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Background: Rhinitis is as an inflammation of the nasal mucosa, characterized by high prevalence, widespread morbidity, and a significant financial burden on health care systems. Nevertheless, it is often considered as no more than a mere annoyance. This point of view has progressively led to underestimate and trivialize the disease. Therefore, there are numerous, mostly overlapping classifications of rhinopaties, but clear and standardized guidelines for diagnosis and treatment are still lacking. In the context of Precision Medicine, the development of a classification system focused on the endotypes of rhinitis to be widely adopted appears of utmost importance, also by virtue of study of the nasal immunophlogosis that, thanks to nasal cytology (NC), has recently allowed to better define the different forms of rhinitis, giving a new nosological dignity to several rhinopaties. Aim: We aimed to summarize the current knowledge regarding rhinitis and to propose a systematic classification of rhinitis, based on both etiology and cytological findings [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study was carried out in the zone corresponding to the Anzoa´tegui district (Province of La Pampa, Argentina), covering an area of 1600km2. This zone belongs to the Caldenal or Southern Espinal, an semi-arid region in central Argentina. The annual rainfall is 109/761 mm, but the annual evapo-transpiration is as high as 1220mm, so that the annual runoff is small compared with the annual rainfall. Since shallow ground-water is the principal source of water in the region, the hydrodynamics of the subterranean flow was evaluated and the depth variation of hydrostatic levels in relation to the surface was studied. Water quality was determined by hydrochemical analyses and classified for drinking water for cattle, human consumption and irrigation. It was found to be poor, 60·2% of the study area is affected by saline concentrations exceeds 5·0dSm−1. With respect to the ground-water-quality deterioration, reference was made to land use and management systems in the area, where the main economic activity is the cattle breeding, so that the vegetation has been degraded by overgrazing and deforestation for over 100 years. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: COnstellation of small Satellites for Mediterranean basin Observation (COSMO-SkyMed) is the largest Italian investment in Space Systems for Earth Observation, commissioned and funded by Italian Space Agency (ASI) and Italian Ministry of Defence (MoD). COSMO-SkyMed is a Dual-Use (Civilian and Defence) end-to-end Earth Observation System aimed at establishing a global service supplying provision of data, products and services compliant with well-established international standards and relevant to a wide range of applications, such as Risk Management, Scientific and Commercial Applications and Defence Applications. The system consists of a constellation of four LEO mid-sized satellites, each equipped with a multi-mode high-resolution SAR operating at X-band. Three out of four COSMO-SkyMed satellites have been successfully launched the 8th of June, the 9th of December 2007 and the 25th of October 2008 respectively, while the remaining satellite will be deployed within 2010. COSMO-SkyMed 1 and 2 completed their commissioning phase to test, verify and qualify the overall system and from the 1st of August 2008 both satellites are in the operational phase. The third satellite is still performing its commissioning and it is expected to enter in operation in the second half of 2009. The results of the commissioning phase of COSMO-SkyMed 1 and 2 are presented together with the Scientific Mission Exploitation strategy (i.e. Announcement of Opportunity, Background Mission). [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

The PuÁ¡n district in the southwest of the province of Buenos Aires covers an area of 6,385 km2 (2,465 mi2) and has a population of about 18,000 residing in small urban centers and rural areas where farming is the main economic activity. Owing to the absence of freshwater streams and the low level of rainfall, groundwater provides the principal source of water and is used for human and animal consumption, as well as for the growing network of supplementary irrigation. This paper gives an overview of the district's water resources by reporting on the landscape, surface runoff, and groundwater quality within the framework of six geomorphological environments. Groundwater depth, anion-cation content and principal pollutants are measured in representative samples from each geomorphological unit. Pollutants are divided into those of natural origin (arsenic-boron-fluoride) and those induced by anthropic activity. The results obtained provide a basis for the adequate planning of water management, taking into account the consequences of groundwater exploitation and the implementation of preventive measures where necessary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]