainties include those noted in “Risk Factors” above and in the documents incorporated by reference. We undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
12
USE OF PROCEEDS
The proceeds from the sale of the common stock sold pursuant to this prospectus will belong to the selling stockholder. We will not receive any proceeds from such sales.
SELLING STOCKHOLDER
The following table sets forth the name of the selling stockholder, the number of shares of common stock owned beneficially by the selling stockholder as of March 5, 2002, the number of shares which may be offered pursuant to this prospectus and the number of shares to be owned by the selling stockholder after this offering. The selling stockholder may sell up to 210,000 shares of our common stock pursuant to this prospectus. Since the selling stockholder may offer all, some or none of its common stock, no definitive estimate as to the number of shares thereof that will be held by the selling stockholder after the offering can be provided. In addition, since the date the selling stockholder provided information regarding its ownership of the shares, it may have sold, transferred or otherwise disposed of all or a portion of their shares of common stock in transactions exempt from the registration requirements of the Securities Act. Information concerning the selling stockholder may change from time to time and, when necessary, any changed information will be set forth in a prospectus supplement to this prospectus.
On March 5, 2002, pursuant to a purchase agreement with Lynx Therapeutics, Inc. (“Lynx”) and dated as of March 5, 2002, we purchased Lynx’s right, title, and interest to certain patents and patent applications owned by Lynx in exchange for cash and shares of our common stock. In connection with the purchase agreement, we issued a total of 210,000 shares of our common stock to Lynx pursuant to a common stock purchase agreement dated as of March 5, 2002. The number of shares that we have registered is based upon the actual number of shares issued to the selling stockholder pursuant to the common stock purchase agreement.
To our knowledge, the selling stockholder named in the table has sole voting and investment power with respect to all shares of common stock beneficially owned. This information is based upon information provided by the selling stockholder, and assumes the sale of all of the resale shares by the selling stockholder. The applicable percentages of ownership are based on an aggregate of 24,491,771 shares outstanding as of March 5, 2002.
| Shares Owned After | ||||||||||||||||
| Shares Beneficially Owned | Shares Being | Offering (2) | ||||||||||||||
| Name | Prior to Offering | Offered(1) | Number | Percentage | ||||||||||||
Lynx Therapeutics, Inc. |
210,000 | 210,000 | 0 | * | ||||||||||||
| (1) | This prospectus shall also cover any additional shares of common stock, pursuant to Rule 416 under the Securities Act of 1933, that may become issuable in connection with the shares registered for sale by this prospectus by reason of any stock dividend, stock split, recapitalization or other similar transaction effected without receipt of consideration that results in an increase in the number of our outstanding shares of common stock. | |
| (2) | Assumes the sale of all shares of common stock offered by this prospectus. | |
| * | Less than 1% |
13
PLAN OF DISTRIBUTION
We are registering 210,000 shares of our common stock on behalf of the selling stockholder. The selling stockholder and any of its pledgees, assignees and successors-in-interest may, from time to time, sell any or all of the shares of common stock offered hereby on any stock exchange, market or trading facility on which the shares are traded or in private transactions. These sales may be at fixed or negotiated prices. The selling stockholder may use any one or more of the following methods when selling shares:
| • | on the Nasdaq Small Cap Market; | ||
| • | in the over-the-counter market; | ||
| • | ordinary brokerage transactions and transactions in which the broker-dealer solicits purchasers; | ||
| • | block trades in which the broker-dealer will attempt to sell the shares as agent but may position and resell a portion of the block as principal to facilitate the transaction; | ||
| • | purchases by a broker-dealer as principal and resale by the broker-dealer for its account; | ||
| • | an exchange distribution in accordance with the rules of the applicable exchange; | ||
| • | privately negotiated transactions; | ||
| • | short sales; | ||
| • | broker-dealers may agree with the selling stockholder to sell a specified number of such shares at a stipulated price per share; | ||
| • | a combination of any such methods of sale; and | ||
| • | any other method permitted pursuant to applicable law. |
The selling stockholder may also sell shares under Rule 144 under the Securities Act, if available, rather than under this prospectus.
The selling stockholder may also engage in short sales against the box, puts and calls and other transactions in our securities or derivatives of our securities and may sell or deliver shares in connection with these trades. The selling stockholder may pledge its shares to its brokers under the margin provisions of customer agreements. If the selling stockholder defaults on a margin loan, the broker may, from time to time, offer and sell the pledged shares. The selling stockholder has advised us that it has not entered into any agreements, understandings or arrangements with any underwriters or broker-dealers regarding the sale of its shares other than ordinary course brokerage arrangements, nor is there an underwriter or coordinating broker acting in connection with the proposed sale of shares by the selling stockholder.
Broker-dealers engaged by the selling stockholder may arrange for other brokers-dealers to participate in sales. Broker-dealers may receive commissions or discounts from the selling stockholder, or, if any broker-dealer acts as agent for the purchaser of shares, from the purchaser, in amounts to be negotiated. The selling stockholder does not expect these commissions and discounts to exceed what is customary in the types of transactions involved.
The selling stockholder and any broker-dealers or agents that are involved in selling the shares may be deemed to be “underwriters” within the meaning of the Securities Act in connection with such sales. In such event, any commissions received by such broker-dealers or agents and any profit on the resale of the shares purchased by them may be deemed to be underwriting commissions or discounts under the Securities Act.
Upon notification to us by the selling stockholder that any material arrangement has been entered into with a broker-dealer for the sale of shares through a block trade, special offering, exchange distribution or secondary
14
distribution or a purchase by a broker or dealer, we will file a supplement to this prospectus, if required, pursuant to Rule 424(b) under the Securities Act, disclosing the following:
| • | the name of the selling stockholder and of the participating broker-dealer(s); | ||
| • | the number of shares involved; | ||
| • | the price at which such shares were sold; | ||
| • | the commissions paid or discounts or concessions allowed to such broker-dealer(s), where applicable; | ||
| • | that such broker-dealer(s) did not conduct any investigation to verify the information set out or incorporated by reference in this prospectus; and | ||
| • | other facts material to the transaction. |
In addition, we will file a supplement to this prospectus when the selling stockholder notifies us that a donee or pledgee intends to sell more than 500 shares of our common stock.
We entered into a common stock purchase agreement with the selling stockholder which requires us to register for resale the shares received by the seling stockholder pursuant to such purchase agreement and also provides for cross indemnification against specific liabilities in connection with the offering.
We have advised the selling stockholder that the anti-manipulation provisions of Regulation M promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 may limit the timing of purchases and sales of our shares offered by this prospectus.
VALIDITY OF COMMON STOCK
Latham & Watkins will pass on the validity of the issuance of the shares of common stock offered by this prospectus.
EXPERTS
The consolidated financial statements of Geron Corporation at December 31, 2001 and 2000, and for each of the three years in the period ended December 31, 2001 incorporated by reference in this prospectus and registration statement have been audited by Ernst & Young LLP, independent auditors, as set forth in their report thereon appearing elsewhere herein, and are incorporated herein by reference in reliance upon such report given on the authority of such firm as experts in accounting and auditing.
LIMITATION ON LIABILITY AND DISCLOSURE OF COMMISSION POSITION ON
INDEMNIFICATION FOR SECURITIES ACT LIABILITIES
Our bylaws provide for indemnification of our directors and officers to the fullest extent permitted by law. Insofar as indemnification for liabilities under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers or controlling persons of Geron pursuant to Geron’s Certificate of Incorporation, bylaws and the Delaware General Corporation Law, Geron has been informed that in the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is therefore unenforceable.
15
WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
We file annual, quarterly and special reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC. You may read and copy any document we file at the SEC’s public reference room located at 450 Fifth Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20549. Please call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on the public reference room. Our SEC filings are also available to the public at the SEC’s web site at http://www.sec.gov. You may also inspect copies of these materials and other information about us at the offices of the Nasdaq Stock Market, Inc., National Market System, 1735 K Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20006-1500.
The SEC allows us to “incorporate by reference” the information we file with them which means that we can disclose important information to you by referring you to those documents instead of having to repeat the information in this prospectus. The information incorporated by reference is considered to be part of this prospectus, and later information that we file with the SEC will automatically update and supersede this information. We incorporate by reference the documents listed below and any future filings made with the SEC under Sections 13(a), 13(c), 14, or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 until the selling stockholder sells all the shares:
| • | Our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2001; | ||
| • | Our definitive proxy statement filed pursuant to Section 14 of the Exchange Act in connection with our 2001 Annual Meeting of Stockholders; | ||
| • | The description of our common stock set forth in our registration statement on Form 8-A, filed with the Commission on June 13, 1996 (File No. 0-20859). |
We have filed with the SEC a registration statement on Form S-3 under the Securities Act. This prospectus does not contain all of the information in the registration statement. We have omitted certain parts of the registration statement, as permitted by the rules and regulations of the SEC. You may inspect and copy the registration statement, including exhibits, at the SEC’s public reference room or internet site. Our statements in this prospectus about the contents of any contract or other document are not necessarily complete. You should refer to the copy of each contract or other document we have filed as an exhibit to the registration statement for complete information.
We will furnish without charge to you, on written or oral request, a copy of any or all of the documents incorporated by reference, including exhibits to these documents. You should direct any requests for documents to David L. Greenwood, Chief Financial Officer, Geron Corporation, 230 Constitution Drive, Menlo Park, California 94025, telephone: (650) 473-7700.
16
210,000 SHARES OF COMMON STOCK
GERON CORPORATION
PROSPECTUS
April 11, 2002
You should rely only on the information contained or incorporated by reference in this prospectus. We have not authorized anyone to provide you with different information. You should not assume that the information contained or incorporated by reference in this prospectus is accurate as of any date other than the date of this prospectus. We are not making an offer of these securities in any state where the offer is not permitted.