Small-scale convection in a plume-fed low-viscosity layer beneath a moving plate

Two-dimensional simulations using a thermomechanical model based on a finite-difference method on a staggered grid and a marker in cell method are performed to study the plume-lithosphere interaction beneath moving plates. The plate and the convective mantle are modelled as a homogeneous peridotite with a Newtonian temperature- and pressure-dependent viscosity. A constant velocity, ranging from 5 to 12.5 cm yr−1, is imposed at the top of the plate. Plumes are generated by imposing a thermal anomaly of 150 to 350 K on a 50 km wide domain at the base of the model (700 km depth); the plate atop this thermal anomaly is 40 Myr old. We analyse (1) the kinematics of the plume as it impacts the moving plate, (2) the dynamics of time-dependent small-scale convection (SSC) instabilities developing in the low-viscosity layer formed by spreading of hot plume material at the base of the lithosphere and (3) the resulting thermal rejuvenation of the lithosphere. The spreading of the plume material at the base of the lithosphere, characterized by the ratio between the maximum down- and upstream horizontal (dimensionless) velocities in the plume-fed sublithospheric layer, Peup/Pedown depends on the ratio between the maximum plume upwelling velocity and the plate velocity, Peplume/Peplate. For fast plate velocities and sluggish plumes (low Peplume/Peplate), plate motion drags most plume material and downstream flow is dominant. As Peplume/Peplate increases, an increasing part of the plume material flows upstream. SSC systematically develops in the plume-fed sublithospheric layer, downstream from the plume. Onset time of SSC decreases with the Rayleigh number. For vigorous plumes, it does not depend on plate velocity. For more sluggish plumes, however, variations in the plume spreading behaviour at the base of the lithosphere result in a decrease in the onset time of SSCs with increasing plate velocity. In any case, SSC results in uplift of the isotherm 1573 K by up to 20 km relative to its initial equilibrium depth at the impact poin

The Cook's instability : coiling of a thread of honey

We combine analytical, numerical, and experimental approaches to study the dynamics of the ``liquid rope coiling" that occurs when a thin stream of viscous fluid like honey falls onto a surface. As the fall height increases, coiling traverses a sequence of four dynamical regimes (viscous, gravitational, inertio-gravitational, and inertial) characterized by different balances of the forces acting on the rope. The inertio-gravitational regime is particularly rich, exhibiting multiple states that correspond to resonant modes of the rope's ``tail''

Liquid ropes: a geometrical model for thin viscous jet instabilities.

Thin, viscous fluid threads falling onto a moving belt behave in a way reminiscent of a sewing machine, generating a rich variety of periodic stitchlike patterns including meanders, W patterns, alternating loops, and translated coiling. These patterns form to accommodate the difference between the belt speed and the terminal velocity at which the falling thread strikes the belt. Using direct numerical simulations, we show that inertia is not required to produce the aforementioned patterns. We introduce a quasistatic geometrical model which captures the patterns, consisting of three coupled ordinary differential equations for the radial deflection, the orientation, and the curvature of the path of the thread's contact point with the belt. The geometrical model reproduces well the observed patterns and the order in which they appear as a function of the belt speed.P.-T. B. was partially funded by the ERC Grant No. SIMCOMICS 280117.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from APS via http://dx.doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.114.17450

An analytical finite-strain parametrization for texture evolution in deforming olivine polycrystals

Progressive deformation of upper mantle rocks via dislocation creep causes their constituent crystals to take on a non-random orientation distribution (crystal preferred orientation or CPO). The resulting anisotropy of the rock's elastic properties can be observed by seismic techniques, and provides a means to constrain mantle convective flow patterns. Existing methods for calculating the evolution of CPO in deforming olivine-dominated rocks rely on unwieldy discrete representations of the crystal orientation distribution in terms of a large number (103-104) of individual grains. Here we propose a more efficient method in which CPO is represented using three continuous analytical functions (structured basis functions or SBFs), each of which represents a virtual CPO produced by the action of just one of the three dominant slip systems of olivine. The SBFs are then combined using an appropriate weighting scheme to represent a realistic CPO that results from the simultaneous activity of all three slip systems. We assume that olivine CPO is a unique function of the finite strain experienced by the aggregate, which implies that the weights of the SBFs depend only on the two ratios of the lengths of the axes of the finite strain ellipsoid (FSE) and the two ratios of the strengths (critical resolved shear stresses) of the slip systems. Our preferred set of weighting coefficients is obtained by least-squares fitting of the SBF expansion to the predictions of a kinematic model (solved by the method of characteristics) in which the amplitudes of the crystallographic spins do not increase with strain. Calculation of CPO using this model is ≈107 times faster than full homogenization approaches such as the second-order self-consistent model, and the result fits the characteristics-based solution with a variance reduction ≥ 88.6 per cent for equivalent strains up to 0.9. Finally, we propose a simple modification of the FSE that prevents the CPO from becoming singular at large strains

Analytical Parametrization of Self-Consistent Polycrystal Mechanics: Fast Calculation of Upper Mantle Anisotropy

Progressive deformation of upper mantle rocks via dislocation creep causes their constituent crystals to take on a non-random orientation distribution (crystallographic preferred orientation or CPO) whose observable signatures include shear-wave splitting and azimuthal dependence of surface wave speeds. Comparison of these signatures with mantle flow models thus allows mantle dynamics to be unraveled on global and regional scales. However, existing self-consistent models of CPO evolution are computationally expensive when used in 3-D and/or time-dependent convection models. Here we propose a new method, called ANPAR, which is based on an analytical parameterisation of the crystallographic spin predicted by the second-order (SO) self-consistent theory. Our parameterisation runs approximately 2-6x10^4 times faster than the SO model and fits its predictions for CPO and crystallographic spin with a variance reduction > 99%. We illustrate the ANPAR model predictions for the deformation of olivine with three dominant slip systems, (010)[100], (001)[100] and (010)[001], for three uniform deformations (uniaxial compression, pure shear, simple shear) and for a corner-flow model of a spreading mid-ocean ridge

The meandering instability of a viscous thread

A viscous thread falling from a nozzle onto a surface exhibits the famous rope-coiling effect, in which the thread buckles to form loops. If the surface is replaced by a belt moving with speed $U$, the rotational symmetry of the buckling instability is broken and a wealth of interesting states are observed [See S. Chiu-Webster and J. R. Lister, J. Fluid Mech., {\bf 569}, 89 (2006)]. We experimentally studied this "fluid mechanical sewing machine" in a new, more precise apparatus. As $U$ is reduced, the steady catenary thread bifurcates into a meandering state in which the thread displacements are only transverse to the motion of the belt. We measured the amplitude and frequency $\omega$ of the meandering close to the bifurcation. For smaller $U$, single-frequency meandering bifurcates to a two-frequency "figure eight" state, which contains a significant $2\omega$ component and parallel as well as transverse displacements. This eventually reverts to single-frequency coiling at still smaller $U$. More complex, highly hysteretic states with additional frequencies are observed for larger nozzle heights. We propose to understand this zoology in terms of the generic amplitude equations appropriate for resonant interactions between two oscillatory modes with frequencies $\omega$ and $2\omega$. The form of the amplitude equations captures both the axisymmetry of the U=0 coiling state and the symmetry-breaking effects induced by the moving belt.Comment: 12 pages, 9 figures, revised, resubmitted to Physical Review

CSF1R inhibitor JNJ-40346527 attenuates microglial proliferation and neurodegeneration in P301S mice

Neuroinflammation and microglial activation are significant processes in Alzheimer’s disease pathology. Recent genome-wide association studies have highlighted multiple immune-related genes in association with Alzheimer’s disease, and experimental data have demonstrated microglial proliferation as a significant component of the neuropathology. In this study, we tested the efficacy of the selective CSF1R inhibitor JNJ-40346527 (JNJ-527) in the P301S mouse tauopathy model. We first demonstrated the anti-proliferative effects of JNJ-527 on microglia in the ME7 prion model, and its impact on the inflammatory profile, and provided potential CNS biomarkers for clinical investigation with the compound, including pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamics and efficacy assessment by TSPO autoradiography and CSF proteomics. Then, we showed for the first time that blockade of microglial proliferation and modification of microglial phenotype leads to an attenuation of tau-induced neurodegeneration and results in functional improvement in P301S mice. Overall, this work strongly supports the potential for inhibition of CSF1R as a target for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease and other tau-mediated neurodegenerative diseases

Inflammatory biomarkers in Alzheimer's disease plasma

Introduction:Plasma biomarkers for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) diagnosis/stratification are a“Holy Grail” of AD research and intensively sought; however, there are no well-established plasmamarkers.Methods:A hypothesis-led plasma biomarker search was conducted in the context of internationalmulticenter studies. The discovery phase measured 53 inflammatory proteins in elderly control (CTL;259), mild cognitive impairment (MCI; 199), and AD (262) subjects from AddNeuroMed.Results:Ten analytes showed significant intergroup differences. Logistic regression identified five(FB, FH, sCR1, MCP-1, eotaxin-1) that, age/APOε4 adjusted, optimally differentiated AD andCTL (AUC: 0.79), and three (sCR1, MCP-1, eotaxin-1) that optimally differentiated AD and MCI(AUC: 0.74). These models replicated in an independent cohort (EMIF; AUC 0.81 and 0.67). Twoanalytes (FB, FH) plus age predicted MCI progression to AD (AUC: 0.71).Discussion:Plasma markers of inflammation and complement dysregulation support diagnosis andoutcome prediction in AD and MCI. Further replication is needed before clinical translatio