Neurodegenerative diseases are characterized by the accumulation of toxic molecules, often in the form of proteinaceous waste. The cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), which is mainly produced at night, has a great capacity to dispose of these toxic waste products from the brain. However, many aspects of the diurnal CSF variation in disease, dietary modulators of CSF, and the significance of CSF dynamics for disease progression are poorly characterized.

In this project, we will investigate CSF production volume and flow rate in the context of Alzheimer's disease (AD). We will recruit participants from several, including: AD patients, the patient with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), elderly controls, and young controls. All participants will undergo a non-invasive phase contrast MRI in a state-of-the-art 7T MRI system to measure CSF production volume and flow rate. Furthermore, using different modalities of MRI scans, we wish to evaluate how these parameters are affected by the consumption of commonly used dietary products such as alcohol and caffeine, which have been shown to induce CSF movement in the brain. Finally, we want to determine whether there is a correlation between CSF production and cognitive abilities, and we will specifically investigate whether low CSF production is predictive of poorer prognosis.