p75NTR is a type I transmembrane protein, with a molecular weight of 75 kDa, determined by glycosylation through both N- and O-linkages in the extracellular domain.
It consists of an extracellular domain, a transmembrane domain and an intracellular domain. The extracellular domain consists of a stalk domain connecting the transmembrane domain and four cysteine-rich repeat domains, CRD1, CRD2, CRD3, and CRD4; which are negatively charged, a property that facilitates Neurotrophin binding. The intracellular part is a global-like domain, known as a death domain, which consists of two sets of perpendicular helixes arranged in sets of three. It connects the transmembrane domain through a flexible linker region N-terminal domain. It is important to say that, in contrast to the type I death domain found in other TNFR proteins, the type II intracellular death domain of p75NTR does nor self-associated. This was an early indication that p75NTR does nor signal death through the same mechanism as the TNFR death domains, although the ability of the p75NTR death domain to activate other second messengers is conserved.
The p75ECD-binding interface to NT-3 can be divided into three main contact sites, two in the case of NGF, that are stabilized by hydrophobic interactions, salt bridges, and hydrogen bonds. The junction regions between CDR1 and CDR2 form the site 1 that contains five hydrogen bonds and one salt bridge. Site 2 is formed by equal contributions from CDR3 and CRD4 and involves two salt bridges and two hydrogen bonds. Site 3, in the CRD4, includes only one salt bridge.