CHROMOSOMAL LOCALIZATION, EMBRYONIC EXPRESSION, AND IMPRINTING TESTS FOR BMP7 ON DISTAL MOUSE CHROMOSOME-2

Murine Bmp7 has been assigned to distal Chromosome 2 by interspecific backcross mapping. The map location suggests close linkage to classica l mouse mutations and places Bmp7 within a chromosome region thought t o contain one or more unidentified imprinted genes. A direct test sugg ests that Bmp7 is not imprinted. An examination of embryonic RNA expre ssion patterns shows that Bmp7 is expressed in a variety of skeletal a nd nonskeletal tissues. Both embryonic expression patterns and the hum an chromosomal sublocalization inferred from its mouse location make B mp7 a candidate for the gene affected in some patients with Holt-Gram syndrome. (C) 1995 Academic Press, Inc.