ATP-binding cassette transporters A1(ABCA1) is expressed widely in the brain tissues. It transports intracellular cholesterol to apolipoprotein E(apoE) and apolipoprotein A1(apoA-Ⅰ) to form high-density lipoprotein, thus regulates the balance of brain cholesterol. Research has shown, there is a close relationship between ABCA1 and brain diseases about cholesterol metabolism, including Alzheimer's disease(AD), traumatic brain injury(TBI) and Cerebral infarction. Recently, there are some research progresses about ABCA1 and brain disease, but there are still many problems that has not been clarified. In this paper, the effects of ABCA1 in various related brain diseases are introduced, in order to look for a new target and method for the related brain diseases.