POLLEN IN INDOOR ENVIRONMENTS? POLLEN REPORT ON AN INDOOR ENVIRONMENT AND ITS VARIATION DUE TO METEOROLOGICAL FACTORS

ALDO DAGUERRE; MARIA FLORENCIA NUÑEZ SADA; EDGAR CRINÓ; MARTA MATILDE MOGLIA

San Luis

Otro; XXXVII Reunión Científica Anual de la Sociedad de Biología de Cuyo; 2019

Sociedad de Biología de Cuyo

Outdoor air content has a direct influence on indoor air microbiota. In the same way, weather factors that affect the seasons of theyear also influence air ecology in different environments. These facts also relate directly to pollen allergy episodes of those peoplewho are in contact with allergen potential particles such as pollen grains. The objective of the work was to identify the content ofbiological particles in the air of a building of the National University of San Luis and to relate it to some meteorological factors. Inaddition, through surveys, it was tried to relate the amount of pollen grains with allergy episodes of people who worked in thevicinity of the sampler. A continuous aerobiological record was carried out inside the building of the National University of SanLuis, between august 2012 and July 2013. A Lanzoni VPPS 2000 volumetric trap was used in a basement hall. Samples were dyedwith basic fuchsin and then read through an optical microscope at 1000X. Different pollen grains of type were identified:Cupressaceae, Morus, Populus, Eucalyptus, Pinus, Ligustrum, Urtica, Ulmus, Parietaria, Amarantaceae/Chenopodiaceae.Correlation indexes between pollen registers and some weather variables such as temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, andsolar radiation were analyzed. All results proved to be positive: temperature (r: 0.59), relative humidity (r: 0.6), wind speed (r: 0.8)and solar radiation (r: 0.79). In addition, it was possible to establish a significant positive relationship (r: 0.73) between theoccurrence of allergy episodes, in people working in close proximity to the aerobiological sampler, and pollen peaks recorded duringthe months analyzed. Indoor and outdoor pollen grain quantity and type were related. According to the results obtained, we concludethat people who are hypersensitive to certain pollen grains may be affected with symptoms of pollen allergy even inside a building.Therefore, it would be safer to keep windows closed specially in those periods when pollen concentrations are the highest.