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Background
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The very-low-density-lipoprotein receptor (VLDL-R) is a lipoprotein receptor that shows considerable similarity to the lowdensity-lipoprotein receptor. VLDL R is a 130 kDa type I transmembrane protein in the LDL receptor family that plays a significant role in lipid metabolism and in nervous system development and function .This receptor has been suggested to be important for the metabolism of apoprotein-E-containing triacylglycerol-rich lipoproteins, such as very-low-densitylipoprotein (VLDL), beta-migrating VLDL and intermediate-density lipoprotein. It is also one of the receptors of reelin, an extracellular matrix protein which regulates the processes of neuronal migration and synaptic plasticity. In humans, the VLDL-R is encoded by the VLDLR gene. A rare neurological disorder first described in the 1970s under the name "disequilibrium syndrome" is now considered to be caused by the disruption of VLDLR gene. The disorder was renamed VLDLR-associated cerebellar hypoplasia (VLDLRCH) after a 2005 study. It is associated with parental consanguinity and found in secluded communities such as the Hutterites. VLDLRCH is one of the two known genetic disorders caused by a disruption of reelin signaling pathway, along with Norman-Roberts syndrome.
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