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Introduction Parkinson’s disease (PD) patients in chronic levodopa treatment may experience motor and non-motor fluctuations, which may affect their quality of life. Safinamide is a new monoamine oxidase B inhibitor, also exerting a non-dopaminergic effect, recently approved as add-on therapy in fluctuating PD patients. Methods We performed a longitudinal prospective study in a cohort of 20 fluctuating PD patients, to test whether safinamide 50 mg may improve non-motor, cognitive, and behavioral symptoms over a 6-month treatment period. At each timepoint, clinical features were assessed by means of validated PD-specific scales. Neuropsychological assessment was performed by exploring all five cognitive domains. Results Compared to baseline, significant improvement was found in PD patients at 6-month follow-up in items investigating interest (p = 0.02), motivation (p = 0.02), and urinary disturbances (p = 0.03). Moreover, neuropsychiatric assessment showed a significant decrease in fatigue and apathy scores (p = 0.02 and p = 0.01, respectively). Motor assessment revealed a significant reduction in the total wake-up time spent in OFF state (p = 0.01). Follow-up neuropsychological evaluation did not reveal any change compared to baseline. Conclusions Our data reveal that, along with motor fluctuation improvement, treatment with safinamide 50 mg may significantly decrease non-motor symptom burden in PD patients. Interestingly, non-dopaminergic mechanisms, such as glutamatergic overdrive, have been demonstrated to play a role in many pathways underlying these symptoms. Thus, we hypothesize that the neurotransmitter receptor-binding profile of safinamide may explain our findings.

Paleomagnetic data are used in different data formats, adapted to data output of a variety of devices and specific analysis software. This includes widely used openly available software, e.g. PMag.py/MagIC, AGICO/.jr6 & .ged, and PuffinPlot/.ppl. Besides these, individual software and data formats have been established by individual laboratories.Here we compare different data formats, identify similarities and create a common and interchangeable data basis. We introduce the idea of a paleomagnetic object (pmob), a simple data table that can include any and all data that would be relevant to the user. We propose a basic nomenclature of abbreviations for the most common paleomagnetic data to merge different data formats. For this purpose, we introduce a set of automatization routines for paleomagnetic data conversion. Our routines bring several data formats into a common data format (pmob), and also allow reversion into selected formats. We propose creating similar routines for all existing paleomagnetic data formats; our suite of computation tools will provide the basis to facilitate the inclusion of further data formats. Furthermore, automatized data processing allows quality assessment of data.

We present the results of an integrated structural and anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) investigation in calcareous and marly rocks from thrust shear zones. A total of 17 sites from six localities along the frontal and oblique ramp of the Olevano-Antrodoco-Sibillini thrust and back thrust (Northern Apennines, Italy) were studied to investigate both magnetic fabric and structural characteristics of Cretaceous to Neogene calcareous and marly rocks. In most of the sites AMS is controlled by the paramagnetic minerals (prevailingly phyllosilicates), with minor contribution of ferromagnetic (sensu latu) ones. Structural analysis shows the presence of SC- and S-tectonites associated to predominant simple and pure shear, respectively. The combination of density diagrams and cluster analysis allowed discriminating the contributions of sedimentary and tectonic processes to the bulk magnetic fabric. Six different subfabrics were distinguished, related to the structural data and associated to deformation stages and regimes: A. sedimentary fabric; B. intersection lineation; C. magnetic foliation parallel to S planes with k1 parallel to the S/C intersection; D. k1 moving toward the slip vector; E. magnetic foliation parallel either to the S or the C planes, with k1 parallel to the slip vector or the transport direction; F. k1 parallel to extensional planes intersection. The magnetic foliation has a double tendency to parallelize to pressure solution cleavage (S) and shear planes (C), while the magnetic lineation tends to progressively align with the slip vector, except for pure-shear-dominated sites at less than 15–20 cm from the thrust, where it aligns with the transport direction. The magnetic fabric is dominated by simple shear deformation. The protocol applied for AMS analysis shows a great potential to unravel mixed sedimentary and/or tectonic features in magnetic fabrics. AMS can be considered as a useful tool in unravelling the variation of simple-pure shear deformation regime in shear zones.

Background Anxiety symptoms are common in Parkinson's disease (PD). A link between anxiety and cognitive impairment in PD has been demonstrated. Objectives Using resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging, we investigated intrinsic brain network connectivity correlates of anxiety symptoms in a cohort of drug-naive, cognitively unimpaired patients with PD. Methods The intrinsic functional brain connectivity of 25 drug-naive, cognitively unimpaired PD patients with anxiety, 25 without anxiety, and 20 matched healthy controls was compared. All patients underwent a detailed behavioral and neuropsychological evaluation. Anxiety presence and severity were assessed using the Parkinson's Disease Anxiety Scale. Single-subject and group-level independent component analyses were used to investigate functional connectivity differences within and between the major resting-state networks. Results Decreased connectivity within the default-mode and sensorimotor networks (SMN), increased connectivity within the executive-control network (ECN), and divergent connectivity measures within salience and frontoparietal networks (SN and FPN) were detected in PD patients with anxiety compared with those without anxiety. Moreover, patients with anxiety showed a disrupted inter-network connectivity between SN and SMN, ECN, and FPN. Anxiety severity was correlated with functional abnormalities within these networks. Conclusions Our findings demonstrated that an abnormal intrinsic connectivity within and between the most reported large-scale networks may represent a potential neural correlate of anxiety symptoms in drug-naive PD patients even in the absence of clinically relevant cognitive impairment. We hypothesize that these specific cognitive and limbic network architecture changes may represent a potential biomarker of treatment response in clinical trials. © 2020 International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society.

Continental breakup represents the successful process of rifting and thinning of the continental lithosphere, leading to plate rupture and initiation of oceanic crust formation. Magmatism during breakup seems to follow a path of either excessive, transient magmatism (magma-rich margins) or of igneous starvation (magma-poor margins). The latter type is characterized by extreme continental lithospheric extension and mantle exhumation prior to igneous oceanic crust formation. Discovery of magma-poor margins has raised fundamental questions about the onset of ocean-floor type magmatism, and has guided interpretation of seismic data across many rifted margins, including the highly extended northern South China Sea margin. Here we report International Ocean Discovery Program drilling data from the northern South China Sea margin, testing the magma-poor margin model outside the North Atlantic. Contrary to expectations, results show initiation of Mid-Ocean Ridge basalt type magmatism during breakup, with a narrow and rapid transition into igneous oceanic crust. Coring and seismic data suggest that fast lithospheric extension without mantle exhumation generated a margin structure between the two endmembers. Asthenospheric upwelling yielding Mid-Ocean Ridge basalt-type magmatism from normal-temperature mantle during final breakup is interpreted to reflect rapid rifting within thin pre-rift lithosphere.

International audience; A new high-resolution Apparent Polar Wander Path (APWP) segment has been obtained from the magnetostratigraphy of four Kimmeridgian to Lower Aptian sections in the Northern Apennines (Italy). The use of paleomagnetic data for determination of the Adria APWP was hampered by the large local rotations linked to Apennine tectonics, characterized by folds and thrusts developed during the Neogene. To overcome this problem, we have computed relative rotations between time overlapping sections and realigned them in a common declination reference frame (namely the Bosso section). We synthesized a new high-resolution 150 to 125 Ma APWP for Adria, which has a similar shape to the time-equivalent segment of the synthetic APWP of Africa of Besse and Courtillot [J., Besse, V., Courtillot, Apparent and true polar wander and the geometry of the geomagnetic field over the last 200 Myr, J. Geophys. Res. 107(B11) (2002), doi:10.1029/200JB000050]. A 26° clockwise rotation of our combined Adria APWP places it in almost perfect overlap with African data of same age, confirming that the Adria promontory moved coherently with Africa during this time span, whereas the counterclockwise rotation of Adria with respect to Africa was introduced later, most probably during Apennines orogenesis. Finally, we discuss in relation with worldwide plate evolution the peculiar shape of our APWP, which displays a hairpin turn during Berriasian time, and dates the main Late Jurassic/Early Cretaceous change in plate motion at around anomaly M16.

International audience; The magnetic stratigraphy of the Maiolica and Calcari ad Aptici pelagic limestones is documented from four Umbro-Marchean land sections (Italy). The overall biostratigraphic age of the sampled strata encompasses the whole Kimmeridgian-Lower Aptian. The data were gathered from two new sections (Arcevia, Contessa) and by resampling more densely than in the past two additional classical sections (Bosso, Gorgo a Cerbara). A detailed record of the polarity chrons M21n-M14 and M9-M0 was derived, and no difference was observed with respect to the sequence of M polarity chrons inferred from oceanic magnetic anomalies. Barely measurable remanent magnetization from chron M14 to M10n at Contessa concurred with previous evidence from Bosso, indicating that the Maiolica from Umbria-Marche is characterized by a ''recording gap'' during chrons M14n to M11, possibly due to diagenetic magnetite dissolution related to the Late Valanginian carbon isotope event. At Arcevia and Bosso, the boundary between Maiolica and Calcari ad Aptici occurs at the top of chron M19n and in the upper part of chron M20n, respectively, showing that the onset of Maiolica sedimentation may be diachronous by 1.5-2 Myr along the Umbria-Marche domain. Arcevia is the most expanded Mid-Upper Tithonian land section documented so far. Here, the subchrons M20n-1 and M19n-1 are found to represent 3.2% and 10.1% in time of chrons M20n and M19n, respectively. Evidence is also provided for a reversal excursion occurring within the M20n-1 subchron. At Bosso, an excursion and a reversal excursion were found within chrons M16n and M16, respectively.