The proposal aims to investigate the distribution of water pools (which strongly differ in dynamical properties) across the brain tissue heterogeneity. For that, we propose a neutron scattering investigation on rat brain tissue samples, submitted to different challenges to modify cell structures and/or volumes, two potential contributors to water diffusion dynamics. In parallel to that, in order to investigate whether the results obtained on brain tissue, which represents a mixture of cell types, are the same as in more simple systems, the same study will be performed on Neuro2a (N2a) cells, a fast-growing mouse neuroblastoma cell line, often used as model for neurons.