Pollen Dynamics in Urban Ecosystems

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Issue of Plants aspires to assemble an array of research and review articles addressing the topic of airborne pollen dynamics in the urban environment. Enabling sexual reproduction, pollen is vital for life on Earth. Nevertheless, it may become a pollutant in cities, where most of the human population thrives. This needs to be seriously addressed, particularly under current climatic change. Given the ability of vegetation to mitigate the impacts of the latter, it becomes increasingly urgent to expand urban green infrastructure. This should happen in a way that does not undermine other ecosystem services vegetation provides, including the quality of the atmospheric environment regarding biological pollutants. To develop and implement such strategies, it is imperative to better understand pollen dynamics in the complex urban landscape. We hope that this Special Issue will make a substantial contribution to this goal and we kindly invite you to participate in it with your research on the topic.

Announcement

Pollen is a mass of minuscule grains produced by plants that sexually reproduce (hence, it is a collective term without a plural). Meteorological factors affect all pollen related processes: production, release, transfer and deposition. Being the male component in the fertilization process, pollen is indispensable to the survival of most plants. But this is not its only role, and it is not always benign. Pollen can be a food source for animals; it is a tool for reconstructing past vegetation patterns or for estimating future fruit production; it is an indicator of environmental change, be it climatic, land use or any other type affecting the composition and abundance of vegetation; and it is also a trigger for allergies for sensitized individuals. Given its important roles, there are dense networks in many countries that monitor airborne pollen, forecast its circulation patterns at different temporal and spatial scales, and communicate the results to the interested parties.

Pollen in the air becomes bioaerosol and, at large concentrations, may become a pollutant in the urban environment. This is the case primarily of pollen from wind pollinated plants, which produce far higher amounts of pollen than those relying on animals for their reproduction. The focus on pollen in urban environments derives from the following facts: (i) vegetation in cities is mostly manmade, hence, it can be modified to satisfy human needs; (ii) the majority of human population now lives in cities, hence, factors affecting the quality of life there should be thoroughly addressed; and (iii) pollen transfer through the air, already a complex process dominated by natural factors, such as wind patterns and pollen morphology, is embracing there the added complexities of human factors, such as air pollution, the structures of the built environment and the barriers it creates for smooth transfer, and also the modification of meteorological conditions, such as the heat islands.

Given current climate change and the ability of vegetation to mitigate its impacts, expanding urban green infrastructure is increasingly urgent. Similarly urgent should be strategies that optimize its ecosystem services, including the quality of the atmospheric environment regarding biological pollutants. To develop and implement such strategies, we need to use efficient pollen monitoring at finer spatial scales and to know the flora and vegetation of the city of concern. We also need to know the flowering times and other properties of the species contributing pollen to the air. Most importantly, we need to understand in depth (i) how pollen diversity and abundance change in time and space, both horizontally and vertically, (ii) the pollen, landscape and meteorological features that are associated with longer pollen suspension in the air, (iii) the impacts of climate change and of specific meteorological factors on pollen quantity and circulation patterns, (iv) how synchronous are flowering periods with pollen seasons, how reliably airborne pollen reflects the local vegetation, and under which circumstances long distance transfer can modify markedly the prevailing patterns, and (v) how the interaction with atmospheric pollutants changes the properties of pollen grains and, hence, their transfer and allergenicity. Based on the above, we can build robust forecasting models and shape the built environment and infrastructure to respond to current environmental and public health challenges.

This Special Issue aims to assemble an array of research and review articles addressing these important questions. Colleagues who have already contributed to this area are warmly invited to submit a manuscript. The deadline is April 30, 2027.

Prof. Em. Dr. Despoina Vokou
As. Prof. Dr. Athanasios Damialis
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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