A new thermal and rheological model of the European lithosphere

We present a new thermal and rheological model of the European lithosphere (10°W-35°E; 35°N-60°N), which is based on a combination of recently obtained geophysical models. To determine temperature distribution we use a new tomography model, which is principally improved by an a-priori correction of the crustal effect, by using EuCRUST-07, a new digital model of the European crust. The inversion approach is similar to those used in previous studies, but the employment of a more robust tomography model essentially improves the result. The uppermost mantle under western and central Europe is mostly characterized by temperatures in a range of 900°-1100 °C, with the hottest areas corresponding to the basins, which have experienced recent extension (e.g. Tyrrhenian Sea and Pannonian Basin). By contrast, the mantle temperatures under eastern Europe are about 550°-750 °C at the same depth and the minimum values are found in the northeastern part of the study area. The new temperature estimates are used to trace the lithosphere-asthenosphere thermal boundary, as a depth of the isotherm of 1200 °C. The lithospheric thickness is less than 100 km beneath the hottest part of western and central Europe, while the maximum values are observed beneath the East European Platform (200-230 km), the Alps and the Dinarides-Hellenic Arc (150-180 km). EuCRUST-07 and the new thermal model are used to calculate the strength distribution within the European lithosphere. Differently from previous estimates, the new model adopts lateral variations of lithology and density, which are derived from the crustal model. According to these estimates, in western and central Europe the lithosphere is more heterogeneous than in eastern Europe, the latter being generally characterized by higher strength values. These strength variations are also in a good agreement with other geophysical characteristics of the lithosphere such as residual mantle gravity anomalies. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Copy number variation in obsessive-compulsive disorder and tourette syndrome: A cross-disorder study

Objective Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and Tourette syndrome (TS) are heritable neurodevelopmental disorders with a partially shared genetic etiology. This study represents the first genome-wide investigation of large (>500 kb), rare (<1%) copy number variants (CNVs) in OCD and the largest genome-wide CNV analysis in TS to date. Method The primary analyses used a cross-disorder design for 2,699 case patients (1,613 ascertained for OCD, 1,086 ascertained for TS) and 1,789 controls. Parental data facilitated a de novo analysis in 348 OCD trios. Results Although no global CNV burden was detected in the cross-disorder analysis or in secondary, disease-specific analyses, there was a 3.3-fold increased burden of large deletions previously associated with other neurodevelopmental disorders (p =.09). Half of these neurodevelopmental deletions were located in a single locus, 16p13.11 (5 case patient deletions: 0 control deletions, p =.08 in the current study, p =.025 compared to published controls). Three 16p13.11 deletions were confirmed de novo, providing further support for the etiological significance of this region. The overall OCD de novo rate was 1.4%, which is intermediate between published rates in controls (0.7%) and in individuals with autism or schizophrenia (2-4%). Conclusion Several converging lines of evidence implicate 16p13.11 deletions in OCD, with weaker evidence for a role in TS. The trend toward increased overall neurodevelopmental CNV burden in TS and OCD suggests that deletions previously associated with other neurodevelopmental disorders may also contribute to these phenotypes