Background　Cold-inducible RNA binding protein（CIRP） is one of the cold-shock proteins induced by hypothermia and widely expressed in the brain， Recent studies have shown that CIRP plays an important role in ischemic brain injury.　Objective　To review the roles of CIRP in the brain ischemia and the related research advances.　Content　We briefly introduced the structure of CIRP and its expression distribution in the brain， and then elucidated its roles in brain ischemia.　Trend　The neuroprotective mechanism of CIRP is still unclear， but it provides a new therapeutic strategy for brain ischemia.