Product

Determinator: Pollen module

The identification of pollen grains from air samples are at the basis of the elaboration of weekly pollen bulletins, an important source of information for persons suffering from allergic reactions. hay fever symptoms. At the same time, the process of identification of the relevant pollen types relies heavily on the experience of the laboratory technician.

Wageningen Food Safety Research has developed a special module for identification of 96 different types of pollen grains, called Aeropol 1.0. This goal was achieved in close cooperation with the Biological Laboratory of the Environment Protection Agency of Bolzano and the Palaeoecology group of the Department Physical Geography of Utrecht University. This expert system will facilitate and ease the work of experts and can be used for training purposes.

Application

The system could be of particular interest for hospitals, weather forecast bureaus and meteorological institutes publishing pollen bulletins and pollen calendars. In a broader framework, the system offers an overview of different pollen types originating from a large range of botanic orders and families, which could facilitate research in several areas, such as:

  • forensic science;
  • melissopalynology;
  • copropalynology;
  • palaeopalynology

Installation

The program Determinator need to be downloaded and installed as first step before installing the module Aeropol. A manual for installation is available.