[5][6][7] LRP2 was identified as the antigen of rat experimental membranous nephropathy (Heyman nephritis) and originally named gp330 and subsequently megalin[8] and later LRP2.

LRP2 is an approximately 600kDa (4665 amino acids) transmembrane glycoprotein with structural similarities to the low density lipoprotein receptor (LDLR).

[11] LRP2 is expressed in epithelial cells of the thyroid (thyrocytes), where it can serve as a receptor for the protein thyroglobulin (Tg).

LRP2 and CUBAM are responsible for the uptake of most of the filtered proteins that escape the glomerular filtration barrier in the proximal tubule of the kidney.

[9][13] Once internalized, the endosomes release their clathrin coats and fuse with a dense subapical network of tubules to recycle receptors back to the apical surface.

A decrease in LRP2 receptor expression has been reported in animal models of acute and chronic kidney diseases.