# Axonis Therapeutics

> Axonis Therapeutics is a Boston-based, neuro-focused biotechnology company developing first- and best-in-class oral small-molecule medicines that target KCC2, a chloride transporter that acts as the brain's master regulator of inhibitory neurotransmission. Spun out of research from Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School and Universite Laval, Axonis is advancing its lead candidate AXN-027 - a first-in-class KCC2 potentiator - toward clinical proof of concept in epilepsy, chronic pain and other CNS disorders, backed by an oversubscribed $115 million Series A closed in 2024.

- **Founded:** 2020
- **Headquarters:** Boston, Massachusetts, United States
- **Founders:** Joanna Stanicka (Co-Founder, CEO & President), Shane V. Hegarty (Co-Founder & Chief Scientific Officer), Corey Goodman (Co-Founder & Executive Chair)
- **Team size:** ~26 employees
- **Products:** AXN-027, KCC2 Discovery Engine
- **Notable:** Closed an oversubscribed $115M Series A in October 2024, co-led by Cormorant and venBio., Raised $127M+ in total funding including $34M+ seed and $8M+ in competitive non-dilutive grants., Advanced AXN-027, a first-in-class oral KCC2 potentiator, toward first-in-human studies.

## Products & services

- **AXN-027** — First-in-class oral small-molecule potentiator of KCC2, a major CNS chloride transporter essential for inhibitory neurotransmission. Lead development candidate advancing toward clinical proof of concept in epilepsy and chronic pain.
- **KCC2 Discovery Engine** — Proprietary platform built around KCC2 biology and in vivo phenotypic screening, generating next-generation compounds targeting inhibitory neurotransmission for CNS disorders.

## Achievements

- Closed an oversubscribed $115M Series A in October 2024, co-led by Cormorant and venBio.
- Raised $127M+ in total funding including $34M+ seed and $8M+ in competitive non-dilutive grants.
- Advanced AXN-027, a first-in-class oral KCC2 potentiator, toward first-in-human studies.
- Built a proprietary KCC2 discovery engine from a genome-wide AAV-CRISPR neuroprotection/regeneration screen.
- CEO Joanna Stanicka recognized with a Massachusetts Next Generation Award.
- Featured as a MassBio member spotlight in the Boston biotech community.

## Latest updates

- **2024-10** — Announced an oversubscribed $115M Series A financing co-led by Cormorant Asset Management and venBio Partners to advance AXN-027 into the clinic.
- **2024** — Initiated first-in-human development of AXN-027, its first-in-class oral KCC2 potentiator for epilepsy and pain.
- **2020-05** — Announced seed financing for preclinical development of its neuromodulating KCC2 therapy and formally launched the company.

## Links

- Website: https://axonis.us
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/axonis-us
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/axonis_us
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/axonis-664425177347897

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/axonis-therapeutics
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-07-22