Bisphosphonates promote the expression of the osteogenic genes alkaline phosphatase (ALP), bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) and osteocalcin (OC) in marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) (Ribeiro et al., 2014) and directly enhance osteoblast formation and subsequent mineral deposition, which may be another mechanism by which they exert anti-osteoporosis (Lindtner et al., 2014). Here, BMP2 is linked to osteoporosis.