Variability In Pollen Concentrations Research Articles

Five-year airborne pollen calendar for a Sonoran Desert city and the relationships with meteorological variability.

Aerobiological studies are still scarce in northwestern Mexico where allergenic pollen have great impacts on health. Current global pollution and climate change problems are closely related to many allergic diseases, enhancing the need to continue researching these issues and improve life quality. This study provides the first Pollen Calendar for Hermosillo, Sonora, México. Airborne pollen were continuously collected for 5years (2015-2019). The standardized methodology with a Hirst-type spore trap proposed for global aerobiological studies was used. Weather data were also taken from a station located in the city and used to explore correlations between climate and airborne pollen concentrations in different seasons. The most important pollen taxa recorded in air belongs to herbaceous pollen, such as Poaceae, Ambrosia, Asteraceae, Chenopodiaceae-Amaranthaceae, and some shrub trees typical of this arid region, such as Nyctaginaceae, Prosopis, Parkinsonia, and Fabaceae. The most critical herbaceous pollen related to allergies have a long mean pollen season throughout the years, and the most critical periods with high pollen concentration in air occur in two seasons, spring (March-April) and summer-fall (August-October). In these 5years, the correlation analyses for these two peaks indicate that a link exists between pollen in the air and decreases in precipitation and temperatures, and an increase in relative humidity. An inter-annual variability in pollen concentrations was recorded related to different weather conditions. Although pollen calendars are location-specific, they are useful for future research on biological air quality scenarios in different cities. Using this standardized method for other regions can provide pollen calendars that have been proven clinically important in allergic disease management worldwide.

Assessment of palynological spectrum of air in Kazan

This article presents the results of a palynological air monitoring study in Kazan during the period of plant dusting from 2019 to 2022. The aeropalynological spectrum was assessed using a Lanzoni pollen trap. The data obtained during the monitoring demonstrates a rich spore-pollen composition in the air. Twenty-five different plant taxa, as well as two fungal taxa, were identified. Betula and Poaceae have been identified as dominant taxa. The variability in pollen concentrations confirms the need for timely information for the pollen-sensitive population.

Erratum: Allergenic Pollen Calendar in Korea Based on Probability Distribution Models and Up-to-Date Observations

This corrects the article on p. 259 in vol. 12, PMID: 32009321.

Allergenic Pollen Calendar in Korea Based on Probability Distribution Models and Up-to-Date Observations.

PurposeThe pollen calendar is the simplest forecasting method for pollen concentrations. As pollen concentrations are liable to seasonal variations due to alterations in climate and land-use, it is necessary to update the pollen calendar using recent data. To attenuate the impact of considerable temporal and spatial variability in pollen concentrations on the pollen calendar, it is essential to employ a new methodology for its creation.MethodsA pollen calendar was produced in Korea using data from recent observations, and a new method for creating the calendar was proposed, considering both risk levels and temporal resolution of pollen concentrations. A probability distribution was used for smoothing concentrations and determining risk levels. Airborne pollen grains were collected between 2007 and 2017 at 8 stations; 13 allergenic pollens, including those of alder, Japanese cedar, birch, hazelnut, oak, elm, pine, ginkgo, chestnut, grasses, ragweed, mugwort and Japanese hop, were identified from the collected grains.ResultsThe concentrations of each pollen depend on locations and seasons due to large variability in species distribution and their environmental condition. In the descending order of concentration, pine, oak and Japanese hop pollens were found to be the most common in Korea. The pollen concentrations were high in spring and autumn, and those of oak and Japanese hop were probably the most common cause of allergy symptoms in spring and autumn, respectively. High Japanese cedar pollen counts were observed in Jeju, while moderate concentrations were in Jeonju, Gwangju and Busan.ConclusionsA new methodology for the creation of a pollen calendar was developed to attenuate the impact of large temporal and spatial variability in pollen concentrations. This revised calendar should be available to the public and allergic patients to prevent aggravation of pollen allergy.

The variability of pollen concentrations at two stations in the city of Wroc\u0142aw in Poland

The aim of the study was to investigate the variability of Alnus and Corylus pollen concentrations at two stations located in the city of Wrocław, Poland—one at the city centre and the other 4 km from the city centre. Our goal was to compare measurements from these stations in relation to meteorology and land cover. We used Spearman’s correlation coefficient to investigate any dependence between meteorological factors and pollen concentration. Additionally, to check the relation between the direction of inflow of air masses and pollen concentration, we calculated the backward trajectories using the HYSPLIT model. The results have shown that despite the short distance between the stations, the characteristic of the pollen season is different for both stations (i.a. date of start and end of pollen season, duration of the season). The Spearman’s correlation coefficient between relative humidity and air temperature and pollen concentration was found to be statistically significant. The backward trajectories calculated with HYSPLIT suggested a different origin of air masses between stations for high-concentration episodes in the case of Alnus. Our study has shown that analysis of meteorological conditions and influence of air transport into pollen concentration makes it possible to ascertain the reasons for differences in pollen level at these two stations, both of which are located in the same climatological domain. The study also shows that the aerobiological condition may change significantly over a short distance, which is a major challenge, for example, for pollen emission, transport, and concentration modelling.

An old dog with new tricks: An automated, dry‐deposition Tauber trap

Establishing a modern pollen analogue for remote, high‐deposition environments (e.g. ice caps) presents a unique problem that is difficult to address with current technology. Collecting modern pollen with traditional Tauber traps in these locations (at sub‐annual resolution) is nearly impossible due to the time and costs involved in frequent, long‐distance or remote travel. Presented in this paper is an automated, dry‐deposition Tauber trap with the ability to open and close on a timer, which allows for pollen collection at programmable intervals. This new trap (along with three traditional Tauber traps) was field tested in the summer of 2005 at the University of Colorado's Niwot Ridge Long‐Term Ecological Research Station (LTER) located in the Front Range of the Colorado Rockies. During the research, one of the traditional traps became damaged and was subsequently discarded from the study. Significant variability in pollen concentrations and percentages was found in the remaining traps. Statistical tests revealed that the pollen assemblage collected in the automated trap was statistically no different to the pollen collected in the traditional Tauber traps. Field testing in a cold, high‐wind environment also revealed the weaknesses of acrylic as a trap material, and identified several improvements that could be made to the overall design. Further testing aside, this modified, automated Tauber trap now permits modern pollen rain studies at higher resolutions in more remote locations.