Results suggest SIRT1 activators can mediate neuroprotective effects during optic neuritis by these mechanisms, and they have the potential to preserve neurons in other neurodegenerative diseases that involve oxidative stress.;These findings show a neuroprotective role for Sirt1 in mammalian Huntington’s disease models and open new avenues for the development of neuroprotective strategies in Huntington’s disease;These results indicate that SIRT1 activation by either RSV or overexpression of SIRT1 can exert neuroprotective effects partly by inhibiting p53 acetylation in NMDA-induced neurotoxicity.