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Pollen grains in the atmosphere of Bratislava were quantitatively and qualitatively analysed during an 8-year period (2002-2009) using a Burkard volumetric pollen trap. The mean annual total pollen grain count recorded during this period was 36,608, belonging to 34 higher plant taxa (22 trees and/or shrubs and 12 herbaceous species). The maximum annual total pollen grain count (50,563) was recorded in 2003 and the minimum (14,172) in 2009. The taxa contributing the highest concentration of pollen grains were Betula, Urticaceae, Cupressaceae-Taxaceae, Populus, Pinus, Poaceae and Ambrosia. During the study period, there was a remarkable increase in the number of pollen grains from February to April, with the highest daily mean pollen counts recorded in April. Total pollen concentration began to decrease markedly in May, but there was a second increase between July and August, followed by a decrease in September. The timing and length of the pollen seasons varied. Betula and Poaceae showed a rather constant 2-year fluctuating rhythm. The relationships between airborne pollen concentration and meteorological variables were assessed. Based on these results, the first pollen calendar in Slovakia has been constructed for the area of Bratislava, which provides a great deal of useful and important information.

Introduction and objective. The invasive alien species Ambrosia artemisiifolia cause environmental, agronomical and medical problems in many regions of the world, including Slovakia. The purpose of this study was to survey the spread and distribution of this species in Slovakia and to analyse its airborne pollen pattern. Materials and methods. To evaluate the spatiotemporal dynamics of Ambrosia invasion in the territory of Slovakia, herbarium specimens, published databases and field investigations were considered. Aerobiological sampling was based on the analysis of pollen records at five aerobiological stations in Slovakia. For Bratislava and Banská Bystrica Monitoring stations, trends in Ambrosia pollen seasons were determined using Mann-Kendall test and Sen's slope estimator. Results. Since the first record of A. artemisiifolia in Slovakia, the number of its colonies and its spread rate has increased considerably, and the colonisation of this species has been successful mainly in the southwestern part of the country. Highest airborne pollen counts were recorded in Nitra, Trnava and Bratislava Monitoring Stations situated in the areas most infested by A. artemisiifolia in Slovakia. However, high pollen counts were also noted in Banská Bystrica and Košice Monitoring Stations situated in areas where the source species was less abundant. During the study period, the number of days on which the pollen concentration exceeded the threshold of sensitivity increased significantly (+1.33 days/year) in Banská Bystrica, whereas the peak value decreased significantly (-13.37 pollen/year) in Bratislava. Conclusion. The number of the populations of A. artemisiifolia has increased considerably in recent years. Besides the most infested areas, high airborne pollen counts were also recorded in territories where the plant species was less abundant. During the study period, the intensity of Ambrosia pollen seasons decreased in Bratislava, probably due to changes in landuse practices, while the increasing trend in the pollen seasons intensity in Banská Bystrica mainly reflects the situation in the ragweed-infested remote areas due to long-range pollen transport.

The sensitization to grass pollen is a known problem in European countries. Phl p 5 is an important allergen recognized by the majority of grass sensitized individuals. In this study, we evaluated daily variation in airborne Poaceae pollen and Phl p 5 allergen concentrations to determine whether airborne pollen concentrations alone are sufficient to reflect the actual allergenic potential of the air. The relationships between the mentioned pollen and allergen concentrations and associated environmental variables were also examined. The airborne particles were collected during the Poaceae flowering season in Bratislava in 2019. Pollen sampling was performed using a Hirst-type sampler, while a cyclone sampler was used for the aeroallergen capturing. Allergenic molecules were quantified by ELISA assay. The associations between pollen and allergen concentrations showed that these two variables are positively correlated; however, the correlation was not significant. We observed the concurrent occurrence of airborne pollen and allergen peaks on the same day. Nevertheless, during some days of the pollen season, the allergen concentrations did not correspond to the airborne pollen values. Moreover, the days with low pollen concentration but high pollen potency and vice versa were observed. The effect of selected environmental variables on daily pollen and allergen concentrations was evaluated through Spearman ' s correlation analysis. Of all meteorological variables considered, air temperature, precipitation, and relative air humidity were significantly correlated with airborne pollen and/or allergen concentrations. The association with air temperature was positive, while the negative association was observed with precipitation and relative air humidity. Among the atmospheric pollutants, O 3 and PM 10 were significantly and positively associated with both pollen and allergen concentrations, whereas CO and PM 2.5 were significantly and positively associated only with pollen concentration.

A strong and significant positive correlation was observed between pollen counts, excluding Betula, and sIgE levels in both analysed years. The correlation was weaker and negative in the case of length of pollen season and sIgE values.