Low Affinity Nerve Growth Factor Receptor (LNGFR)

The Low Affinity Nerve Growth Factor Receptor (also called the LNGFR or p75 neurotrophin receptor) is one of the two receptor types for the neurotrophins, a family of protein growth factors which stimulate neuronal cells to survive and differentiate. The precise function of the LNGFR is somewhat controversial, in contrast to the function of the high-affinity receptor family for the neurotrophins, the Trk receptor tyrosine kinases such as TrkA.

As opposed to TrkA, the LNGFR plays a somewhat less clear role in NGF biology. Some researchers have shown the LNGFR binds and serves as a "sink" for neurotrophins. Cells that express both the LNGFR and the Trk receptors might, therefore, have a greater activity, since they have a higher "microconcentration" of the neurotrophin.