Investigation of CSF biomarkers in Hydrocephalus

Hydrocephalus is a devastating condition which arises as a result of either overproduction or too slow drainage of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) within the brain. The increased fluid volume increases the pressure on the brain tissue resulting in various symptoms like severe headache, incontinence, cognitive disturbance and motor symptoms.

The Copenhagen CSF Study Group has in collaboration with Nanna MacAulay’s group at the Department of Neuroscience, University of Copenhagen, received a large grant from the Novo Nordisk Foundation which will support research in fluid dynamics in the brain.

Part of this collaboration will focus on CSF production and regulation with the aim of discovering pharmaceutical targets for patients with hydrocephalus.

Nina Rostgaard will study CSF from patients with hydrocephalus with different etiologies and assess whether the levels of inflammatory markers, water transport molecules and neurotransmitters changes over time. Further, she will assess whether there are differences in the protein content between lumbar and ventricular CSF.

Nina Rostgaard graduated in 2013 from University of Copenhagen as a Human Biologist and continued as a PhD student at the Danish Dementia Research Centre. Her research areas include biomarkers and molecular pathways studied in CSF and fibroblasts from individuals with familial dementia.