Infigratinib Restores Memory, Reduces Induced Seizures in Mice With Hypochondroplasia
Infigratinib restored performance on memory tests and reduced induced seizures in a mouse model of hypochondroplasia, according to an abstract presented at the American Society for Bone and Mineral Research (ASBMR) 2026 Annual Meeting.
Researchers studied mice carrying an FGFR3 variant associated with hypochondroplasia. They used behavioral tests to assess episodic and spatial memory, then evaluated susceptibility to seizures induced by a single intraperitoneal injection of kainic acid. They also tested whether 7 days of postnatal infigratinib injections at 2 mg/kg/d changed these outcomes.
In the episodic memory test, 34-day-old mice (n = 10) and 3-month-old mice (n = 17) spent significantly less time exploring a novel object than age-matched controls (n = 14 and n = 17, respectively; P < .0001). In the spatial memory test, 32-day-old mice (n = 10) and 3-month-old mice (n = 18) explored a relocated object significantly less than controls (n = 14 and n = 17, respectively; P < .0001).
After kainic acid administration at 10 mg/kg, 81% of young mice (n = 31) developed convulsive status epilepticus, compared with 25% of controls (n = 31). The mice had a shorter time to seizure onset (P < .0001), longer seizures (P < .05), and higher mortality (P < .0001).
The researchers reported that infigratinib restored episodic and spatial memory performance in treated mice (n = 14 for each assessment). They also reported reversal of induced seizures in treated mice (n = 31). The abstract did not provide numerical treatment effects or describe limitations.
The researchers proposed that modulating FGFR3 signaling could have value for neurocognitive disorders associated with hypochondroplasia. That proposal remains based on the mouse findings reported in this abstract.
Reference
Fayad C, Loisay L, Vilpreux C, et al. Defective memory is restored and epileptic seizures are rescued in a mouse model of hypochondroplasia by the FGFR inhibitor infigratinib. Abstract presented at: American Society for Bone & Mineral Research (ASBMR) 2026 Annual Meeting; October 9-12, 2026; Boston, MA. Accessed October 7, 2026. https://eppro01.ativ.me/web/page.php?page=Session&project=ASBMR26&id=p8751-397