Transforming growth factor betas (TGFbetas) were originally discovered due to their ability to promote anchorage-independent growth of rat NRK fibroblasts in the presence of TGFalpha. It is now realized that TGFbetas mediate many cell-cell interactions that occur during embryonic development. Three TGFbetas have been identified in mammals. TGFbeta1, TGFbeta2 and TGFbeta3 are each synthesized as precursor proteins that are very similar in that each is cleaved to yield a 112 amino acid polypeptide that remains associated with the latent portion of the molecules.