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The correlation analysis between precipitation indices and aerobiological variables could lead to different results if seasonal rainfall is considered. The number of significant correlations, as well as the ratio of positive/negative correlations, is higher when previous autumn rainfall is taken into account than for annual rainfall. However, the percentage of significant correlations is only 5.1 % of the total possible correlations. The autumn indices showing more correlations are related to rainfall duration and persistence, while those for winter were related to rainfall amount and intensity. Since the influence of moderately extreme rainfall seems to be low, the reported probable increase, due to climate change, of the occurrence of intense and short rainy events in the Mediterranean area in autumn does not seem that will have an appreciable effect by itself on the subsequent pollen production.

Unidad de excelencia María de Maeztu CEX2019-000940-M Aspergillus is a genus of saprophytic fungus widely distributed in the environment and associated with soil, decaying vegetation, or seeds. However, some species, such as A. fumigatus, are considered opportunistic pathogens in humans. Their conidia (asexual spores) and mycelia are associated with clinical diseases known as invasive aspergillosis (IA), mainly related to the respiratory tract, such as allergic asthma, allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA), or hypersensitivity. However, they can also disseminate to other organs, particularly the central nervous system. Due to the dispersal mechanism of the conidia through the air, airborne fungal particle measurement should be used to prevent and control this mold. This study aims to measure the outdoor airborne concentration of Aspergillus conidia and the Asp f 1 allergen concentration in Bellaterra (Barcelona, Spain) during 2021 and 2022, and to compare their dynamics to improve the understanding of the biology of this genus and contribute to a betterdiagnosis, prevention, and therapeutic measures in the face of possible health problems. The results show that both particles were airborne nearly all year round, but their concentrations showed no correlation. Due to Asp f 1 not being present in the conidia itself but being detectable during their germination and in hyphal fragments, we report the relevance of the aero-immunological analysis as a methodology to detect the potential pathogenic hazard of this fungus.

Fungi are an important component of ecosystems. Some fungi are widely distributed, while others are limited to certain habitats. Studies based on airborne fungal spores can help to know the geographical distribution of fungi in the territory. Our aim was to show that a gamma probability density function (gpdf) based on a database of 20 airborne fungal spore taxa concentrations in eight localities of Catalonia (NE Spain) for a period of 20 years was a useful tool to map the distribution of these taxa in this region, as well as to establish a general classification on their sporulation through the alpha parameter of the validated model. This allows a more efficient study of the atmospheric dynamics of the different taxa, since the number of taxa is reduced to a representative taxon for each of the categories of the generic classification. In general, the results obtained confirmed that the scale parameter of the gamma distribution changes from year to year, depending on the meteorological conditions, while the shape parameter remains fairly stable. At the temporal scale, airborne fungal spores of Agrocybe sp. showed the highest stability; at the spatial scale, Cladosporium sp. showed the highest stability. Regarding localities, Girona was the station with greater interannual variation, while Barcelona and Vielha showed the lowest. In addition, the results obtained allowed a non-subjective classification of these taxa in five groups, based on the gamma (shape) parameter. The taxa Alternaria sp., Cladosporium sp., Ganoderma sp., Pleospora sp., Leptosphaeria sp., Aspergillus sp.-Penicillium sp. were cosmopolitan and showed a similar behavior across the whole study area, with any of them possible candidates for used in predictive models; airborne fungal spores of Agrocybe sp., Arthrinium sp., Epicoccum sp., Drechslera sp.–Helminthosporium sp., Pithomyces sp., Thelephoraceae, Stemphylium sp., Xylariaceae can be used as meteorological indicators and Agaricus sp., Coprinaceae sp., Torula sp. can be used as indicators of anthropogenic activities. The results obtained could be used to reduce the number of spore taxa analyzed and subsequently develop generic predictive models.

Background: There is scarce information focused on the effect of weather conditions and air pollution on specific acute viral respiratory infections, such as rhinovirus (RV), with a wide clinical spectrum of severity. Objective: The aim of this study was to analyze the association between episodes of severe respiratory tract infection by RV and air pollutant concentrations (NOx and SO2 ) in the reference area of a pediatric university hospital. Methods: An analysis of temporal series of daily values of NOx and SO2 , weather variables, circulating pollen and mold spores, and daily number of admissions in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) with severe respiratory RV infection (RVi) in children between 6 months and 18 years was performed. Lagged variables for 0-5 days were considered. The study spanned from 2010 to 2018. Patients with comorbidities were excluded. Results: One hundred and fifty patients were admitted to the PICU. Median age was 19 months old (interquartile range [IQR]: 11-47). No relationship between RV-PICU admissions and temperature, relative humidity, cumulative rainfall, or wind speed was found. Several logistic regression models with one pollutant and two pollutants were constructed but the best model was that which included average daily NOx concentrations. Average daily NOx concentrations were related with the presence of PICU admissions 3 days later (odds ratio per IQR-unit increase: 1.64, 95% confidence interval: 1.20-2.25)). Conclusions: This study has shown a positive correlation between NOx concentrations at Lag 3 and children's PICU admissions with severe RV respiratory infection. Air pollutant data should be taken into consideration when we try to understand the severity of RVis. This project was partially supported by the Spanish National Health Institute Carlos III (Grant id. PI17/349). Desiree Henares received a grant for predoctoral training in research into Health by the Spanish National Health Institute Carlos III (project number: FI17/00248). The funders have not influenced the design or analysis, nor have they had any role inpreparing the manuscript. Sí

The long-range atmospheric transport models of pollen and fungal spores require four modules for their development: (i) Meteorological module: which contain the meteorological model, and it can be coupled to transport model with the same output configuration (spatio-temporal resolution), or uncoupled does not necessarily have the same output parameters. (ii) Emission module: settles the mass fluxes of bioaerosol, it can be done with a complex parameterization integrating phenological models and meteorological factors or by a simple emission factor. (iii) Sources of emission module, specifically refers to forestry/agronomy maps or, in the case of herbs and fungi, to potential geographical areas of emission. Obtaining the highest possible resolution in these maps allows establishing greater reliability in the modelling. (iv) Atmospheric transport module, with its respective established output parameters. The review and subsequent analysis presented in this article, were performed on published electronic scientific articles from 1998 to 2016. Of a total of 101 models applied found in 64 articles, 33 % performed forward modelling (using 15 different models) and 67 % made backward modelling (with three different models). The 88 % of the cases were applied to pollen (13 taxa) and 12 % to fungal spores (3 taxa). Regarding the emission module, 22 % used parametrization (four different parameters) and 10 % emission factors. The most used transport model was HYSPLIT (59 %: 56 % backward and 3 % forward) following by SILAM 10 % (all forward). Main conclusions were that the models of long-range transport of pollen and fungal spores had high technical-scientific requirements to development and that the major limitations were the establishment of the flow and the source of the emission.

We acknowledge the financial support of the European Commission for ENV4-CT98-0755; the Spanish Government for CGL2004-21166-E, CGL2005-07543/CLI, CGL2009-11205, CGL2012-39523-C02-01/CLI, CGL2012-39523-C02-02, CGL2016-75996-R, CTM2017-89565-C2-1, CTM2017-89565-C2-2, and CSD 2007-00067; the Catalan Government for 2005SGR00519, 2009SGR1102, and 2017SGR1692; Diputacio de Tarragona; Servei Meteorologic de Catalunya; Sociedad Espanola de Alergologia e Inmunologia Clinica (SEAIC); Laboratorios LETI PHARMA; Societat Catalana d'Allergia i Immunologia Clinica (SCAIC); J Uriach y Compania; S.A. This research contributes to the Maria de Maeztu Programme for Units of Excellence of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (CEX2019-000940-M). The authors gratefully acknowledge the NOAA Air Resources Laboratory (ARL) for their HYSPLIT transport and dispersion model and the synoptic charts used in this publication., Betula (birch) pollen is one of the most important causes of respiratory allergy in Northern and Central Europe. While birch trees are abundant in Central, Northern, and Eastern Europe, they are scarce in the Mediterranean territories, especially in the Iberian Peninsula (IP), where they grow only in the northern regions and as ornamental trees in urban areas. However, the airborne birch pollen patterns in Catalonia (Northeastern IP) show abrupt high concentrations in areas with usually low local influence. The intensity of the derived health problems can be increased by outbreaks due to long-range pollen transport. The present work evaluates the different potential contributions to Catalonia from the main source regions: Pyrenees, Cantabria, and the forests of France and Central Europe. To this end, we computed the Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory (HYSPLIT) back trajectories of air masses associated with the main Betula pollen peaks occurring simultaneously over different Catalan monitoring stations, and we studied their provenance over a 15-year period. The Vielha aerobiological station on the northern slopes of the Central Pyrenees was used to identify the dates of the pollen season in the Pyrenean region. In order to better understand the role of the Pyrenees, which is the nearest of the four birch forested regions, we classified the pollen peaks in the other Catalan stations into three groups based on the relationship between the peak and the pollen season in the Pyrenees. Our analysis of back-trajectory residence time, combined with the associated pollen concentration, reveals that two principal routes other than the Pyrenean forest sustain the northerly fluxes that enter Catalonia and carry significant concentrations of Betula pollen. This study has also allowed quantifying the differentiated contributions of the potential source regions. In addition, theWeather Research Forecast (WRF) mesoscale model has been used to study three specific episodes. Both models, HYSPLIT and WRF, complement each other and have allowed for better understanding of the main mechanisms governing the entry of birch pollen to the region., European Commission European Commission Joint Research Centre ENV4-CT98-0755, Spanish Government, European Commission CGL2004-21166-E CGL2005-07543/CLI CGL2009-11205 CGL2012-39523-C02-01/CLI CGL2012-39523-C02-02 CGL2016-75996-R CTM2017-89565-C2-1 CTM2017-89565-C2-2 CSD 2007-00067, Diputacio de Tarragona, Sociedad Espanola de Alergologia e Inmunologia Clinica (SEAIC), Laboratorios LETI PHARMA, Societat Catalana d'Allergia i Immunologia Clinica (SCAIC), J Uriach y Compania, Maria de Maeztu Programme for Units of Excellence of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation CEX2019-000940-M, Catalan Government 2005SGR00519 2009SGR1102 2017SGR1692

Fungal spores are universal atmospheric components associated to allergic reactions. Alternaria (Ascomycota) is considered the most allergenic spore taxa. Alt a 1 is the major allergen of Alternaria and is present also in other Pleosporales. In this study, standard Hirst-based sampling and analyzing methods for measuring spore daily concentrations of Alternaria, Curvularia, Drechslera-Helminthosporium, Epicoccum, Leptosphaeria, Pithomyces, Pleospora and Stemphyllium (all included in the taxon Pleosporales) have been used besides two high-volume samplers, Burkard Cyclone (2017) and MCV CAV-A/mb (2019-2020), and ELISA Kits for measuring the allergen. The detection and quantification of Alt a 1 was only possible in the samples from the MCV sampler. Although Alt a 1 was better correlated with Alternaria spores than with Pleosporales spores, the three of them showed high correlations. It is shown, for the first time, a high and significant correlation of Alt a 1 with temperature, a negative one with relative humidity and no correlation with precipitation. The aerobiological monitoring of these three elements ensures the best information for understanding the affectation to allergy sufferers but, if not possible, as a minimum public health service aiming at the detection, treatment and prevention of allergy, the study of the airborne Alternaria spores should be ensured.

Fungal spores are universal atmospheric components associated to allergic reactions.

Alternaria and Cladosporium are the most common airborne fungal spores responsible for health problems, as well as for crop pathologies. The study of their behavior in the air is a necessary step for establishing control and prevention measures. The aim of this paper is to develop a logistic regression model for predicting the daily concentrations of airborne Alternaria and Cladosporium fungal spores from meteorological variables. To perform the logistic regression analysis, the concentration levels are binarized using concentration thresholds. The fungal spore data have been obtained at eight aerobiological monitoring stations of the Aerobiological Network of Catalonia (NE Spain). The meteorological data used were the maximum and minimum daily temperatures and daily rainfall provided by the meteorological services. The relationship between the meteorological variables and the fungal spore levels has been modeled by means of logistic regression equations, using data from the period 1995–2012. Values from years 2013–2014 were used for validation. In the case of Alternaria, three equations for predicting the presence and the exceedance of the thresholds 10 and 30 spores/m3 have been established. For Cladosporium, four equations for the thresholds 200, 500, 1000, and 1500 spores/m3 have been established. The temperature and cumulative rainfall in the last 3 days showed a positive correlation with airborne fungal spore levels, while the rain on the same day had a negative correlation. Sensitivity and specificity were calculated to measure the predictive power of the model, showing a reasonable percentage of correct predictions (ranging from 48 to 99%). The simple equations proposed allow us to forecast the levels of fungal spores that will be in the air the next day, using only the maximum and minimum temperatures and rainfall values provided by weather forecasting services. © 2019, ISB. Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología, MICYT: CGL2012-39523-C02-01/CLI European Commission, EC: ENV4-CT98-0755 CSD 2007_00067 GRACCIE 2005SGR00519, 2009SGR1102, 2017SGR1692, 2014SGR1274 CGL2012-39523-C02-01, CGL2005-07543/CLI, REN2001-10659-CO3-01, AMB97-0457-CO7-021, CTM2017-89565-C2-1-P, BOS2002-03474, GGL2006-12648-CO3-02, CGL2009-11205 Federación Española de Enfermedades Raras, FEDER This work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Technology through the project “CGL2012-39523-C02-01/CLI” and by the Administrative Department of Science, Technology and Innovation-COLCIENCIAS (Colombia) through the doctoral fellowship to Andrés M. Vélez-Pereira. The authors wish to thank the entities and projects that make possible to obtain the database used in this study: Laboratorios LETI S.A.; Servei Meteorològic de Catalunya; Diputacions de Barcelona, Girona and Tarragona; SCAIC; SEAIC; Stallergenes Iberica; J. Uriach y Cia; European Commission for “ENV4-CT98-0755”; Spanish Ministry of Science and Technology I+D+I for “AMB97-0457-CO7-021,” “REN2001-10659-CO3-01,” “BOS2002-03474,” “CGL2004-21166-E,” “CGL2005-07543/CLI,” “GGL2006-12648-CO3-02,” “CGL2009-11205,” “CGL2012-39523-C02-01,” “CTM2017-89565-C2-1-P,” FEDER “A way to build Europe,” and CONSOLIDER CSD 2007_00067 GRACCIE; and Catalan Government AGAUR for “2005SGR00519,” “2009SGR1102,” “2014SGR1274,” and “2017SGR1692.” This work is contributing to the ICTA “Unit of Excellence” (MinECo, MDM2015-0552). The authors wish to thank the anonymous referees for careful reading and very helpful comments that resulted in an overall improvement of the paper.

Monitoring of airborne pollen concentrations provides an important source of information for the globally increasing number of hay fever patients. Airborne pollen is traditionally counted under the microscope, but with the latest developments in image recognition methods, automating this process has become feasible. A challenge that persists, however, is that many pollen grains cannot be distinguished beyond the genus or family level using a microscope. Here, we assess the use of Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) to increase taxonomic accuracy for airborne pollen. As a case study we use the nettle family (Urticaceae), which contains two main genera (Urtica and Parietaria) common in European landscapes which pollen cannot be separated by trained specialists. While pollen from Urtica species has very low allergenic relevance, pollen from several species of Parietaria is severely allergenic. We collect pollen from both fresh as well as from herbarium specimens and use these without the often used acetolysis step to train the CNN model. The models show that unacetolyzed Urticaceae pollen grains can be distinguished with > 98% accuracy. We then apply our model on before unseen Urticaceae pollen collected from aerobiological samples and show that the genera can be confidently distinguished, despite the more challenging input images that are often overlain by debris. Our method can also be applied to other pollen families in the future and will thus help to make allergenic pollen monitoring more specific.

The present work is the first of two reviews on applied modeling in the field of aerobiology. The aerobiological predictive models for pollen and fungal spores, usually defined as predictive statistical models, will, amongst other objectives, forecast airborne particles' concentration or dynamical behavior of the particles. These models can be classified into Observation Based Models (OBM), Phenological Based Models (PHM), or OTher Models (OTM). The aim of this review is to show, analyze and discuss the different predictive models used in pollen and spore aerobiological studies. The analysis was performed on published electronic scientific articles from 1998 to 2016 related to the type of model, the taxa and the modelled parameters. From a total of 503 studies, 55.5% used OBM (44.8% on pollen and 10.7% on fungal spores), 38.5% PHM (all on pollen) and 6% OTM (5.4% on pollen and 0.6% on fungal spores). OBM have been used with high frequency to forecast concentration. The most frequent model of OBM was linear regression (18.5% out of 503) on pollen and artificial neural networks (4.6%) on fungal spores. In the PHM, the principal use was to characterize the main pollen season (flowering season) based on the model of growth degree days. Finally, OTM have been used to estimate concentrations at unmonitored areas. Olea (14,5%) on pollen and Alternaria (4,8%) on fungal spores were the taxa most frequently modelled. Daily concentration was the most modelled parameter by OBM (25.2%) and season start day by PHM (35.6%). The PHM approaches include greater model diversity and use fewer independent variables than OBM. In addition, PHM show to be easier to apply than OBM; however, the wide range of criteria to define the parameters to use in PHM (e.g.: pollination start day) makes that each model is used with a lesser frequency than other models.

Over two million commercial bumblebee colonies are used on an annual basis to pollinate around 20 crop types worldwide. Despite their use, especially with crops grown in greenhouses, there is mounting evidence that many individuals also forage outside of them. Hence, the use of commercial bumblebees poses a risk to wild pollinators, especially to those who share floral resources and pathogens. To date, however, there is little evidence about the impact of commercial bumblebees on pollinator communities in Europe. We surveyed the abundance of commercial Bombus terrestris and the prevalence of four of its parasites in natural areas at increasing distances from vegetable crops in Cabo de Gata-Níjar (Almería, SE Spain), the most extensive greenhouse cultivation area in the world. We also estimated resource niche overlap (i.e., shared plants used) between commercial bumblebees and the native pollinator community. Finally, we explored whether the abundance and diversity of pollinators in natural habitats were influenced by agricultural expansion (i.e., distance to greenhouses) and bumblebee abundance. We found a sharp reduction in commercial bumblebee densities at increasing distances from greenhouses, with most bumblebees (95%) foraging within a radius of less than 200 m from them. However, these commercial bumblebees had high parasite prevalence (41% of individuals infected) of trypanosomatids, microsporidians and neogregarines. Moreover, their diet particularly overlapped with honeybees and large wild bees. Yet, pollinator density and diversity were not related to the distance from greenhouses or to bumblebee abundance. Although our results suggest that commercial bumblebees do not significantly harm wild pollinators, actions like preventing their escape from greenhouses, monitoring their health and optimising their use should be considered so as to minimise future risks.

Pollen exposure weakens the immunity against certain seasonal respiratory viruses by diminishing the antiviral interferon response. Here we investigate whether the same applies to the pandemic severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which is sensitive to antiviral interferons, if infection waves coincide with high airborne pollen concentrations. Our original hypothesis was that more airborne pollen would lead to increases in infection rates. To examine this, we performed a cross-sectional and longitudinal data analysis on SARS-CoV-2 infection, airborne pollen, and meteorological factors. Our dataset is the most comprehensive, largest possible worldwide from 130 stations, across 31 countries and five continents. To explicitly investigate the effects of social contact, we additionally considered population density of each study area, as well as lockdown effects, in all possible combinations: without any lockdown, with mixed lockdown?no lockdown regime, and under complete lockdown. We found that airborne pollen, sometimes in synergy with humidity and temperature, explained, on average, 44% of the infection rate variability. Infection rates increased after higher pollen concentrations most frequently during the four previous days. Without lockdown, an increase of pollen abundance by 100 pollen/m3 resulted in a 4% average increase of infection rates. Lockdown halved infection rates under similar pollen concentrations. As there can be no preventive measures against airborne pollen exposure, we suggest wide dissemination of pollen?virus coexposure dire effect information to encourage high-risk individuals to wear particle filter masks during high springtime pollen concentrations. © 2021 National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved., 1.1.1.2/VIAA/2/18/283; European Cooperation in Science and Technology, COST: CA18226; Academy of Finland, AKA: 318194, PS4A; Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte, MECD: FPU15/01668; Department of the Environment, Australian Government; Lietuvos Mokslo Taryba; Ministarstvo Prosvete, Nauke i Tehnološkog Razvoja, MPNTR: 451-03-68/2020-14/200358; European Social Fund, ESF: 09.3.3-LMT-K-712-01-0066; Helmholtz Association; Christine Kühne – Center for Allergy Research and Education, CK-CARE, ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. We thank Mr. Luis-Leopold Moelter and Mr. Mehmet Gökkaya for assistance in overall data curation. The study was partly implemented in the frame of the European Cooperation in Science and Technology (EU-COST) program, "New approaches in detection of pathogens and aeroallergens (ADOPT)," Grant CA18226 (EU Framework Program Horizon 2020). D.B. and C.T.-H. were supported by the Helmholtz Climate Initiative (HI-CAM), Mitigation and Adaptation. A.Ch. and D.V. were supported by the Municipality of Thessaloniki, Greece (Directorate for the Management of the Urban Environment, Department of Environment). This research has been partly supported by the European Social Fund (Project 09.3.3-LMT-K-712-01-0066) under grant agreement with the Research Council of Lithuania (LMTLT). The study was also partly conducted within the frame of the project of the European Community European Regional Development Fund (EC ERDF) and PostDoc Latvia (Grant 1.1.1.2/VIAA/2/18/283). M.S. acknowledges the Academy of Finland (Project PS4A, Grant 318194). We thank the Department of Health and Rehabilitation of Vinnytsia Regional Council, Ukraine, for providing the numbers of COVID-19 cases. A.H.A. acknowledges Angel Chaves and the Government of Navarra: Institute of Public and Labor Health of Navarra, within LIFE-IP NAdatpa-CC (LIFE16 IPC/ES/000001). A.P. was supported by a predoctoral grant financed by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports of Spain, in the Program for the Promotion of Talent and its Employability (Grant FPU15/01668). B.S. acknowledges the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technological Development of the Republic of Serbia (Grant 451-03-68/2020-14/200358). C.T.H. acknowledges the Christine Kühne–Center for Allergy Research and Education (CK-CARE), and The Initiative and Networking Fund of the Helmholtz Association (Immunology & Inflammation). We thank Jan Bumberger, Marcus Karsten, Paul Remmler, Jan C. Simon, and Regina Treudler for data provision and curation from Leipzig, Germany. We thank Claudia Langford Brown and Dana Flanders for statistical advice and scientific discussions. We thank Penelope Jones, Edith Bucher, Reyhan Gumusburun, Haydar Soydaner Karakus, Su Ozgur, and Asli Tetik Vardarli for data curation.

En aquest treball es fa una revisió de les dades de pol·len d'olivera a l'atmosfera, recollides a Catalunya durant els anys 1983?98, pensant en les seves aplicacions al·lergològiques i agràries. Es discuteixen la validesa d'alguns paràmetres per caracteritzar la dinàmica aerobiològica d'Olea, la possibilitat de predir el calendari de la pol·linització a partir de dades meteorològiques, i la de relacionar la producció d'oliva amb les concentracions pol·líniques., En este trabajo se presenta una revisión de los datos sobre polen de olivo en la atmósfera, recogidos en Cataluña durante los años 1983?98, pensando en sus aplicaciones alergológicas y agrarias. Se discuten la validez de algunos parámetros para caracterizar la dinámica aerobiológica de Olea, la posibilidad de predecir el calendario de la polinización a partir de datos meteorológicos, y la de relacionar la producción de aceitunas con las concentraciones polínicas., This paper rewiews of the Olea atmospheric pollen data from Catalonia, for the period 1983? 98, with regard to their allergological and agricultural applications. The discussion is focused on the validity of certain parameters for the characterisation of Olea aerobiological dynamics, on the prediction of the pollen calendar from meteorological data and on the relationship between olive production and pollen concentration.

Monitoring of airborne pollen concentrations provides an important source of information for the globally increasing number of hay fever patients. Airborne pollen are traditionally counted under the microscope, but with the latest developments in image recognition methods, automating this process has become feasible. A challenge that persists, however, is that many pollen grains cannot be distinguished beyond the genus or family level using a microscope. Here, we assess the use of a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) to increase taxonomic accuracy for airborne pollen. As a case study we use the nettle family (Urticaceae), which contains two main genera (Urtica and Parietaria) common in European landscapes which pollen cannot be separated by trained specialists. While pollen from Urtica species have very low allergenic relevance, those from several species of Parietaria are severely allergenic. We collect pollen from both fresh as well as from herbarium specimens and use these to train the CNN model VGG16. The model shows that Urticaceae pollen can be distinguished with 98.3% accuracy. We then apply our model on Urticaceae pollen collected from aerobiological samples and show that the genera can be confidently distinguished, despite the more challenging input images that are often overlain by debris. Our method can also be applied to other pollen families in the future and will thus help to make allergenic pollen monitoring more specific.

The use of Land use and Land cover (LULC) data is gradually becoming more widely spread in studies relating the environment to human health. However, little research has acknowledged the compositional nature of these data. The goal of the present study is to explore, for the first time, the independent effect of eight LULC categories (agricultural land, bare land, coniferous forest, broad-leaved forest, sclerophyll forest, grassland and shrubs, urban areas, and waterbodies) on three selected common health conditions: type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), asthma and anxiety, using a compositional methodological approach and leveraging observational health data of Catalonia (Spain) at area level. We fixed the risk exposure scenario using three covariates (socioeconomic status, age group, and sex). Then, we assessed the independent effect of the eight LULC categories on each health condition. Our results show that each LULC category has a distinctive effect on the three health conditions and that the three covariates clearly modify this effect. This compositional approach has yielded plausible results supported by the existing literature, highlighting the relevance of environmental heterogeneity in health studies. In this sense, we argue that different types of environment possess exclusive biotic and abiotic elements affecting distinctively on human health. We believe our contribution might help researchers approach the environment in a more multidimensional manner integrating environmental heterogeneity in the analysis. Quim Zaldo-Aubanell was supported by AGAUR FI fellowship (DOGC num. 7720, of 5.10.2018). Isabel Serra acknowledges support from FIS2015-71851-P and PGC-FIS2018-099629-B-I00 from Spanish MINECO and MICINN, and was partially funded by the grant RTI2018-096072-B-I00 from the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities. Jordina Belmonte was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Technology through the project CTM2017-86565-C2-1-O and by the Catalan Government AGAUR through 2017SGR1692. Pepus Daunis-i-Estadella acknowledges support from the project RTI2018-095518-B-C21 Methods for Compositional analysis of Data (CODAMET), Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades, Spain. The funding sources did not participate in the design or conduct of the study, the collection, management, analysis, or interpretation of the data, or the preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript. We want to thank Marcel Bach-Pagès for his insights in the manuscript.

Background: Exposure to air pollution is known to affect both short and long-term outcomes of the cardiopulmonary system; however, findings on short-term outcomes have been inconsistent and often from isolated and long-term rather than coexisting and short-term exposures, and among susceptible/unhealthy rather than healthy populations. Aims: We aimed to investigate separately the annual, daily and daily space-time-activity-weighted effect of ambient air pollution, as well as confounding or modification by other environmental (including noise) or space-time-activity (including total daily physical activity) exposures, on cardiopulmonary outcomes in healthy adults. Methods: Participants (N=57: 54% female) had indicators of cardiopulmonary outcomes [blood pressure (BP), pulse (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV {SDNN}), and lung function (spirometry {FEV1, FVC, SUM})] measured on four different mornings (at least five days apart) in a clinical setting between 2011 and 2014. Spatiotemporal ESCAPE-LUR models were used to estimate daily and annual air pollution exposures (including PM10, PMCoarse, but not Ozone {derived from closest station}) at participant residential and occupational addresses. Participants' time-activity diaries indicated time spent at either address to allow daily space-time-activity-weighted estimates, and capture total daily physical activity (total-PA {as metabolic-equivalents-of-task, METs}), in the three days preceding health measurements. Multivariate-adjusted linear mixed-effects models (using either annual or daily estimates) were adjusted for possible environmental confounders or mediators including levels of ambient noise and greenness. Causal mediation analysis was also performed separately considering these factors as well as total-PA. All presented models are controlled by age, height, sex and season. Results: An increase in 5μg/m3 of daily space-time-activity-weighted PMCoarse exposure was statistically significantly associated with a 4.1% reduction in total heart rate variability (SDNN; p=0.01), and remained robust after adjusting for suspected confounders [except for occupational-address noise (β=−2.7, p=0.20)]. An increase in 10ppb of annual mean Ozone concentration at the residential address was statistically significantly associated with an increase in diastolic BP of 6.4mmHg (p

Unidad de excelencia María de Maeztu MdM-2015-0552 Building-integrated rooftop greenhouse (i-RTG) agriculture has intensified in recent years, due to the growing interest in the development of new agricultural spaces and in the promotion of food self-sufficiency in urban areas. This paper provides a first assessment of the indoor dynamics of bioaerosols in an i-RTG, with the aim of evaluating biological air quality in a tomato greenhouse near Barcelona. It evaluates the greenhouse workers' exposure to airborne pollen and fungal spores in order to prevent allergy problems associated with occupational tasks. Moreover, it evaluates whether the quality of the hot air accumulated in the i-RTG is adequate for recirculation to heat the building. Daily airborne pollen and fungal spore concentrations were measured simultaneously in the indoor and outdoor environments during the warm season. A total of 4,924 pollen grains/m3 were observed in the i-RTG, with a peak of 334 pollen grains/m3day, and a total of 295,038 fungal spores were observed, reaching a maximum concentration of 26,185 spores/m3day. In general, the results showed that the most important source of pollen grains and fungal spores observed indoors was the outdoor environment. However, Solanaceae pollen and several fungal spore taxa, such as the allergenic Aspergillus/Penicillium, largely originated inside the greenhouses or were able to colonize the indoor environment under favourable growing conditions. Specific meteorological conditions and agricultural management tasks are related to the highest observed indoor concentrations of pollen grains and fungal spores. Therefore, preventive measures have been suggested in order to reduce or control the levels of bioaerosols indoors (to install a system to interrupt the recirculation of air to the building during critical periods or to implement appropriate air filters in ventilation air ducts). This first evaluation could help in making decisions to prevent the development of fungal diseases, specifically those due to Oidium and Torula.

Urban parks play a key role in the provision of ecosystem services, actively participating in improving the quality of life and welfare of local residents. This paper reports on the application of an index designed to quantify the allergenicity of urban parks in a number of Spanish cities. The index, which records biological and biometric parameters for the tree species growing there, classifies parks in terms of the risk they pose for allergy sufferers, graded as null, low, moderate or high. In this initial phase, the index was applied to 26 green areas in 24 Spanish cities; green areas varied in type (urban park, historical or modern garden, boulevard, square or urban forest), size 1-100 ha), geographical location, species richness, number of trees and tree density (number of trees / ha.). The data obtained were used to calculate the percentage of allergenic species in each park, which varied between 17-67%; density ranged from 100 to 300 trees/ha. The index values recorded ranged from a minimum of .07 to a maximum of .87; a significant correlation was found between index value and both number of trees and tree density. Taking an index value of .30 as the threshold considered sufficient to trigger allergy symptoms in the sensitive population, 12 of the parks studied may be regarded as unhealthy at any time of the year. Corrective measures to mitigate the impact of pollen emissions include the implementation of nature-based solutions at various levels: planning and design, handling and management, and strengthening of urban green-infrastructure elements. The index proved to be a useful tool for environmental analysis, and complies with the principles of portability and scalability central to current and horizon scientific research.

Cypress (Cupressus sp.pl) is a genus within the Cupressaceae family. This family covers all of the Earth's continents except for Antarctica, and it includes about 160 species. The most important taxa for allergic diseases belong to five different genera: Cupressus, Hesperocyparis, Juniperus, Cryptomeria, and Chamaecyparis. Cupressaceae species share a common pollen type that can even include the genus Taxus (Taxaceae) when this plant is also present. As Juniperus oxycedrus pollinates in October, Cupressus sempervirens in January and February, Hesperocyparis arizonica (prev. Cupressus arizonica) in February and March, and Juniperus communis in April, the symptomatic period is long-lasting. Due to global warming, the pollination period tends to last longer, and there is a trend for Cupressaceae bioclimate niches to migrate north. In Mediterranean areas, C. sempervirens (Italian cypress or Mediterranean cypress) is by far the most common pollinating species. It accounts for half of the total pollination level. The group 1 major allergens belong to the pectate-lyase family, and members share 70 to 97% sequence homology within the different Cupressaceae. Group 2 allergens correspond to the polygalacturonase protein family, while group 3, a minor allergen, belongs to the family of "thaumatin-like proteins," a pathogenesis-related protein 5. Group 4 allergens are Ca++-binding protein (4 EF-hands). Aside from these four groups, about 15 other allergens have been reported. Prominent among these is a basic low-molecular mass cross-reactive allergen that was identified recently, and which is suspected to be involved in pollen food syndromes which are common with peach and citrus. The prevalence of cypress allergy in the general population ranges from 0.6 to 3%, depending on the degree of exposure to the pollen. Depending on the geographic area and the studied population, 9 to 65% of outpatients consulting an allergist may have sensitization to cypress pollen. Repeated cross-sectional studies performed at different time intervals have demonstrated a threefold increase in the percentage of cypress allergy around the Mediterranean area. Risk factors include a genetic predisposition and/or a strong exposure to pollen, and the natural history of cypress allergy allows identification of a subgroup of patients as allergic rather than atopic. Concerning the clinical expression, rhinitis is the most prevalent symptom, while conjunctivitis is the most disabling. Pharmacological treatment of cypress allergies is not different from that of other seasonal allergies. Immunotherapy has been used, initially by subcutaneous injections, but currently mostly through the sublingual route. Although clinical trials have included only a limited number of patients, it has proven effective and safe. Avoidance can be implemented at the individual level, as well as at the community level, through the use of alternative plants, low-pollinating cypresses, or by trimming hedges before pollination.

Unidad de excelencia María de Maeztu CEX2019-000940-M Annually variable and synchronous seed production, or masting, is often correlated with environmental factors and in oaks involves differential pollination success that depends on phenological synchrony in flowering. The synchronization of phenology of flowering was thought to be driven by temperature during flowering (microclimatic hypothesis). We tested an alternative, whereby phenological synchronization is driven by the timing of the onset of flowering (photoperiod-sensitivity hypothesis). This hypothesis assumes that flowering synchrony is driven by interaction between daylength and temperature, and individual variation in sensitivity to daylength as a phenological cue. We used long-term (23-26 years) records of airborne pollen in Quercus robur, Q. petraea, Q. ilex, and Q. humilis. Late pollen seasons were short, as predicted by photoperiod-sensitivity hypothesis. The onset of pollen seasons was delayed as preseason temperatures cooled over the last three decades at our Mediterranean sites, which was paralleled by shortening in pollen seasons, providing additional support for the photoperiod-sensitivity hypothesis. Global warming under the microclimatic hypothesis is predicted to lead to less frequent reproductive failures and thus decreased variability and synchrony of mast seeding. In contrast, warming under the photoperiod-sensitivity hypothesis should advance the onset of and desynchronize flowering, a pattern supported by our data. This pattern suggests that global warming will lead to more frequent vetoes and more stochastic and variable patterns of oak reproduction.

Pollination is a biologically-relevant process that affects the structure of ecosystems since pollen contributes to determine the spatial distribution of plant species. It is thus of interest for mapping ecosystem services for policy support and decision making to increase our knowledge of pollen grain behavior in the atmosphere (source, emission, processes involved during their transport, etc.) at fine temporal and spatial scales. First simulations with the Barcelona Supercomputing Center MONARCH dispersion model (known before as NMMB/BSC-CTM) of Pinus pollen in the atmosphere were performed during a 5-day pollination event observed in Barcelona, Spain, between 27 – 31 March, 2015. MONARCH is an online atmospheric composition model that solves the life cycle of water vapor, gases and aerosols within a meteorological model. A new aerosol emission scheme for pollen grains has been implemented in the system. The emission scheme considers wind speed at 10 m, friction velocity, and temperature and specific humidity at 2 m as main drivers of the mobilization of Pinus pollen grains. The meteorological information is available for the emission scheme at each meteorological integration time step. The spatial distribution of the pine species (P. halepensis, P. pinea) that pollinate from February to April in Catalonia has been derived from the Cartography of habitats of Catalonia and the tree density was obtained from the Forest Inventory of Catalonia. A domain over north-east Spain at 9 km x 9 km horizontal resolution covering Catalonia is designed with 48 vertical layers. The initial and boundary meteorological conditions are derived from the fifth major global ECMWF ReAnalysis (ERA-5). To evaluate the model performances, the simulations are compared (i) to groundbased concentration measurements performed with a Hirst collector in Barcelona downtown, and (ii) to vertically-resolved measurements performed 4 km west of Barcelona downtown with a Micro Pulse Lidar (MPL). A method based on the lidar polarization capabilities was used to retrieve the contribution of the pollen to the total signal. The conversion from optical lidar-retrieved properties to concentration was optimized by minimizing the sum of the squared deviations between the lidar-retrieved concentration at the first height and the true (Hirst) concentration measured at the ground. In terms of surface concentration, the simulation performs well during the center of the event with major underestimation at the beginning. As far as the vertical distribution of airborne Pinus pollen is concerned, simulations reproduce well the shape of the profiles but the intensity tends to be underestimated. Three major limitations are identified with the model runs: (1) the poorly known phenology emission function, (2) the temporal development of the convective planetary boundary layer in coastal areas, which directly affects the vertical structure of the pollen dispersion; (3) the development of the sea breeze and a proper representation of the sea coast line, that play a significant role on the skills of the meteorological mesoscale model.

Airborne fungal spores are prevalent components of bioaerosols with a large impact on ecology, economy and health. Their major socioeconomic effects could be reduced by accurate and timely prediction of airborne spore concentrations. The main aim of this study was to create and evaluate models of Alternaria and Cladosporium spore concentrations based on data on a continental scale. Additional goals included assessment of the level of generalization of the models in space and description of the main meteorological factors influencing fungal spore concentrations. \ud Aerobiological monitoring was carried out at 18 sites in six countries across Europe over 3 to 21 years depending on site. Quantile random forest modelling was used to predict spore concentrations values. Generalization of the Alternaria and Cladosporium models was tested using (i) one model for all the sites, (ii) models for groups of sites, and (iii) models for individual sites.\ud The study revealed the possibility of reliable prediction of fungal spore levels using gridded meteorological data. The classification models also showed the capacity for providing larger scale predictions of fungal spore concentrations. Regression models were distinctly less accurate than classification models due to several factors, including measurement errors and distinct day-to-day changes of concentrations. Temperature and vapour pressure proved to be the most important variables in the regression and classification models of Alternaria and Cladosporium spore concentrations. \ud Accurate and operational daily-scale predictive models of bioaerosol abundances contribute to the assessment and evaluation of relevant exposure and consequently more timely and efficient management of phytopathogenic and of human allergic diseases.

The present investigation was conducted to determine the pollen types and their quantities in the atmosphere of Obregon City (a semiarid region) and establish the relationship with meteorological parameters in 2008 and 2011. A bimodal pattern with peaks in dry warm (spring) and late rainy (autumn) seasons was observed. The highest monthly pollen indexes were observed in October 2008 and September 2011. Precipitation in 2008 was 2.6 times higher than in 2011, beginning in June in both years, and ending in November (2008) and September (2011). Main pollen types were Poaceae, Chenopodiaceae/Amaranthaceae, Asteraceae and Parkinsonia (the latter was dominant in the dry warm season). Statistical correlations (Spearman’s rank-order correlation p

Background/Aim: Air pollution exposure is known to affect health; however, short-term-effect findings have been inconsistent and often from isolated exposures among susceptible/unhealthy population...

Pollen allergenicity plays an important role on human health and wellness. It is thus of large public interest to increase our knowledge of pollen grain behavior in the atmosphere (source, emission, processes involved during their transport, etc.) at fine temporal and spatial scales. First simulations with the Barcelona Supercomputing Center NMMB/BSC-CTM model of Platanus and Pinus dispersion in the atmosphere were performed during a 5-day pollination event observed in Barcelona, Spain, between 27 – 31 March, 2015. The simulations are compared to vertical profiles measured with the continuous Barcelona Micro Pulse Lidar system. First results show that the vertical distribution is well reproduced by the model in shape, but not in intensity, the model largely underestimating in the afternoon. Guidelines are proposed to improve the dispersion of airborne pollen by numerical prediction models. Lidar data analysis were supported by the ACTRIS (Aerosols, Clouds, and Trace Gases Research Infrastructure Network) Research Infrastructure Project funded by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement n. 654169; by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitivity (project TEC2015-63832-P) and of Science and Innovation (project UNPC10-4E-442) and EFRD (European Fund for Regional Development); by the Department of Economy and Knowledge of the Catalan autonomous government (grant 2014 SGR 583). This work is contributing to the ICTA 'Unit of Excellence' (Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitivity, project MDM2015-0552).

Masting is the highly variable production of synchronized seed crops, and is a common reproductive strategy in plants. Weather has long been recognized as centrally involved in driving seed production in masting plants. However, the theory behind mechanisms connecting weather and seeding variation has only recently been developed, and still lacks empirical evaluation. We used 12-year long seed production data for 255 holm oaks ( Quercus ilex ), as well as airborne pollen and meteorological data, and tested whether masting is driven by environmental constraints: phenological synchrony and associated pollination efficiency, and drought-related acorn abscission. We found that warm springs resulted in short pollen seasons, and length of the pollen seasons was negatively related to acorn production, supporting the phenological synchrony hypothesis. Furthermore, the relationship between phenological synchrony and acorn production was modulated by spring drought, and effects of environmental vetoes on seed production were dependent on last year's environmental constraint, implying passive resource storage. Both vetoes affected among-tree synchrony in seed production. Finally, precipitation preceding acorn maturation was positively related to seed production, mitigating apparent resource depletion following high crop production in the previous year. These results provide new insights into mechanisms beyond widely reported weather and seed production correlations.

Information on the environmental variables that may affect the incidence of invasive aspergillosis (IA) is scarce. We sought to determine the relationship between airborne spore counts, climatic conditions and IA. We also examined whether circulating respiratory viruses predispose patients to IA in a multicentre cohort study of hospitalized adults with IA. Data on environmental mould spores, climatic conditions and circulating respiratory viruses were obtained from the Environmental Department of the Autonomous University of Barcelona, the Meteorological Service of Catalonia and the Acute Respiratory Infection Surveillance Project in Catalonia, respectively. Between 2008 and 2011, 165 patients with IA were identified. Diagnosis was based on one or more of the following: culture (125 cases), galactomannan antigen (98) and histology (34). One hundred and twenty-seven cases (77%) had criteria for probable IA and the remainder for proven IA. Environmental mould spore counts from the period 28–42 days preceding infection presented significant associations with admissions due to IA. None of the climatic conditions were associated with an increased risk of IA, but the presence of circulating respiratory viruses was associated with a higher risk of infection: the most strongly associated viruses were respiratory syncytial virus, influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 and adenovirus. In conclusion, the presence of high numbers of spores in the air increases the risk of admission due to IA. Circulating respiratory viruses appear to be associated with a higher risk of developing IA. Physicians should be aware of this association in order to optimize prevention and diagnosis strategies for IA during viral epidemic periods.

Background: Green spaces have been associated with both health benefits and risks in children; however, available evidence simultaneously investigating these conflicting influences, especially in association with different types of greenness, is scarce. Objectives: We aimed to simultaneously evaluate health benefits and risks associated with different types of greenness in children, in terms of sedentary behavior (represented by excessive screen time), obesity, current asthma, and allergic rhinoconjunctivitis. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of a population-based sample of 3,178 schoolchildren (9–12 years old) in Sabadell, Spain, in 2006. Information on outcomes and covariates was obtained by questionnaire. We measured residential surrounding greenness as the average of satellite-derived Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) in buffers of 100 m, 250 m, 500 m, and 1,000 m around each home address. Residential proximity to green spaces was defined as living within 300 m of a forest or a park, as separate variables. We used logistic regression models to estimate associations separately for each exposure–outcome pair, adjusted for relevant covariates. Results: An interquartile range increase in residential surrounding greenness was associated with 11–19% lower relative prevalence of overweight/obesity and excessive screen time, but was not associated with current asthma and allergic rhinoconjunctivitis. Similarly, residential proximity to forests was associated with 39% and 25% lower relative prevalence of excessive screen time and overweight/obesity, respectively, but was not associated with current asthma. In contrast, living close to parks was associated with a 60% higher relative prevalence of current asthma, but had only weak negative associations with obesity/overweight or excessive screen time. Conclusion: We observed two separable patterns of estimated health benefits and risks associated with different types of greenness. Citation: Dadvand P, Villanueva CM, Font-Ribera L, Martinez D, Basagaña X, Belmonte J, Vrijheid M, Gražulevičienė R, Kogevinas M, Nieuwenhuijsen MJ. 2014. Risks and benefits of green spaces for children: a cross-sectional study of associations with sedentary behavior, obesity, asthma, and allergy. Environ Health Perspect 122:1329–1335; http://dx.doi.org/10.1289/ehp.1308038

Increased knowledge on allergenic molecules in the environmental air helps in the information on environmental air quality and in the prevention and treatment of allergies. The aim of this study is to develop and validate a new methodology for the simultaneous detection and quantification of several airborne allergens using protein microarray technology, which has been created for the clinical detection of allergens. The immunological method was performed with Immuno Solid-phase Allergen Chip (ISAC) inhibition assay. Reagents for the validation studies include the following: (1) three sera from patients allergic to grass pollen each with different IgE levels as the detection reagents, (2) recombinant Phl p 1 major allergen as the inhibitor for the inhibition assays, (3) “natural” Phl p 1 released by Phleum pratense (timothy grass) pollen grains as the “biologically” relevant aeroallergen and (4) samples of airborne pollens collected by a Multi-vial Cyclone Sampler for comparison of levels of pollen detection versus the protein allergen detection by the microarray assay. The results obtained showed that ISAC inhibition is a sensitive technique able to detect 2.1 pg/mL of Phl p 1 and the allergens released from 1 grain of natural pollen. Also, the airborne allergen samples analyzed showed a good correlation with the concentration of grass pollen in the air. The use of ISAC inhibition will greatly improve future airborne simultaneous allergen quantification, becoming a valuable option in air quality control.