Bone morphogenetic proteins were originally identified by an ability of demineralized bone extract to induce endochondral osteogenesis in vivo in an extraskeletal site. These proteins are synthesized as prepropeptides, cleaved, and then processed into dimeric proteins. BMP-5, BMP-6 and BMP-7 all share high sequence homology with BMP-2, indicating that they each may be able to induce cartilage formation. BMP5 is differentially regulated during the formation of various tumors.
