Endocardial cushion cells were cultured with or without the addition of soluble recombinant BMP2 or Noggin, a BMP inhibitor. Addition of BMP2 resulted in increased Twist1, Cad11, Postn, and Mmp2 expression relative to untreated controls, while addition of Noggin attenuated that response as measured by real time RT-PCR. Asterisks represent a statistically significant difference compared to untreated control groups (n=4, P<0.01). Error bars represent standard error of the mean.