Edinburgh Napier University

  Airborne pollens and, more recently, spores, which occur in the rooftop airstream over
Edinburgh have been monitored and the data analysed, since 1988. The thesis
describes the developing organisation, methodologies and resources which underpin
the daily pollen count, data of which are transmitted daily to the UK National Pollen
Research Unit at Worcester for the British Aerobiology Federation's database. The
data of birch (Betula) and grass (POACEJE), two highly allergenic components of the
pollen circulating, are forwarded daily to the European Aeroallergy Network's
database in Vienna.
Each of the nine selected publications presented are of significance both nationally
and internationally. Both the birch and grass pollen studies revealed problems
associated with geographical location, varying heights of trapping sites and
determination of start dates for pollen seasons. Likewise, the factors involved in
asthma mortality within Scotland, the effect on human health that may be passed by
high concentrations of bracken spores and the impact of Dutch Elm disease on the elm
population, all highlighted problems in determining which environmental factors are
significant and, possibly, causative. The paper which dealt with the possible use of
pollen rain analysis on vegetation surfaces, was a response to an hypothesis, which
could have proved useful had it been positive. The two papers on the technique of
pollen analysis of animal faeces has proved to be of value in determining preferred
diet, habitat and cause of pollinosis. Lastly, the biographical paper on Dr
Cunningham once again underlined the importance of an individual's contribution to
the gradual development of techniques for measuring, evaluating and understanding
of the roles of various parameters and their interaction in the discharge, aerial
movement and impact ofbiopartic1es.
The thesis concludes with a description and evaluation of the author's contribution to
the science of Aerobiology.