Seite - 60 - in Biodiversity and Health in the Face of Climate Change

60 roads showed an overall higher allergenicity than pollen from low-traffic roads and vegetated areas (Ghiani et  al. 2012). Beck et  al. (2013) documented a positive rela- tionship between atmospheric ozone (O3) levels and the amount of Bet v 1  in pollen samples collected from birch trees in outdoor stands in Bavaria, Germany. However, further clarification is needed regarding what the combined effect of ozone, nitro- gen dioxide, carbon dioxide and air temperature on pollen allergenicity is on a plant population or ecosystem level. Epidemiological studies have demonstrated that urbanisation, high levels of vehicle emissions and a Westernised lifestyle are cor- related with an increase in the frequency of pollen-induced respiratory allergy, which is more prominent in people who live in urban areas compared to those who live in rural areas (Haftenberger et  al. 2013). 3.7 Pollen Information Services Airborne pollen is routinely monitored worldwide, mainly for providing informa- tion on pollen season occurrence with a view to allergy prevention. Hirst-type devices are the most widely used pollen samplers worldwide (e.g. Galán et  al. 2014). The device is volumetric and samples with a stable suction of airflow (10  l  min−1). Captured pollen grains are processed in the laboratory and then anal- ysed under an optical microscope (manually identified and counted by expert scien- tists). The identification level is usually per genus for woody taxa and per family for herbaceous taxa. All measurements are expressed as numbers of pollen per cubic metre of air (e.g. British Aerobiology Federation 1995; Galán et  al. 2014). Pollen data from Hirst-type traps do not allow for real-time pollen measurements and timely dissemination of airborne pollen concentrations, even though their main purpose is to provide information on airborne particle abundance to allergic indi- viduals. Hence, predictions with a minimum of a weekly forecasting horizon had to be developed. Additionally, a lot of effort and time are required because of the labo- rious nature of the microscopical identification technique. It is evident that there is an overall need for faster, near real-time reporting of airborne pollen concentrations. To date, high-risk pollen exposure alerts have been provided only via mid-term pol- len season forecasting models, which are often not of good accuracy for operational and everyday medical practice. The future aim is to disseminate airborne pollen measurements using a novel automatic, real-time pollen sampler, in order to provide timely and accurate warning alerts to allergic patients throughout the duration of the pollen season, with the ultimate aim of more efficiently managing allergic diseases. A new generation of automated, near real-time pollen measurements is currently being developed, and has already been able, in some cases, to work on an opera- tional basis (Oteros et  al. 2015; Häring et  al. 2017). The most well-developed, promising or already operating automated pollen measuring devices are located in A. Damialis et  al.