Nocion: Targeting pain neurons and nothing else

With a $27 million series A co-led by Canaan and F-Prime Capital announced Wednesday, Nocion thinks it could replace opioids in a range of tissue-localized indications, starting with cough. The company is aiming to minimize the side effects of commonly used analgesics by developing compounds that only affect the cells sensing pain.

Nocion is developing positively charged versions of “caines” -- broadly acting intracellular sodium channel blockers -- that selectively enter the neurons that transmit pain and itch signals, known as nociceptors. ...