Predictors of Response and Remission to Antidepressants in Geriatric Depression: A Systematic Review.

BACKGROUND: Geriatric depression is a heterogeneous disorder that increases morbidity and mortality in a population that is already vulnerable. Predicting response and remission to antidepressants could help clinicians to optimize the management of antidepressants and reduce the consequences of depression. METHOD: The aim of this article is to present results of a systematic review of the literature on predictive factors related to antidepressant response and remission in older adults with depression. MAIN FINDINGS: We identified sociodemographic, clinical, neuropsychological, neuroimaging, and genetic factors that could be potential predictors of outcomes. Inconsistent findings and methodological differences among studies, however, limit the generalizability and application of these predictors in clinical practice. The results of our review confirm that geriatric depression includes many subgroups of patients with particular endophenotypes that may influence the course of depression. CONCLUSION: Further studies are needed to characterize depression subgroups in order to better understand the pathophysiology of late life depression and to find specific predictors for each group of patients.

A fancy eco-compatible wastewater treatment system: Green Bio-sorption Reactor.

A novel concept was proposed and preliminarily investigated by embedding alum sludge-based constructed wetland into conventional activated sludge system in terms of Green Bio-sorption Reactor (GBR). This novel GBR inherited the aesthetic value of constructed wetland and owned the robust phosphorus (P) adsorption along with the benefit of carriers' addition (dewatered alum sludge). The preliminary demonstration was conducted in a lab-scale sequencing batch reactor (SBR) system without biological phosphorus removal process. The novel process achieved averagely 96%, 99% and 90% for BOD, TP and TN removal with piggery wastewater as influent, demonstrating for the first time of its promising performance. Moreover, the coexistence of biofilm and suspended sludge also achieved 55-88% simultaneous nitrification and denitrification efficiency, higher than biofilm only. Overall, alum sludge-based GBR could achieve reliable pollutants removal and provides a novel and sustainable pathway to upgrade conventional activated sludge system.

Embedding constructed wetland in sequencing batch reactor for enhancing nutrients removal: A comparative evaluation.

In the present study, a novel green bio-sorption reactor (GBR) was firstly proposed and preliminarily investigated by embedding constructed wetland (CW) into the aeration tank of the conventional activated sludge (CAS). This integrated novel system owns the striking features of adding carriers of wetland substrate (i.e. the dewatered alum sludge in this case) in CAS for robust phosphorus adsorption and enriching the biomass. Meanwhile, the "green" feature of this GBR imparted aesthetic value of CW to the CAS system. The preliminary 3-month trial of GBR based on a sequencing batch reactor (GB-SBR) with diluted piggery wastewater demonstrated an average removal of 96%, 99% and 90% for BOD, TP and TN, respectively. The comparison with moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) and integrated fixed-film activated sludge (IFAS) reflected the advantages of GBR over purification performance, aesthetic value and potential carbon sink. Moreover, the carriers used in the GBR are dewatered alum sludge which is in line with the policy of "recycle, reuse and reduce". Overall, this GBR undoubtedly offered a more sustainable and economical solution for retrofitting the aging CAS.