WATERTOWN, Mass. — Nocion Therapeutics announced it has raised an additional $23 million from existing investors in an extension of its Series B financing, bringing the total Series B to $93 million. The new capital extends the company’s operating runway through 2027, beyond the expected release of topline results from the ASPIRE Phase 2b clinical trial of taplucainium in adults with refractory or unexplained chronic cough, which are anticipated in mid-2026.
The Series B extension was led by Arkin Bio Capital and Monograph Capital, with participation from BioInnovation Capital, Canaan Partners, F-Prime Capital, Lumira Ventures, Mass General Brigham Ventures, Mission BioCapital, Morningside, Osage University Partners, and an undisclosed strategic investor.
Proceeds from the financing will support continued development of taplucainium dry powder for inhalation beyond the ASPIRE study, including preparation for later-stage activities such as an End-of-Phase 2 meeting and chemistry, manufacturing, and controls work. Taplucainium is a first-in-class, locally delivered, charged sodium channel blocker designed to selectively silence activated or inflamed airway nociceptors while minimizing local off-target effects and systemic exposure.
The ASPIRE Phase 2b clinical trial is currently enrolling patients at sites across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Europe.
“We have made excellent progress enrolling patients in the ASPIRE Phase 2b trial and anticipate topline results in mid-2026,” said Richard Batycky, Ph.D., chief executive officer of Nocion. “This financing gives us the runway to continue preparations for later-stage development as we look to position taplucainium as one of the leading potential treatments for the millions of people who suffer from chronic cough.”
“During the past year we have seen growing awareness across the pharmaceutical industry of the significant unmet need in chronic cough,” said Pini Orbach, Ph.D., managing partner at Arkin Bio Capital. “With success in the ASPIRE study, we believe Nocion’s inhaled taplucainium has the potential to become best-in-class for refractory or unexplained chronic cough based on its differentiated mechanism.”
Chronic cough is defined as a cough lasting more than eight weeks and is associated with substantial physical, social, and psychosocial burden. An estimated 27 million adults in the United States experience chronic cough, including approximately 9 million with refractory or unexplained chronic cough. No new therapies have been approved in the past 65 years, and treatment often relies on off-label approaches that may be inadequate or ineffective.
Taplucainium, formerly known as NTX-1175, is a proprietary dry powder for inhalation in the charged sodium channel blocker class. Designed for once-daily dosing, it selectively targets activated airway nociceptors and has demonstrated rapid onset of cough suppression with a favorable safety profile in prior studies. Unlike other investigational cough therapies that target specific large pore channels, taplucainium is designed to access airway nociceptors through open large pore channels and inhibit the sodium channels responsible for initiating pathological cough responses. Preclinical models and earlier-stage clinical data support further evaluation of taplucainium in chronic cough and potentially other cough-related indications.
