title: Bone morphogenetic proteins are expressed by both bone-forming and non-bone-forming lesions.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) are thought to be responsible for bone formation; they cause bone to form in soft tissues and are clinically used in helping fracture union or tumor reconstructions. Skeletal metastases from epithelial tumors may be either bone-forming (blastic) or non-bone-forming (lytic).
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  We studied the expression of BMPs in a variety of primary and secondary lesions of bone (both bone-forming and non-bone-forming) to determine if there was a consistent relationship between bone formation and BMP expression.
  
  
  METHODS
  We compared a bone-forming lesion (fibrous dysplasia) with a non-bone-forming lesion (desmoid tumor), using reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction, Northern blot analysis, and immunohistochemistry to detect BMPs. We also studied a number of non-bone-forming secondary lesions (carcinomas that formed lytic metastases to the skeleton) and found BMP production in most of these tumors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We found that BMPs were expressed in both bone-forming and non-bone-forming benign musculoskeletal lesions. In the first part of the study, BMPs were found in both fibrous dysplasia and desmoid tumors. Bone morphogenetic proteins were also expressed by several tumors. In the next part of the study (paraffin-embedded tissue), BMPs were expressed by a variety of tumors, irrespective of the radiological nature (blastic or lytic) of their metastases.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We conclude that BMP production alone cannot explain bone formation, and other factors either alone or in combination may be responsible for blastic metastases to the skeleton and for bone formation by primary bone lesions, such as fibrous dysplasia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Temple University Hospital, Philadelphia, Pa 19140, USA. khuranjs@tuhs.temple.edu
authors.forename: Jasvir S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Khurana
authors.forename: Shuji
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ogino
authors.forename: Ting
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.forename: Hemant
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Parekh
authors.forename: Uwe
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Scherbel
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: DeLong
authors.forename: Michael D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Feldman
authors.forename: Paul J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Hubert J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Wolfe
authors.forename: Benjamin A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: Alman
mesh_terms: D055396:Bone Morphogenetic Protein 2; D055415:Bone Morphogenetic Protein 4; D052005:Bone Morphogenetic Protein Receptors, Type I; D019485:Bone Morphogenetic Proteins / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D001859:Bone Neoplasms / Q000235:genetics / Q000556:secondary; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000235:genetics / Q000556:secondary; D002460:Cell Line; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D005260:Female; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000166:cytology; D018222:Desmoid Tumors / Q000235:genetics*; D005358:Fibrous Dysplasia, Monostotic / Q000235:genetics*; D005359:Fibrous Dysplasia, Polyostotic / Q000235:genetics*; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000235:genetics; D015972:Gene Expression Regulation, Neoplastic / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry / Q000379:methods; D012516:Osteosarcoma / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000276:immunology; D012313:RNA / Q000235:genetics; D012334:RNA, Neoplasm / Q000235:genetics; D017978:Receptors, Growth Factor / Q000276:immunology; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: C525718:BMP2 protein, human; C525809:BMP4 protein, human; D055396:Bone Morphogenetic Protein 2; D055415:Bone Morphogenetic Protein 4; D019485:Bone Morphogenetic Proteins; D012334:RNA, Neoplasm; D017978:Receptors, Growth Factor; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta; D012313:RNA; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases; D052005:Bone Morphogenetic Protein Receptors, Type I