Tissue-type plasminogen activator（ tPA） plays an important role in intravenous thrombolysis， and it also regulates many other non-fibrinolytic functions in the central nervous system（ CNS）. Studies have shown that tPA have great effects on the pathological process of Alzheimer disease（ AD）. In recent years， the correlation between tPA and AD has become a hot spot. However， at present， the mechanism about tPA associated with AD is not fully clear. This article reviews related researches on connection between tPA and AD， so as to improve the awareness of it.