60 cost of product sales cost of product sales of continuing operations was $ ( 0.6 ) million for the year ended december 31 , 2019 , compared to $ 3.3 million for the year ended december 31 , 2018. the $ ( 0.6 ) million of cost of product sales of continuing operations recognized in the current year is driven by the settlement agreement the company entered into related to the ulesfia product during the second quarter of 2019. the settlement agreement fully released the company of all current and future liabilities related to the lachlan agreement , which contained minimum purchase obligations and minimum royalty provisions that the company had accrued for in the amount of $ 2.4 million in the year ended december 31 , 2018. pursuant to the settlement agreement , during the second quarter of 2019 , the company made a $ 2.3 million cash payment for a full release of all current and future liabilities related to the lachlan agreement as of june 30 , 2019. as a result , the company reversed the $ 8.7 million liability for the minimum obligations and $ 0.4 million royalty payable in accrued liabilities during the second quarter of 2019. the settlement agreement also released the former trx owners of their requirement to indemnify the company for the losses discussed above . as a result , the company reversed the $ 5.2 million indemnity receivable in other receivables during the second quarter of 2019. the settlement agreement resulted in a net reversal of $ 1.6 million in previously recognized expense to cost of product sales for the year ended december 31 , 2019. this reversal is partially offset by cost of product sales of approximately $ 1.0 million , which is primarily composed of royalties , cost of inventory sold and licenses . the $ 3.3 million of cost of product sales for the year ended december 31 , 2018 primarily consists of the ulesfia minimum royalty obligations described above . research and development expenses the following table summarizes our research and development expenses for the years ended december 31 , 2019 and 2018 : replace_table_token_1_th research and development expenses increased $ 6.0 million for the year ended december 31 , 2019 compared to the prior year . the overall increase was driven by an increase in research and development activities during the current year as the company continues to develop its pipeline assets . clinical expenses increased $ 2.4 million primarily due to increased development costs related to cerc-801 , cerc-802 , and cerc-803 , which were acquired as part of the ichorion acquisition in september 2018 , and increased activities related to the cerc-301 clinical study in noh during the first half of 2019. chemistry , manufacturing , and controls ( `` cmc `` ) expenses increased $ 3.3 million for the year ended december 31 , 2019 compared to the same period in 2018 due to additional spending on manufacturing to support clinical development . salaries , benefits and related costs increased by $ 0.7 million compared to the same period in 2018 due to an increase in headcount and salary-related costs needed to maintain and grow our research and development activities as we continue to invest in our pipeline assets . additionally , stock-based compensation increased by $ 0.4 million due to an increase in the amount of stock option grants in 2019 driven by an increased headcount , as well as the additional expense related to the annual stock option award that was granted on april 1 , 2019. these increases were partially offset by a $ 1.3 million reversal of research and development expense related to the company 's assignment of its license agreement with respect to cerc-611 to es therapeutics in the third quarter of 2019. pursuant to the assignment agreement , the company assigned and transferred its rights , interest and obligations related to the compound , thus releasing the company 's contingent payment of $ 1.3 million to lilly upon the first subject dosage of cerc-611 in a multiple ascending dose study , which was previously recorded as a license obligation on the balance sheet . the elimination of the license obligation resulted in an offset of research and development expense for the year ended december 31 , 2019 . 61 the company expects research and development expenses to increase in 2020 as the company advances its newly acquired pipeline assets and also continues to advance the cerc-800 assets . acquired in-process research and development expenses as part of the ichorion acquisition in september 2018 , the company acquired $ 18.7 million of in-process research and development ( `` ipr & d `` ) for three preclinical therapies ( cerc-801 , cerc-802 and cerc-803 ) for cdgs . the fair value of the ipr & d was immediately recognized as acquired ipr & d expense as the ipr & d asset has no other alternate use due to the stage of development . there was no acquired ipr & d expense for the year ended december 31 , 2019. general and administrative expenses the following table summarizes our general and administrative expenses of continuing operations for the years ended december 31 , 2019 and 2018 : replace_table_token_2_th general and administrative expenses decreased $ 0.4 million for the year ended december 31 , 2019 compared to 2018. the overall decrease was driven by a $ 0.5 million decrease in legal , consulting and other professional fees and a $ 0.6 million decrease in stock-based compensation , largely offset by a $ 0.6 million increase in salaries , benefits and related costs . legal , consulting and other professional expenses decreased $ 0.5 million , which was driven by a substantial decrease in consulting fees in the current year . story_separator_special_tag estimated fair value and change in fair value of contingent consideration the company 's business acquisitions of avadel 's pediatric products and trx involved the potential for future payment of consideration that is contingent upon the achievement of operation and commercial milestones and royalty payments on future product sales . the fair value of contingent consideration was determined at the acquisition date utilizing unobservable inputs such as the estimated amount and timing of projected cash flows , the probability of success ( achievement of the contingent event ) and the risk-adjusted discount rate used to present value the probability-weighted cash flows . subsequent to the acquisition date , at each reporting period , the contingent consideration liability was remeasured at the current fair value with changes recorded in the consolidated statements of operations . as part of the aytu divestiture , aytu assumed the company 's contingent consideration liability related to future royalties on avadel 's pediatric products . additionally , as part of a settlement the company entered into in the second quarter of 2019 , the company was released from its contingent consideration liability related to trx . therefore , the company 's contingent consideration liability was $ 0 as of december 31 , 2019. there is no change in fair value of contingent consideration included in cost of product sales or research and development costs . for the year ended december 31 , 2019 and 2018 , the change in fair value of contingent consideration related to royalties on avadel 's pediatric products was included within net income ( loss ) from discontinued operations , net of tax ( inclusive of gain on sale ) . the change in fair value of contingent consideration related to trx was included within its own standalone line in operating expenses from continuing operations in the company 's consolidated statements of operations because the contingent consideration was related to a product that was not sold as part of the aytu divestiture . estimated fair value of investment in aytu and change in fair value of investment in aytu as consideration for the aytu divestiture , the company received approximately 9.8 million shares of aytu series g convertible preferred stock . pursuant to asc 323 , the company accounts for this investment as a financial instrument because cerecor 's investment does not result in a controlling financial interest as the preferred stock received is in-substance common stock and cerecor does not have the ability to exercise significant influence or joint control of aytu . therefore , the fair value of the investment in aytu was determined at the divestiture date utilizing quoted prices for aytu 's common stock price with a discount for lack of marketability due to our shares being restricted as of december 31 , 2019 and subject to a lockup period ending on july 1 , 2020. subsequent to the divestiture date , at each reporting period , the investment in aytu will be remeasured at its current fair value with the change in fair value recorded to other income , net in the accompanying statements of operations . the investment in aytu is recorded in the consolidated balance sheet as a current asset because it is available for sale within one year of december 31 , 2019. estimated fair value of guarantee and change in fair value of guarantee as of the closing date of the aytu divestiture on november 1 , 2019 , aytu assumed the company 's debt obligation to deerfield csf and the contingent consideration liability related to future royalties on avadel 's pediatric products . in conjunction with the closing of the aytu divestiture in the fourth quarter of 2019 , the company entered into a guarantee , which guarantees the payment of the assumed debt obligation and contingent consideration . the fair value of the guarantees were determined at the time of the divestiture as the difference between ( i ) the estimated fair value of the debt and contingent payments , respectively , using cerecor 's estimated cost of debt and ( ii ) the estimated fair value of the debt and contingent payments , respectively , using aytu 's estimated cost of debt . subsequent to the close of the aytu divestiture , at each reporting period , the guarantee will be remeasured at its current fair value with changes recorded in income ( loss ) from discontinued operations , net of tax within the consolidated statements of operations . income taxes the company accounts for income taxes under the asset and liability method in accordance with asc 740 , income taxes ( “ asc 740 ” ) . deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which the differences are expected to affect taxable income . deferred tax assets primarily include net operating loss ( `` nol `` ) and tax credit carryforwards , accrued expenses not currently deductible and the cumulative temporary differences related to certain research and patent costs . certain tax attributes , including nols and research and development credit carryforwards , may be subject to an annual limitation under sections 382 and 383 of the internal revenue code ( the `` irc `` ) . see note 15 for further information within the company 's consolidated financial statements . the portion of any deferred tax asset for which it is more likely than not that a tax benefit will not be 68 realized must then be offset by recording a valuation allowance . the company recognizes the tax benefit from an uncertain tax position only if it is more likely than not to be sustained upon examination based on the technical merits of the position . the amount for which an exposure exists is measured as the largest amount of benefit determined on

cash flows the following table summarizes our cash flows for the years ended december 31 , 2019 and 2018 : replace_table_token_5_th net cash used in operating activities total net cash used in operating activities was $ 19.1 million for the year ended december 31 , 2019 , consisting primarily of a net loss of $ 16.1 million , which was driven by increased research and development activities as the company continued to fund its pipeline of development assets . adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in net operating activities included $ 8.0 million gain recognized on the aytu divestiture and a $ 1.0 million non-cash gain on the change of fair value of contingent consideration liability , partially offset by $ 3.9 million of non-cash depreciation and amortization and non-cash stock-based compensation of $ 2.5 million . additionally , changes in assets and liabilities , net of aytu divestiture decreased by a net $ 2.0 million , mainly driven by decreases in accrued expenses and other liabilities of $ 6.8 million , license obligations of $ 1.3 million and income taxes payable of $ 1.5 million , partially offset increases in accounts receivable of $ 1.7 million , net , and other receivables , excluding the aevi loan , of $ 5.1 million . the company expects a significant and likely increase in net cash used in operating activities in 2020 due to our continued investment in the cerc-800 compounds and our increased investment in the pipeline assets recently acquired as part of the aevi merger .


 Write a concise suspicious activity report of the following text delimited by triple backquotes. Return your response as a formal report which covers the key points highlighting the location,dates,entity names and account holder information in chronological order of the text.
     ```cash flows the following table summarizes our cash flows for the years ended december 31 , 2019 and 2018 : replace_table_token_5_th net cash used in operating activities total net cash used in operating activities was $ 19.1 million for the year ended december 31 , 2019 , consisting primarily of a net loss of $ 16.1 million , which was driven by increased research and development activities as the company continued to fund its pipeline of development assets . adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in net operating activities included $ 8.0 million gain recognized on the aytu divestiture and a $ 1.0 million non-cash gain on the change of fair value of contingent consideration liability , partially offset by $ 3.9 million of non-cash depreciation and amortization and non-cash stock-based compensation of $ 2.5 million . additionally , changes in assets and liabilities , net of aytu divestiture decreased by a net $ 2.0 million , mainly driven by decreases in accrued expenses and other liabilities of $ 6.8 million , license obligations of $ 1.3 million and income taxes payable of $ 1.5 million , partially offset increases in accounts receivable of $ 1.7 million , net , and other receivables , excluding the aevi loan , of $ 5.1 million . the company expects a significant and likely increase in net cash used in operating activities in 2020 due to our continued investment in the cerc-800 compounds and our increased investment in the pipeline assets recently acquired as part of the aevi merger .
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 Suspicious Activity Report : 60 cost of product sales cost of product sales of continuing operations was $ ( 0.6 ) million for the year ended december 31 , 2019 , compared to $ 3.3 million for the year ended december 31 , 2018. the $ ( 0.6 ) million of cost of product sales of continuing operations recognized in the current year is driven by the settlement agreement the company entered into related to the ulesfia product during the second quarter of 2019. the settlement agreement fully released the company of all current and future liabilities related to the lachlan agreement , which contained minimum purchase obligations and minimum royalty provisions that the company had accrued for in the amount of $ 2.4 million in the year ended december 31 , 2018. pursuant to the settlement agreement , during the second quarter of 2019 , the company made a $ 2.3 million cash payment for a full release of all current and future liabilities related to the lachlan agreement as of june 30 , 2019. as a result , the company reversed the $ 8.7 million liability for the minimum obligations and $ 0.4 million royalty payable in accrued liabilities during the second quarter of 2019. the settlement agreement also released the former trx owners of their requirement to indemnify the company for the losses discussed above . as a result , the company reversed the $ 5.2 million indemnity receivable in other receivables during the second quarter of 2019. the settlement agreement resulted in a net reversal of $ 1.6 million in previously recognized expense to cost of product sales for the year ended december 31 , 2019. this reversal is partially offset by cost of product sales of approximately $ 1.0 million , which is primarily composed of royalties , cost of inventory sold and licenses . the $ 3.3 million of cost of product sales for the year ended december 31 , 2018 primarily consists of the ulesfia minimum royalty obligations described above . research and development expenses the following table summarizes our research and development expenses for the years ended december 31 , 2019 and 2018 : replace_table_token_1_th research and development expenses increased $ 6.0 million for the year ended december 31 , 2019 compared to the prior year . the overall increase was driven by an increase in research and development activities during the current year as the company continues to develop its pipeline assets . clinical expenses increased $ 2.4 million primarily due to increased development costs related to cerc-801 , cerc-802 , and cerc-803 , which were acquired as part of the ichorion acquisition in september 2018 , and increased activities related to the cerc-301 clinical study in noh during the first half of 2019. chemistry , manufacturing , and controls ( `` cmc `` ) expenses increased $ 3.3 million for the year ended december 31 , 2019 compared to the same period in 2018 due to additional spending on manufacturing to support clinical development . salaries , benefits and related costs increased by $ 0.7 million compared to the same period in 2018 due to an increase in headcount and salary-related costs needed to maintain and grow our research and development activities as we continue to invest in our pipeline assets . additionally , stock-based compensation increased by $ 0.4 million due to an increase in the amount of stock option grants in 2019 driven by an increased headcount , as well as the additional expense related to the annual stock option award that was granted on april 1 , 2019. these increases were partially offset by a $ 1.3 million reversal of research and development expense related to the company 's assignment of its license agreement with respect to cerc-611 to es therapeutics in the third quarter of 2019. pursuant to the assignment agreement , the company assigned and transferred its rights , interest and obligations related to the compound , thus releasing the company 's contingent payment of $ 1.3 million to lilly upon the first subject dosage of cerc-611 in a multiple ascending dose study , which was previously recorded as a license obligation on the balance sheet . the elimination of the license obligation resulted in an offset of research and development expense for the year ended december 31 , 2019 . 61 the company expects research and development expenses to increase in 2020 as the company advances its newly acquired pipeline assets and also continues to advance the cerc-800 assets . acquired in-process research and development expenses as part of the ichorion acquisition in september 2018 , the company acquired $ 18.7 million of in-process research and development ( `` ipr & d `` ) for three preclinical therapies ( cerc-801 , cerc-802 and cerc-803 ) for cdgs . the fair value of the ipr & d was immediately recognized as acquired ipr & d expense as the ipr & d asset has no other alternate use due to the stage of development . there was no acquired ipr & d expense for the year ended december 31 , 2019. general and administrative expenses the following table summarizes our general and administrative expenses of continuing operations for the years ended december 31 , 2019 and 2018 : replace_table_token_2_th general and administrative expenses decreased $ 0.4 million for the year ended december 31 , 2019 compared to 2018. the overall decrease was driven by a $ 0.5 million decrease in legal , consulting and other professional fees and a $ 0.6 million decrease in stock-based compensation , largely offset by a $ 0.6 million increase in salaries , benefits and related costs . legal , consulting and other professional expenses decreased $ 0.5 million , which was driven by a substantial decrease in consulting fees in the current year . story_separator_special_tag estimated fair value and change in fair value of contingent consideration the company 's business acquisitions of avadel 's pediatric products and trx involved the potential for future payment of consideration that is contingent upon the achievement of operation and commercial milestones and royalty payments on future product sales . the fair value of contingent consideration was determined at the acquisition date utilizing unobservable inputs such as the estimated amount and timing of projected cash flows , the probability of success ( achievement of the contingent event ) and the risk-adjusted discount rate used to present value the probability-weighted cash flows . subsequent to the acquisition date , at each reporting period , the contingent consideration liability was remeasured at the current fair value with changes recorded in the consolidated statements of operations . as part of the aytu divestiture , aytu assumed the company 's contingent consideration liability related to future royalties on avadel 's pediatric products . additionally , as part of a settlement the company entered into in the second quarter of 2019 , the company was released from its contingent consideration liability related to trx . therefore , the company 's contingent consideration liability was $ 0 as of december 31 , 2019. there is no change in fair value of contingent consideration included in cost of product sales or research and development costs . for the year ended december 31 , 2019 and 2018 , the change in fair value of contingent consideration related to royalties on avadel 's pediatric products was included within net income ( loss ) from discontinued operations , net of tax ( inclusive of gain on sale ) . the change in fair value of contingent consideration related to trx was included within its own standalone line in operating expenses from continuing operations in the company 's consolidated statements of operations because the contingent consideration was related to a product that was not sold as part of the aytu divestiture . estimated fair value of investment in aytu and change in fair value of investment in aytu as consideration for the aytu divestiture , the company received approximately 9.8 million shares of aytu series g convertible preferred stock . pursuant to asc 323 , the company accounts for this investment as a financial instrument because cerecor 's investment does not result in a controlling financial interest as the preferred stock received is in-substance common stock and cerecor does not have the ability to exercise significant influence or joint control of aytu . therefore , the fair value of the investment in aytu was determined at the divestiture date utilizing quoted prices for aytu 's common stock price with a discount for lack of marketability due to our shares being restricted as of december 31 , 2019 and subject to a lockup period ending on july 1 , 2020. subsequent to the divestiture date , at each reporting period , the investment in aytu will be remeasured at its current fair value with the change in fair value recorded to other income , net in the accompanying statements of operations . the investment in aytu is recorded in the consolidated balance sheet as a current asset because it is available for sale within one year of december 31 , 2019. estimated fair value of guarantee and change in fair value of guarantee as of the closing date of the aytu divestiture on november 1 , 2019 , aytu assumed the company 's debt obligation to deerfield csf and the contingent consideration liability related to future royalties on avadel 's pediatric products . in conjunction with the closing of the aytu divestiture in the fourth quarter of 2019 , the company entered into a guarantee , which guarantees the payment of the assumed debt obligation and contingent consideration . the fair value of the guarantees were determined at the time of the divestiture as the difference between ( i ) the estimated fair value of the debt and contingent payments , respectively , using cerecor 's estimated cost of debt and ( ii ) the estimated fair value of the debt and contingent payments , respectively , using aytu 's estimated cost of debt . subsequent to the close of the aytu divestiture , at each reporting period , the guarantee will be remeasured at its current fair value with changes recorded in income ( loss ) from discontinued operations , net of tax within the consolidated statements of operations . income taxes the company accounts for income taxes under the asset and liability method in accordance with asc 740 , income taxes ( “ asc 740 ” ) . deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which the differences are expected to affect taxable income . deferred tax assets primarily include net operating loss ( `` nol `` ) and tax credit carryforwards , accrued expenses not currently deductible and the cumulative temporary differences related to certain research and patent costs . certain tax attributes , including nols and research and development credit carryforwards , may be subject to an annual limitation under sections 382 and 383 of the internal revenue code ( the `` irc `` ) . see note 15 for further information within the company 's consolidated financial statements . the portion of any deferred tax asset for which it is more likely than not that a tax benefit will not be 68 realized must then be offset by recording a valuation allowance . the company recognizes the tax benefit from an uncertain tax position only if it is more likely than not to be sustained upon examination based on the technical merits of the position . the amount for which an exposure exists is measured as the largest amount of benefit determined on

