PGC-1α, Sirtuins and PARPs in Huntington's Disease and Other Neurodegenerative Conditions: NAD+ to Rule Them All.

In this review, we summarize the available published information on the neuroprotective effects of increasing nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) levels in Huntington's disease models. We discuss the rationale of potential therapeutic benefit of administering nicotinamide riboside (NR), a safe and effective NAD precursor. We discuss the agonistic effect on the Sirtuin1-PGC-1α-PPAR pathway as well as Sirtuin 3, which converge in improving mitochondrial function, decreasing ROS production and ameliorating bioenergetics deficits. Also, we discuss the potential synergistic effect of increasing NAD+ combined with PARPs inhibitors, as a clinical therapeutic option not only in HD, but other neurodegenerative conditions.