EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE IAA 2010-2014 Pollen: a biological pollutant? PRESIDENT Dr Giuseppe Frenguelli One of the objectives of EAS during these four years is to try to develop an European Dep. Applied Biol., Univ. of Perugia Borgo XX Giugno, 74 regulation about pollen survey in . We know that this topic was not accepted in 06123 Perugia (Italy) 2012 during a Fairmode presentation at the European Commission by our colleague Tel +39 075 5856406 Mikhail Sofiev, but we thought that we must use 2013 year of air quality to try to educate [email protected] the European parliament on our topic. So we write two times to the deputy Mr Janez VICE PRESIDENT Potočnik. We explain him that the European Aerobiology Society (EAS) is a non- Dr. Bernard Clot governmental organization that gathers together scientific experts working in the field of MétéoSuisse Les Invuardes, C.P. 316 aerobiology in Europe. Aerobiology is the study of airborne particle of biological origin, CH - 1530 Payerne (Switzerland) such as pollen grains, fungal spores, bacteria and allergens that are passively transported Tel +41 26 662 62 59 in the air. It is a multidisciplinary subject with applications in many areas such as [email protected] allergology, agriculture, horticulture and biosecurity. Aerobiologists are often involved SECRETARY GENERAL in monitoring atmospheric concentrations of these biological particles, evaluating their Dr Dorota Myszkowska health impact and disseminating health related information. Zaklad Alergologii Klinicznej i Srodowiskowej A great deal of regulation exists for chemical pollutants in outdoor and indoor air, but Uniwersytet Jagielloñski Collegium Medicum biological particles are not included, in spite of their huge impact on health and their 31-531 Kraków (Poland) effect on the quality of life of millions of people. The World Health Organization say ul. Sniadeckich 10 that that allergic disorders constitute an important public health problem, with 10-20% of Tel +48 12 423 11 22, 48 12 424 88 89 the total European population suffering from pollen-induced allergies. Allergic rhinitis is [email protected] closely associated with asthma suggesting the theory of “one airway, one disease”. One TREASURER of the challenges of the EAS for the next four years is to work towards establishing Dr Rui M.A. Brandao Dept. de Biologia European regulations for monitoring pollen grains and fungal spores in ambient air. The Universidade de Evora EAS has already commenced standardizing national networks but we must take this P-7000 Evora (Portugal) further and place aerobiology within a regulatory framework in the European Union. Tel (351) 266 760889 [email protected] The problem we face today is that without any European recommendation or legislation, PAST PRESIDENT it is likely that a number of European countries will no longer be able to support Dr Christine Rogers aerobiological monitoring. Environmental Health Sciences University of Massachusetts Amherst This will be a great shame, and detrimental to the European population. It is true that 639 N. Pleasant St., Morrill 1 Amherst, MA (USA) 01003-9298 pollen are not generally considered to be from anthropogenic sources but pollen grains Tel +1 413 545-3051 released from trees and grasses planted in urban areas can have a significant effect on the [email protected] allergic population. In addition, ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia) is a noxious invasive WEBMASTER alien species that fits the definition of a pollutant because it is spread by anthropogenic Annalisa Ariatti activities, its impact on human health is increasing and it needs positive action from Dept of Plant Pathology European agencies to destroy it. Pennsylvania State University 218 Buckhout Lab During the recent EU funded COST Action ES 0603 “Assessment of production, release, University Park PA (USA) 16802 Tel +1 814 865 7837 distribution and health impact of allergenic pollen in Europe (EUPOL) we demonstrated [email protected] the existence of threshold levels of different pollen. We are also working towards NEWSLETTER EDITOR establishing standardised methods for the sampling and analysis of allergenic pollen and Dr Herminia García Mozo moulds present in the atmosphere. We therefore find it difficult to accept that biological Departamento de Botanica, Ecología y particles in the air cannot be included in air quality legislation. Fisiología Vegetal Edif. Celestino Mutis, Planta 3ª Each of us, in our own country, we must inform our European deputies and ask them to Campus de Rabanales take into account this important topic. Universidad de Cordoba 14071 Cordoba (Spain) Tel +34 957218719 Michel Thibaudon [email protected] EAS President

1 MEMBERS Dr A.B. Singh Editorial Note Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology, Delhi University Campus, Mall Road, Michel Thibaudon, the President of the European Aerobiology Society (EAS), New Delhi (India) opens this issue writing about the efforts that this society is making in order the Tel +91 11 27568525, Mob. 09811554462 European regulation includes pollen as an atmospheric pollutant. All of us know [email protected] that there is a great deal of regulation rules for chemical pollutants in outdoor Dr María Gabriela Murray and indoor air, but biological particles are not included in almost any environ- Laboratorio de Plantas Vasculares Departamento de Biología, Bioquímica y Farmacia mental policy around the world, in spite of their huge impact on health and their Universidad Nacional del Sur effect on the quality of life of millions of people. For this reason, Michel en- San Juan 670 courages us to inform deputies of our countries, and ask them to take into ac- Bahía Blanca 8000 (Argentina) count this important topic. One of our arguments for politicians would be the [email protected] Quality Control that our networks are developing in last years. About this sub- EX OFFICIO ject Carmen Galán, responsible of the EAS Quality Control Working Group, Dr Connie Katelaris speaks us about the last advances on this matter, presenting the external exercise Clinical Immunol. & Allergy, Westmead Hospital for proficiency testing results in the frame of EAN/EPI, where 45 technicians 308/151 Hawkesbury Rd from 15 countries have been involved. Victoria Rodinkova and Matt Smith in- Westmead 2145 NSW Australia form about the recent European Basic Course on Aerobiology, held at Vinnitsa, [email protected] Ukraine, from the 4th to the 10th of July 2013. A big number of students attend- ed this course which it has been a fully success with a great number of academic NEWSLETTER PAGE DESIGNER activities and a social program full of surprises and fun. Antonio Velasco Blanco Departamento de Botanica, Ecología y Fisiología From America, Leticia Tejera and her working group explain us the state of the Vegetal art of the Aerobiology in Uruguay. This small country of South America has Edif. Celestino Mutis, Planta 3ª started its research in the capital city, Montevideo, and this new group has al- Campus de Rabanales Universidad de Cordoba ready results for both, airborne pollen and fungal spores. From these new ad- 14071 Cordoba (Spain) vances on Aerobiology, we look back on the first steps in this science, and to Tel +34 957218632 know a little more about Fred Campbell Meier on the 75th Anniversary of his [email protected] death. Also we remember Dr. Ruth Maria Leuschner who passed away last Jan- uary 16th, 2013 in Basel, Switzerland. She was co-founder and honorary member of our International Association for Aerobi- ology (IAA), and she will remain in our memory as one of the most active members of this association. She rests in peace. Finally we inform you about recent PhD on Aerobiology and about the next events, as the 9th European Pollen Symposium to be held in October in Berlin, Germany and the 47th Annual Convention of Indian College of Allergy, Asthma & Ap- plied Immunology in December 2013 at Jaipur, India. Also Dorota Myszkowska, Secretary of the IAA, informs that pro- posals to organize the next International Congress should be submitted to the Council at least six months before the previous congress to be held in Sydney in September 2014. Best wishes and a happy summer, Herminia García Mozo Newsletter Editor (e-mail: [email protected]).

11th International Congress on Aerobiology in 2018

Dear colleagues, According to the rules of procedures of the International Association for Aerobiology, proposals for the venue and the general plan of the next Congress should be submitted to the Council at least six months before the previous Congress. As the 10th ICA will be held in Sydney in 22-26 of September 2014, complete proposals for the 2018 Congress should be sent to the Secretary General ([email protected]) up to the 28 of February 2014. In any questions, please contact also President of IAA, Prof. Giuseppe Frenguelli or V-ce President, dr Bernard Clot.

Secretary General Dr Dorota Myszkowska

Zakład Alergologii Klinicznej i Środowiskowej Uniwersytet Jagielloński Collegium Medicum 31-531 Kraków ul. Śniadeckich 10 Tel: 48 12 423 11 22, 48 12 424 88 89 Fax: 48 12 423 11 22

2 To a new standard for atmospheric pollen survey!

If a lot of national networks follow the IAA guidelines for pollen sampling and pollen analysis, it become necessary to devel- op a new standard at the European level. Since 2004, Italy has developed an Italian standard (UNI 11108), others standards exist about biological particles sampling, but we think necessary to present shortly a new European standard whose title will be “Ambient air – Sampling and analysis of airborne pollen grains and fungal spores – Volumetric Hirst principle”. The orig- inality of this standard will be on the two characteristic of Hirst sampler which are “volumetric” and “continuous”. Other chapter of the standard will concern devices, reagents, analysis and so on. After some meeting in France, AFNOR (French agency for normalization) accepted to present in a CEN meeting in Vienna during this spring a new item about our purpose. This new item was accepted and a new WG (Working Group), has been created in the committee CEN/TC 264, it will be WG 39 and they asked me to be the convener. At this date more than 20 persons of 8 different European countries are still registered. The aim of this WG will be to write à CEN/TS (Technical Sheet) for the first semester of 2014, then to transform it, if possible, in a European standard further. The first meeting of this WG39 will be in Lyon on October 30th and 31st. IAA newsletter will be in touch with this topic.

Michel Thibaudon EAS President RNSA Director

European Aerobiology Society (EAS) Working Group on Quality Control: External Exercise

The external exercise for proficiency testing in slide reading was the second step in the EAS Quality Control (QC) survey. The protocol was described in the June 2012 IAA Newsletter. The external exercise focused on identifying grass and birch pollen grains in Northern Europe and grass and olive pollen grains in Southern Europe. The protocol for determining errors was defined following different steps: (a) outliers detection by z-scores analysis; (b) calculation of certified values of a refer- ence sample; (c) calculation of significant error. The QC survey was conducted among members of the European Aeroallergen Network (EAN)/European Pollen Information (EPI). A total of 45 technicians from 15 countries participated in the QC external exercise: Austria, Croatia, Germany, Po- land, Finland, France, Italy, Macedonia, Portugal, Serbia, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine and the UK. The proficiency of all counters together was examined. Staff proficiency was determined by comparing the pollen count by each staff using the Assigned Value (AV), taking into account the central 95% of data, omitting outliers by calculating z- scores. Different conditions were used to construct the AV: (a) only results with a z-score less than I1.96I were taken into account; (b) due to the fact that z-score values are strongly influenced by the mean of the sample, values were considered outliers when the raw score, minus the mean of the sample, was more than I 10 I. The Confidence Limits (CL) and the Variation Coefficient (VC) were calculated, taking into account the AV and the stand- ard deviation. As global quality data for the whole population, the number and percentage of erroneous elements and the av- erage of relative error were also calculated. Results showed that the VC was 16.3% and all slides were suitable for proficiency testing. The average percentage of errone- ous elements was 6.9 % and the average relative error was 7%, but a higher percentage of erroneous elements were observed in the case of counters from North Europe, for both grass and birch pollen counts. All regional or national networks in South Europe used the same protocol for counting method, 10% as minimum surface examined by horizontal transects. In the case of North Europe, different networks used different methods for reading slides; either horizontal or transversal transects or random sampling. In some instances, counters examined less than 10% of the slide and it was noticed that this had an impact on the results of the QC exercise. This supports the minimum recommenda- tions published in the December 2011 IAA Newsletter, which counters should examine a minimum surface area of 10%, by either horizontal or vertical transects. All counters will receive a signed personal report for proficiency testing. The QC working group will also be published anon- ymous results in a peer reviewed scientific journal. The next step proposed by the WC Working Group is to conduct another external exercise for proficiency testing, but only with counters who follow the proposed minimum recommendations.

Carmen Galán and EAS Working Group on Quality Control

3 Aerobiology in CHILE: The Public Health Impact The 11th European Course on Basic Aerobiology

Victoria Rodinkova, Matt Smith The 11th European Course on Basic Aerobiology (11th ECBA) took place in Vinnitsa, Ukraine, from the 4th to the 10th of July 2013. The Course was held at the Vinnitsa National Pirogov Memorial Medical University (VNMU). The European Aerobiology Society (EAS) and the International Association for Aerobiology (IAA) organised the course in partnership with the Ukrainian Association of Aerobiologists and Vinnitsa Pirogov Memorial Medical University. The Scientific Committee members were Michel Thibaudon (President of the EAS)

and Giuseppe Frenguelli (President of the IAA). The course was locally organized and prepared by Associate Prof. Victoria Rodinkova and the pollen team from the Ukrainian Association of Aerobiologists with support of the VNMU Rector’ Academician Vasyl Moroz.

Lecture of Dr. Michel Thibaudon. It was noted by Dr. Michel Thibaudon that, although the Course was held in the geographical Europe, it was the first time in the 20-year history of the Course that it had been held outside of the administrative European region. Eighteen participants from 16 European Countries, including Russia, Belarus, as well as the Philippines worked hard in the auditorium and practical session rooms. The course was structured to help aerobiologists analyse bioaerosols from air samples and use the data for a variety of different applications, such as allergy avoidance, tatistical and mechanistic modelling and forecasting.

Emphasis was always put on practical sessions in the laboratory where the participants were introduced to main aspects of the daily work carried out by aerobiologists. Practical sessions included the identification of 27 different pollen types, the identification of 6 fungal spore types, scanning and counting of daily slides from the peak of the tree (e.g. birch, oak and ash) and summer (e.g. ragweed, mugwort and goosefoot) pollen seasons, plus blind slides containing 2 pollen types from different periods. Prof. Giuseppe Frenguelli, Prof. Carmen

Galan, Dr. Matt Smith and Dr. Bernard Clot mostly provided the excellent practical sessions.

As well as time spent in the laboratory, the participants were given a series of lectures and practical exercises that were aimed at introducing the participants to various aspects of aerobiology. The presentations included:

Pollen structure and morphology (G. Frenguelli) Practical Plant Identification and Taxonomy (M.Smith)

The wind of change: effects of climate change on airborne pollen concentrations (B.Clot) Basic microscopy; calculating the field of view; scanning the slides; sources of error (G.Frenguelli) Pollen development, Biology and Function (C. Gálan) Aerobiology, Aerodynamics and Pollen sampling (M. Smith) Basic statistics applied to Aerobiology (C. Gálan) Quality control in Aerobiological Analysis (C. Gálan) Health Impacts of Pollen and Molds Student and teacher at the dinner course. (M.Thibaudon) 4 The 11th European Course on Basic Aerobiology

Lecture and Presentation: EAN database, EPI and polleninfo.org (M.Smith) Direct Sampling of Aeroallergens (M.Thibaudon). Seasonal and Short Term Forecasting (M. Smith) Basics of dispersion modeling and forecasting. Role of meteorological processes in particle dispersion (M.Sofiev) Molds and Allergy (A.Bogomolov)

Fungal Spores. The variety of morphology

and air dispersion (T. Andrianova) Predicting

pollen season: processes, simplifications,

datasets, models. (M.Sofiev)

During the practical session provided by Prof. Guiseppe Frenguelli. Pollen and Allergy (A. Bogomolov) Direct Sampling of Aeroallergens (M.Thibaudon)

From pollen to the prick-test: Aerobiology practical application (A. Bogomolov) The 11th ECBA Sponsors were: “IAA”, “RNSA”, “Zeiss”, “OPTEC”, “Czech Club” and “Vladimirsky Massive”. In addition, the Lanzoni Corporation sponsored the practical session concerned with sampling airborne pollen and spores and Bertin Technologies sponsored the session devoted to the indoor sampling using the Coriolis sampler. The IAA , RNSA and Lanzoni Corporation provided grants for five participants to attend the 11th ECBA.

All lectures and abstracts with suggestions for more reading were delivered to the students on a DVD Disc. Folders with the 11th ECBA Printed handouts were provided to Course participants for further reading and notes. Bags, notebooks, and pens marked with the specially designed 11th ECBA logo were also provided for teachers and participants. The students had a final examination (theory and practical). All participants passed the evaluation successfully and received a Certificate of Course Attendance and Attestation on Aerobiology. About half of the participants were already affiliated with aerobiology monitoring programs and they all obtained very good results. The social program was full of surprises, fun and bonhomie. Attendees of the 11th ECBA explored something new in Vinnitsa almost every evening. The first excursion was a visit to the Pirogov Museum devoted to the life and activity of the well-known European surgeon who established field surgery and, for the first time in the world of surgical practice, applied anesthesia during the Crimea Turkish-Russian war. He also made a prototype of computed tomography by sawing frozen human corpses. The excursion ended with a surprise for Course Teachers and participants, they saw the embalmed body of the great surgeon when they visited the crypt that had held the body for more than 130 years. A similar embalming process was used in to preserve the body of Lenin 50 years after Pirogov’ death. Delight and joy – these were the emotions felt by guests of Vinnitsa when the special City-Tour tram (provided by city Council) delivered them to the Fountain ROSHEN. This establishment is known as one of the best floating fountains in the world, and impressed guests by the light show based on the "Swan Lake" ballet. The 11th ECBA attendees also visited the Ukrainian capital Kiev during the one- day social tour. New impressions included the Ukrainian folk museum, art gallery, ancient churches, city centre and monastery. Hitler’s’ Headquarter “Werwolf ”, located nearby Vinnitsa, was visited the next day. Social events included two restaurants – the classic “Dr. Goorwin” (after the Opening Ceremony) and “Dykan’ka” in the folk style (after the Closing ceremony). Without doubt, every participant and lecturer got something new during the visit and short study in Ukraine – knowledge, friendliness and new horizons!

5 Aerobiology at Montevideo city, Uruguay: state of the art.

Montevideo (34o56´S-56o09´W) the capital and most populated city in Uruguay, with about 1.5 million inhabitants, is located on the Río de la Plata estuarine coast. The climate is temperate-subtropical humid, with rainfalls throughout the year (1098 mm), mean annual temperature of 16.5 oC and relative humidity of 75%. Rainfalls are basically controlled by the interaction between the South Atlantic and Pacific Anticyclones. The region belongs to the Pampa Province (Cabrera and Willinks, 1973) where grasslands are the dominant vegetation, however native woodlands along water courses and streams, are an essential part of “campos” landscape (Soriano, 1992). The urban flora is mainly composed of exotic trees and shrub species cultivated for ornamental purposes along streets, avenues, parks and cemeteries over the city as well as in private fields (Lombardo, 1979). Herbaceous vegetation is cultivated in parks and private gardens or occurs spontaneously in open areas of the city (Lombardo, 1982, 1983, 1984). Aerobiology Group of the Faculty of Sciences of Montevideo, Uruguay. From left to right Ximena Martínez, Leticia Tejera and Ángeles Beri. Aerobiological studies in Uruguay haven been limited to Montevideo, the first attempt was made by Vaz Ferreira using coated microscope slides in 1946 (Vaz Ferreira, 1946). In year 2000 the Palynological Lab. at the Faculty of Science (34o52’56.8’’S, 56o06’58.5’’W) started a new study using a Rotorod sampler Model 40 (Sampling Technologies, Inc.) but just for a calendar year (Tejera & Beri 2003; 2005). In 2011 aerobiological investigations were resumed thanks the award of public funds through ANII and CSIC research programs. These funs made possible to install a new sampling station in 2012 at the city centre and to start to record for the first time the daily fungal spore content on the atmosphere. At the same time the Palynology Lab. made efforts to communicate to the general public information about pollen types accounting high concentrations in the atmosphere of Montevideo as well as the plants that produce them. The general aims of the projects are to evaluate the incidence of particular taxa and their relationship with meteorological conditions and local vegetation, to establish predictive models, to assess inter-site differences in order to evaluate the accuracy of using one sampler for the whole city, and to make the population aware of the potentially allergenic pollen and fungal spores present in the atmosphere of the city. Aeropalynological survey The sampler is installed on the roof of the Faculty of Science (34o52’56.8’’S, 56o06’58.5’’W) in an open area at ca. 12 m above floor level. The rods were changed every 24 hours, or 72 hours during weekends and daily data were obtained according to standard methods (Brown et al., 1993). Heighty-six, 76 and 84 pollen types were recorded during years 2000-2001, 2011-2012, 2012-2013, respectively. Pollen was registered over all year but the main pollen season could be established from August to April, as this period represented more than 95 % of TP. Types representing arboreal pollen were registered since autumn and dominate the pollen spectrum during winter and the start of spring, while non arboreal taxa prevail from late spring and summer. Poaceae family was the main and most ubiquitous contributor to the airborne pollen, accounting between 32 to 45% to TP. Other important pollen sources were Asteraceae subf. Asteroideae., Platanus sp., Cupressaceae/Taxaceae, Celtis sp., Urticaceae, Myrtaceae, Casuarina sp., Amaranthaceae, Cyperaceae, Fraxinus sp., Anacardiaceae, Ricinus communis, Moraceae, Myrsine sp., Typha spp. and Ambrosia spp. In relation to fungal spores, though results are preliminary, genera accounting for higher concentrations were Cladosporium y Alternaria. Other relevant spores due their allergenicity potential were Calvatia, Coprinus, Epicoccum, Ganoderma, Oidium y Stemphylium. Finally it is important to highlight that allergenic taxa were registered in high concentrations in Montevideo stressing the relevance of aeropalynological studies for public health and urban planning in this city. Leticia Tejera, [email protected] Ángeles Beri, [email protected] Ximena Martínez-Blanco, [email protected] Laboratorio de Palinología, Faculty of Sciences, Montevideo-Uruguay.

6 75th Anniversary of the death of Fred Campbell Meier (July 29, 1938)

Eugenio Domínguez-Vilches. Spanish Aerobiology Network (REA). University of Córdoba. Spain The 29th July 2013 will be the 75th Anniversary of the disappearance of Fred Campbell Meier. Fred C. Meier is best remembered for coining the term “Aerobiology” and, with the help of the Department of Agriculture, promoting the use of airplanes in aerobiological studies. Meier was friends with John Tripp, the founder of Pan American Airways (), and had good relations with the U.S. Army Air Service, U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard, which allowed him to carry out high-altitude sampling in many different types of aircraft, balloons and airships. For instance, during a winter flight of the airship USS Los Angeles in 1931he developed a technique for collecting organisms that could be taken to the laboratory for culture and subsequent study. In 1934, Meier also had the opportunity to collect samples during the historic flight of ten U.S. Army “MartinB-10” bombers commanded by Henry H.(Hap) Arnold that flew from Washington D.C. to Fairbanks in Alaska and back, a total of 8,290-mile (13,340 km). In 1935, he obtained some very interesting samples during the record flight of Major Albert Stevens sponsored by the Air Service and the National Geographic Society, which reached 36,000 feet (spores of ten species of fungi were identified in these flights). Meier was also friends with the aviators and Amelia Earhart, and they carried various types of samplers on their planes to remote corners of the planet. One particular sampler was designed by Lindbergh and Meier, the so called the "Skyhook". This sampler was used in 1933 during the Lindbergh’s Atlantic Survey Flight, in a Lockheed Sirius christened "Tingmissartoq" (the one who flies like a big bird, in Anuik language), which covered more than 45,000km. The expedition was called the "Jelling Expedition "in honour of the SS Jelling, the supply vessel that stored supplies and equipment and was used as a base for the aviator and passenger .The Skyhook was built in one night by The American Instrument Co. of Washington DC, and consisted of an aluminium tube that projected vertically out of the cockpit to a height of about two feet. At the end of the stick was placed a cartridge that contained a slide with an adhesive surface. The full results of the analyses were never Fig.1. (1) Meier with McKinley, checking the Lindbergh-Meier “Skyhook” in published, although they showed that the July 1938. (2) Verifying their stratospheric sampler in 1935. (3) With a very atmosphere was largely populated with different crude sampler in an open cockpit of an USNG biplane. (From Haskell, A.J. kind of organisms, at least in the lower area of the &Barss, H.P. (1938). Fred Campbell Meier. 1893-1938. Phytopathology, 29: flight envelope. 293-302). Unfortunately, Meier mysteriously disappeared whilst extending his studies in the Pacific aboard the Pan American Airways Martin M-130 “Hawaii Clipper”, in what may be the first hijacking in history. Were the Japanese aware of the strategic importance of the work of Meier, and the ultimate cause of his demise? The answer may lie in the last paragraph of one of his papers: “The potentialities of worldwide distribution of spores of fungi and other organisms caught up and carried abroad by transcontinental winds may be of tremendous economic consequence..." On the flight were Meier, Professor Earl B. McKinley (Dean of the School of Medicine, George Washington University), four other passengers, and nine crew members. McKinley was a friend of Meier and an enthusiastic fellow member of the National Research Council Committee guiding the project. Both Meier and McKinley thought that large bodies of water

7 75th Anniversary of the death of Fred Campbell Meier (July 29, 1938)

would offer an opportunity to measure distances over which spores and pollen grains may be carried by winds; Meier also thought that it would be a good idea to begin air sampling over the Pacific and to train the personnel of PanAm to take regular samples for him. It is not known what became of the Hawaii Clipper, and what happened to its crew and passengers. The plane disappeared somewhere between Manila and Guam. Bad weather? The area is notorious for tropical storms and the plane could have been struck by lightning or suffered structural damage due to heavy turbulence. At that time, the airplanes did not carry weather radar and being engulfed by a storm was always a risk. It could also be a problem with the fuel, which was transported to the refuelling points in a way that often left much to be desired, so the plane could just explode in the air. Perhaps an engine failure? At the time, two engines broke down easily in flight, and it was often the cause for celebration when a four-engine plane reached its destination with all engines operating! Why not sabotage by the Japanese? In 1938, the dark clouds of war overshadowed the world. The Japanese had invaded the Chinese mainland and Japanese expansion was planned in the Pacific. In addition, Hitler advanced plans to invade Czechoslovakia and Poland. Just a Fig.2. Hypothetical pathway of Meier’s Martin M-130 over the Pacific Ocean on July 29th and year earlier, onJuly 1st 1937, how do the Japanese hijackers intercept it. (Modified from Charles N. Hill, 2000). Amelia Earhart went missing whilst undertaking a record flight around the world. She was flying a specially modified Lockheed Electra and was on the way from Hae (New Guinea) to the Howland Islands. At the time of her disappearance, she was 1600km from the flight starting point and near to the Nukumanu islands. Curiously, earlier in this record flight, Amelia had a telephone conversation with her husband (George Putnam) from Java, and talked about making systematic air samples for Meier, and mentioned that she had also taken notes about the environmental conditions at the time of sampling. It has long been speculated that Amelia gathered strategic information on the Japanese during her flight. President Roosevelt had given financial support for the flight and it was thus thrown to the winds by the Japanese radio "Tokyo Rose" during World War II. Did the Japanese believe that Meier's mission was not scientific? It should be remembered that the islands that the Clippers visited varied whilst landing rights were negotiated and port facilities were built. Most of these islands were in hotspots where the American, Dutch, French and Japanese areas of influence collided. France and the USA were very concerned about Japanese expansion in the South Pacific. PanAm almost certainly had help from the U.S. government when negotiating with the French government for permission to land on the Marivellas islands so that they could establish a service along the southern route to Manila. In fact, Pan Am had a strong association with the American government who placed agents disguised as tourists in the Clippers in order to monitor Japanese movements. The French also had interest in keeping these flights, especially if war broke out and they needed to evacuate staff from these islands. Of course, the Japanese were concerned about all these activities. It is, therefore, not impossible to believe that the disappearance of the two aircraft with Amelia and Meier on board was caused by sabotage... Or maybe just Meier’s M-130?

8 Doctoral Thesis “Study about airborne pollen count in urban area, possible contribution of ornamental flora”

On 12 July 2013 was celebrated the public defense of María José Velasco Jiménez PhD thesis entitled “Study about airborne pollen count in urban area, possible contribution of ornamental flora”, in Córdoba University (Spain), under the direction of Dr. Carmen Galán and Dr. Purificación Alcázar Teno. Airborne pollen counts are usually deter- mined using a volumetric suction sampler based on the impact principle, mainly by using Hirst-type spore trap. Samplers de- tect pollen from a wide area, and there- fore, a single sampler is frequently used to acquire information on airborne pollen counts for a whole city. The main goal of the present study was to compare airborne pollen counts at two sites located at opposite ends (south-west vs. north-east) of the southern Spanish city of Córdoba, to assess the advantages and disadvantages of using more than one sampler in the city. Also, a comparative study was carried out using two samplers at the same site, in order to confirm the efficiency of the samplers. On the other hand, a study that analyse the incidence of Dr. M.J. Velasco, PhD tutors and tribunal members. University of Córdoba, Spain. 12 July 2013. potentially-allergenic ornamental species in the city, examining a number of ecolog- ical and aerobiological variables for the species concerned and taken in conjunction with climate data, will undoubtedly be of value when designing new urban green areas and assessing their impact on the local population. The study focused on the seven most common airborne pollen types in Córdoba, those exceeding 0.5% in all samplers: Asteraceae, Amaranthaceae, Cupressaceae, Morus, Olea, Pinus, Plantago, Platanus, Poaceae, Populus, Quercus, Rumex, Urticaceae and Urtica membranacea. The methodology developed by the Spanish Aerobiology Network was used to obtain the average daily airborne pollen variations (pollen grains/m3). Comparison of data obtained by the two samplers running at the same site (south-west area) indicated that potential inter-site differences could not be attributed to differences in sampler efficiency: the data obtained were very similar, correlations be- tween the two were significant and the means were very similar too. Comparison of data obtained by the two samplers

running at different sites (south-west vs. north- east) showed that the most common airborne pol- len types were the same for both samplers, repre- senting anemophilous species abundant in and around Córdoba city. The main difference in the contributions of different pollen types to the total count was found for Platanus, which is more nu- merous as an ornamental and shade tree in the proximity of the south-west sampler. Analysis of

the pollen index for each pollen type and each

study year revealed differences in the distribution of pollen-producing species in the neighbourhood of the traps. In a broad sense, inter-site differences in the timing of pollen seasons were relatively slight. In most cases, differences were attributable to the different distances from the source to the Figure 1. Location of samplers in opposite sites in the city of Córdoba. trap.

9 Doctoral Thesis “Study about airborne pollen count in urban area, possible contribution of ornamental flora”

Meteorological parameters that have shown a higher degree of correlation with the daily pollen count have been maximun temperature, humidity and rainfall. Comparative aerobiological and ecological analysis of allergenic or- namental flora in four cities from Andalusian (Seville, Córdoba, Gra- nada and Málaga) highlighted the considerable diversity of species, influenced by a variety of factors as geographical location, history, culture and dynamic exchanges with the areas and ecosystems sur- rounding the urban environment. The selection of ornamental species for urban green spaces has reflected a constant aesthetic and manage- ment-related preference for woody species. The abundance of aller- genic species in the studied cities, especially in historic gardens and urban areas, has contributed to an increase in the overall allergenicity of the urban environment. Pollen grains emitted in urban surrounding areas constitute a further source of allergy, i.e. cropland and woods. The urban aerobiological spectrum is therefore enriched by wind- Figure 2. Samplers at the same area (south-west). borne pollen from beyond the city. There is an urgent need to screen ornamental plants for allergenicity before introducing them into urban green spaces, in order to improve the quality of the urban environment and protect pollen -allergy sufferers. Aerobiological criteria should be taken into account when planning urban green spaces for leisure use. Valid strategies include using insect-pollinated species, which tend to produce less pollen, and less aerodynamic pollen, than wind-pollinated species, and ensuring the predominance of female plants in the case of dioicous species. It is also important to promote greater species diversity when designing new gardens, in order to avoid the excessive use of monospecific stands, which can prompt a sharp increase in airborne pollen counts. In the future Dr. M.J. Velasco Jiménez is going to extend her research in the aerobiology area, deepening in the effects of ornamental plants in the citizens. She is also developing a study about correlations between the airborne pollen and the ef- fect to the allergy patients with diary questioners.

Obituary : Dr. Ruth Maria Leuschner (1922 – 2013), Basel, Switzerland

A pioneer in aerobiology, our dear colleague and friend Ruth Maria Leuschner

passed away on January 16th, 2013. She was a co-founder and honorary member of the International Association of Aerobiology, and the organiser of the 3rd In- ternational Conference on Aerobiology in Basel in 1986. A note on her career was published in the Aerobiology Newsletter No 62 in 2005, when she finally retired from her long and fruitful research life. She was already a “Grande- Dame” of Aerobiology when most of us started in this field. I remember her ac- tively engaging and taking part in congresses such as Santiago-de-Compostella, Perugia or Vienna and always accompanied by her sister. I was frequently impressed by her open mindedness, innovative spirit and curi- osity that lead to numerous scientific discoveries. Similarly her daring and tenac- ity allowed her to succeed in a time when it was more difficult for women to be accepted in the scientific community. I also remember her sensitivity, her modes- ty and her kindness. After she retired, I truly appreciated the times I could share with her. At home around a cup of coffee or in a nearby (Indian!) restaurant, these meets became a tradition that I will sorely miss. She was always interested in the latest news from aerobiology and aerobiologists and from time to time, she opened up and spoke more freely about her hopes and aspirations and the trials and tribulations that had occurred throughout her life. She also spoke of the im- portance of faith and her commitment to her family. On her mourning card one could find this old Irish blessing from a father to his daughter “May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind always be at your back. May the sun shine warm upon your face, and rains fall soft upon your fields. And until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of his hand.” 10 ICAAICON-2013

Dr. V. K. Jain Dr. Suresh Koolwal Dr.Mahesh Goyal Organizing Chairman Organizing Secretary Scientific Chairman Professor & Head (Resp.Med) Professor (Resp.Med) Consultant Allergologist MahatmaGandhi Medical Col- SMS Medical College, Jaipur Jaipur Allergy & Asthma Center lege,Jaipur [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] Mobile: +919413389141 Mobile +919414077556 Mobile: +919314504531

Conference Secretariat D-68, Madhosingh Road, Banipark, Jaipur, Rajasthan INDIA, PIN 302016 Tel: 0141-4024713 Email: [email protected] Website: www.icaaicon2013.com

9th European Pollen Symposium, October 10 - 12, 2013 in Berlin

Organized by the Foundation German Pollen Information Service In October 2013 the Foundation German Pollen Information Service will celebrate its 30th anniversary. The Foundation will celebrate this birthday at the 9th European Pollen Symposium which will be held October 10th - 12th, 2013 in Berlin.

The Symposium is organized in cooperation with the following Institutions and Organizations: - Allergie-Centrum-Charité, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin - Ärzteverband Deutscher Allergologen e.V. (ÄDA)* - Deutsche Gesellschaft für Allergologie und klinische Immunologie (DGAKI)* - Deutscher Wetterdienst* - European Aerallergen Network (EAN) - European Aerobiology Society (EAS) - European Centre Allergy Research Foundation (ECARF) Location: Kaiser-Friedrich-Stiftung, Robert-Koch-Platz 2, 10117 Berlin Language: English Scientific committee Karl-Christian, Heidrun Behrendt, Siegfried Jäger, Uwe Berger, Michel Thibaudon, Mikhail So- fiev and Uwe Kaminski. Organization: Secretariat of the Foundation German Pollen Information Service and co-workers General: Christiane Kehl: +49 450 518 006 Website: Ingrid van Hofman: +49 450 518 383 Technique: Matthias Werchan +49 450 518 206 Hotel, travel : Dr. Andrea Schietinger +49 450 518 374

Contact [email protected] [email protected]

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2013 Membership Dues for the International Association for Aerobiology

Please list name and address exactly as you would like it to appear in the IAA Directory Title ______First name ______Last name ______Department/Institute ______Mailing address ______City ______State/Province/Region______Country ______Postal code ______Country Code ______Phone______Fax______Email ______Interests ______Please send newsletters to me by ____ mail _____ email [ ] 2013 Individual IAA membership dues - $40 US (students $30) (includes electronic access to the journal Aerobiologia) ______Total payment Please charge my VISA [ ] Mastercard [ ] Credit card number ______Expiration Date ______3 digit security code (on back of card) ______Name as it appears on the credit card ______Credit card billing address (if different than above) ______Signature ______Date ______Please mail this form to IAA Treasurer: Dr Rui M.A. Brandao Dept. de Biologia Universidade de Evora P-7000 Evora (Portugal) Tel (351) 266 760889 [email protected] 12