Fracture network intensity, topology and connectivity have been frequently analysed using circular scan windows, an efficient method for geometrical properties characterization, although affected by truncation and censoring. Many studies that use circular scans focus on the spatial variation of the geometrical properties in relation to tectonic structures such as faults and folds, and at the regional scale. A lower amount of information is available in the literature on the relations between depositional features, mechanical and petrophysical properties of facies, and the corresponding fracture network geometrical attributes. In this contribution, we focus on these relationships, which are fundamental controlling factors for predicting fracture geometry in the subsurface and for improving modelling in exploration, production and management of reservoirs for fluid exploitation and storage. We characterized these properties in 35 selected turbidite beds of the Marnoso-arenacea Fm., in the Northern Apennines of Italy, exposed along a 250 m-thick section. Moreover, we calculate the fractal dimensions of fracture networks through the box-counting method. Our data indicate that depositional facies control porosity and uniaxial compressive strength, as well as fracture intensity and fracture network topology. We show that fracture intensity is invariant and unrelated to the sandstone facies thickness in medium-grained turbidite beds. On the other hand, a strong control on fracture intensity in fine-grained turbidite beds is also exerted by the thickness of bounding claystone, which is higher when the bounding claystone is thicker. Moreover, we observe that the cross joint pattern and strike could be influenced by the depositional structures.

In -situ shattered rocks are often associated with seismogenic fault zones, but their mechanism of formation is still matter of debate, partly because of the limited number of field studies. Here we describe the characteristics of insitu shattered rocks distribution along the NW -SE -striking seismogenic Monte Marine Fault (MMF) in the Italian Central Apennines. In the studied area, the MMF cuts through Mesozoic carbonates, is exhumed from <3 km depth and consists of two >5 km -long major hard -linked segments with normal kinematics. The linkage between the two fault segments occurs along a similar to 2 km -long step -over zone with E -W trending faults and oblique -slip kinematics. To the northwest, fault -related shear deformation is localized in a similar to 5 m -thick cataclastic fault core and off -fault deformation is dominated by in -situ shattered rocks up to similar to 40 m -thick. Instead, in the step -over zone to the southeast, the in -situ shattered rocks are up to -500 m thick, particularly where MMF crosscuts older low -angle thrust faults. We integrated detailed field structural surveys with microstructural and grain size distribution analyses of the fault rocks to assess the mechanism of (1) formation of in -situ shattered rocks and, (2) progressive localization of shear deformation along the MMF. The obtained results, after the viability of several formation mechanisms (mechanical models) have been reviewed, support the hypothesis that the formation of in -situ shattered rocks was associated with the propagation of (multiple) seismic ruptures (mainshocks and aftershock sequences) within a mechanically heterogeneous fault zone. Heterogeneity is due to the occurrence of preexisting damage related to previous earthquakes, but also inherited from the older low -angle thrust faults. Therefore, we suggest that the origin of these shattered rocks is more compatible with seismic related processes than only with quasi -static fault growth models. On the other hand, the cataclastic fault core derived from the progressive accommodation of shear deformation within the in -situ shattered rock volumes during several seismic cycles. We conclude that the large volumes of in -situ shattered rocks are the result of seismic -related dissipative processes in a geometrically and mechanically heterogeneous fault zone. In this scenario, large volumes of in -situ shattered rocks are compliant low velocity zones which can influence the propagation of earthquake ruptures.

Focusing on the late Miocene succession stratigraphic successions including the evaporite deposits from the Messinian salinity crisis (MSC) of the Adriatic foreland basin, a revision of available boreholes and seismic data allowed us to recognize the presence of reservoirs and seals systems that can be considered of potential interest for the storage of natural and synthetic gas. Potentially good reservoir sites can be found where porous rocks referable to siliciclastic turbiditites (Marnoso-arenacea and Laga Fms) or shallow-water carbonates (Bolognano Fm) preferentially involved in anticlinal structures and covered by thick MSC evaporites, which may represent effective reservoir seals. The integrated reconstruction of porous rocks distribution and facies, thickness, and lateral continuity of the overlying evaporites, allows the identification and zonation of geological settings in the Adriatic foredeep, backbulge and foreland with peculiar stratigraphy and deformations, only partially considered before, that may deserve consideration in the research of potential gas storage sites. A thick and continuous Messinian unit of primary sulfate evaporites recognized in the Adriatic foredeep represent an effective seal for potential gas storage sites that can be located in the underlying late Miocene carbonate or siliciclastic porous units.image

Contractional deformation structures at the front of transpressional orogens display complex three‐dimensional geometries deviating from the interpretative templates commonly applied in thrust belts. Accordingly, detailed constraints on deformation patterns and associated paleofluid circulation are desirable, especially for fracture geometry and permeability predictive purposes. The Pag anticline, which is located in the Dinaric fold and thrust belt, provides an appropriate field site for studying fold‐ and fault‐related deformation structures in a transpressive setting. We performed a multiscale structural analysis together with petrographic and stable isotope characterization of the deformation‐related calcite cements. Structural mapping suggests that the Pag anticline is a detachment fold developed mainly by buckling, since large‐scale thrust faults are absent. Fold tightening in a transpressive setting produced a complex deformational structure including two sets of N‐S right‐lateral and E‐W left‐lateral late‐stage strike‐slip fault sets trending oblique to the NW‐SE fold axis. The pre‐folding deformation pattern includes incipient normal faults likely related to the forebulge stage, veins and stylolites coherent with NE‐SW layer parallel shortening contraction in a strike‐slip regime, and metric to decametric scale conjugate thrusts coherent with layer parallel shortening in a compressive regime. Buckle folding preceded propagation of a series of accommodation structures during fold tightening. Petrographic and isotopic data indicate meteoric alteration of the Cretaceous platform carbonates in the prefolding stage, likely due to forebulge subaerial exposure. Layer parallel shortening and early syn‐folding veins involved formational fluids resulting from mixed marine and meteoric fluids during folding at shallow burial conditions. Eventually, meteoric fluid infiltrated again along strike‐slip faults, acting as cross‐formational conduits in the postfolding stage.

In carbonates, fault zone architecture, distribution of different types of fault rocks in fault cores (e.g., breccias, cataclasites), and the interplay between deformation and diagenesis must be considered to predict the flow properties of a fault zone. We present the results of an integrated structural and petrophysical study of two carbonate outcrops in central Italy, where faults are known to act as dynamic seals at depth, causing ≈70 m of hydraulic head drop in a karstified groundwater reservoir. The architecture of these fault zones is very well exposed, allowing for detailed mapping of the along-strike and across-strike distribution and continuity of fault cores and associated fault rocks over a distance of ≈8 km. More than 150 samples, comprising several fault architectural elements and carbonate host rocks, were collected in transects orthogonal to the fault zones. Fault rock porosity and permeability were measured on 1-inch plugs and then linked to characteristic microstructures and fault rock textures. The results of this integration consisted of ranges of porosity and permeability for each type of fault rock. A trend of increasing comminution and decreasing pore size is evident from the outer toward the inner portions of fault cores. Three types of breccias (crackle, mosaic, and chaotic) and various types of cataclasites were identified. Crackle breccias show the highest plug permeabilities (up to hundredss of mD), whereas the ultracataclasites have the lowest plug permeability (down to 0.01 mD, which is roughly equivalent to unfractured host rock). These data reveal the interplay between various fault rocks and host rock permeability and the development of permeability anisotropy of fault zones in carbonates.

Introduction Major depression affects 1.5%-19% general population. High use of healthcare services and increase in morbidity and mortality are common consequences. Despite of appropriate pharmacological treatment, 30-40% of patients don't achieve significant improvement. TRD refers to no remission after two adequate trials of antidepressants: these patients qualify for ECT. Objectives Our Mood Disorder Unit treats about 600 patients/year, 4% undergo ECT for TRD. Aim Ongoing, retrospective, observational study on 73 TRD patients treated with ECT 2/week, considering acute and late responsiveness 1 and 12 months later. Methods Sample of 52 (71.22%) patients with Recurrent Major Depression and 21 (28.78%) with Bipolar Disorder, collecting epidemiological and clinical data. Clinical course assessment through weekly Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD); follow-up evaluation after 12 months, with telephone interviews. Results 73 inpatients, 26(35.62%) males, 47(64.38%) females with 4.31±3.43 previous episodes; mean age 59.42±11.60 years. Average duration of reference episode 52.71±39.42 weeks with HRSD initial score 30.16±4.76. Each patient was treated with 6.92±2.90 ECT applications. 64(87.67%) patients responded to treatment (50% reduction of HRSD initial score), 33(45.21%) achieved remission (HRSD≤8); 18(24.66%) patients maintained 12-months remission. Conclusion Our experience strengthens pivotal role of ECT in TRD. Each patient had long-lasting, severe episode under 1 year-long unsuccessful pharmacological therapy. ECT managed to quickly ameliorate their clinical course. We didn't record any adverse event. ECT showed similar relapse rates compared to conventional pharmacological treatment. This procedure requires further studies about long-term outcome.

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) has significant short-term antidepressant effects on drug-resistant patients with severe major depression. Animal studies have demonstrated that electroconvulsive seizures produce potentiation-like synaptic remodeling in both sub-cortical and frontal cortical circuits. However, the electrophysiological effects of ECT in the human brain are not known. In this work, we evaluated whether ECT induces a measurable change in the excitability of frontal cortical circuits in humans. Electroencephalographic (EEG) potentials evoked by transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) were collected before and after a course of ECT in eight patients with severe major depression. Cortical excitability was measured from the early and local EEG response to TMS. Clinical assessment confirmed the beneficial effects of ECT on depressive symptoms at the group level. TMS/EEG measurements revealed a clear-cut increase of frontal cortical excitability after ECT as compared to baseline, that was significant in each and every patient. The present findings corroborate in humans the idea that ECT may produce synaptic potentiation, as previously observed in animal studies. Moreover, results suggest that TMS/EEG may be employed in depressed patients to monitor longitudinally the electrophysiological effects of different therapeutic neuromodulators, e.g. ECT, repetitive TMS, and sleep deprivation. To the extent that depression involves an alteration of frontal cortical excitability, these measurements may be used to guide and evaluate treatment progression over time at the single-patient level.

Universidade Estadual Paulista Julio de Mesquita Filho, Departamento de Pediatria, Faculdade de Medicina de Botucatu, Botucatu, Campus de Botucatu, Rubiao Junior, CEP 18618-970, SP, Brasil

Background: Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) is an effective technique in the treatment of depression, specifically in drug‐resistant patients. However, there is little data available on the influence of genetic variables on TMS response. Methods: We analyzed the role of three genetic polymorphisms that affected the antidepressant response: serotonin transporter promoter region (SERTPR) polymorphism, 5‐HT1A serotonergic receptor promoter region polymorphism (rs6295), and the coding region of COMT gene polymorphism (rs4680). Ninety patients with a major depressive drug‐resistant episode due to a Major Depressive Disorder or to a Bipolar Disorder were included in our study. Patients underwent high frequency TMS, focused on the left prefrontal cortex, for 2 weeks. At study completion, the response rate was 45.5%. Effects of gene polymorphisms on clinical improvement were analyzed with an analysis of variance with each gene (SERTPR, 5‐HT1A, and COMT) as factors and the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression variation from baseline to the end of the treatment as a dependent variable. Results: We found a significant model in which three factors were not significant (diagnosis, COMT, and SERTPR), whereas factor 5‐HT1A showed a significant influence on the outcome, with patients with C/C genotype showing a greater improvement than G/G and C/G and no difference between G/G and C/G. Conclusion: According to our data, 5‐HT1A polymorphism may play a role in influencing TMS response. The effect of COMT and SERTPR did not reach statistical significance. The analysis of these and other candidate genes in larger samples could help explain genetic influence on TMS response. Depression and Anxiety, 2011. © 2011 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

Background: We have investigated the efficacy of high-frequency left (HFL) versus low-frequency right (LFR) repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) in depression, focusing on specific symptoms as possible predictors of outcome for these two different types of stimulation. Method: Seventy-four outpatients with a major depressive episode treated with an adequate antidepressant dosage for at least 4 weeks were included in our study and randomly assigned to two different groups: HFL or LFR rTMS. The Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HAM-D) items were pooled into 6 factors to evaluate specific symptoms as possible predictors of response. Results: Twenty-one out of 32 patients (65.6%) and 24 out of 42 patients (57.1%) were responders in the HFL and LFR groups, respectively. No significant difference in response rate was observed. Considering the whole sample, we found an inverse correlation between activity and HAM-D score reduction and a significant positive relation between somatic anxiety and outcome. An inverse correlation between psychic anxiety and HAM-D score reduction emerged considering the HFL group. In the LFR group, there was a significant negative relationship between baseline activity and the outcome. Conclusion: These findings support the hypothesis that LFR rTMS could be as effective as HFL rTMS and more suitable for patients with a higher anxiety degree, particularly in bipolar patients.

Lucca, Adelio MD; Rossini, David MD; Malaguti, Alessia MD; Zanardi, Raffaella MD; Magri, Lorenzo PsyD; Smeraldi, Enrico MD Author Information

BACKGROUND:The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) plays a major role in the pathophysiology of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD); functional neuroimaging studies indicate that OCD symptoms are associated with increased activity in the OFC, caudate nucleus, thalamus, and anterior cingulate gyrus. The goal of our single-blind study was to assess whether repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) over the left OFC would influence OCD symptoms in drug-resistant patients.METHOD:Twenty-three consecutively admitted right-handed inpatients with DSM-IV-TR-diagnosed drug-resistant OCD were given rTMS (80% motor threshold, 1 Hz seconds per minute for 10 minutes every day for 15 days) to the left OFC parallel (active: n = 16) or perpendicular (sham: n = 7) to the scalp. The patients' OCD symptoms, mood, and anxiety were rated at baseline, at the end of treatment, and once every 2 weeks for 3 months after treatment. Data were gathered from June 2006 to November 2007.RESULTS:Considering changes in Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (YBOCS) scores with 2-way analysis of variance for repeated measures for a total of 8 observations (before rTMS, after treatment, and every 2 weeks for 12 weeks' follow-up), we found significant reduction of YBOCS scores comparing active versus sham treatment for 10 weeks after the end of rTMS (P < .02), with loss of significance after 12 weeks (P < .06). We also found a reduction of anxiety and depression symptoms but not a significant difference in the 2 groups.CONCLUSIONS:Low-frequency rTMS of the left OFC produced significant but time-limited improvement in OCD patients compared to sham treatment.

The radiopharmaceutical [153Sm]Sm-EDTMP is administered for painful bone metastases with the standard dosage of 37 MBq/kg, without evaluation of patient individual characteristics. For a better dose estimate in vivo stability should be considered, because labelled and unlabelled samarium do not have the same metabolic pathway. We evaluated radiopharmaceutical in vitro stability, measuring the activity by beta and gamma spectrometry. Subsequently we verified in vivo stability on serial blood and urine samples. The percentage of the unlabelled radiopharmaceutical is high and, on the basis of radiochemical data as well as blood clearance and urine excretion, we calculated the main parameters for a preliminary biokinetic model.

transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is recently receiving a renewed interest as a tool for the treatment of major depressive episodes. The aim of this study is to test the potential of tDCS as add-on therapy in drug-resistant depressed patients.

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) has been extensively studied as a treatment for Major Depression. However, no data are available about the role of genetic variables on the response to this treatment. We analysed the role of two polymorphisms that influence the response to antidepressants: the polymorphisms of the serotonin transporter promoter region (SERTPR) and of the 5-HT1A serotonergic receptor promoter region (-1019C/G). Ninety-nine patients from two double-blind, randomised, sham-controlled TMS trials were enrolled. There was a significant influence (p=0.016) of the SERTPR polymorphism on treatment outcome, without differences between active and sham stimulation. Conversely, there was a significant (p=0.014) interaction between 5-HT1A genotype and type of stimulation: C/C patients showed a higher difference between active and sham stimulation, indicating that these patients benefited more by TMS than C/G and G/G subjects. Our sample has not the power to control for the possible influence of different medications on these results.