Allergenic pollen and pollen allergy in Europe

Aerobiological and allergological studies show that the pollen map of Europe is changing also as a result of cultural factors (e.g., importation of plants such as birch and cypress for urban parklands), greater international travel (e.g., colonization by ragweed in France, northern Italy, Austria, Hungary, etc.) and climate change. In this regard, the higher frequency of weather extremes, like thunderstorms, and increasing episodes of longrange transport of allergenic pollen represent new challenges for researchers. Furthermore, in the last few years the pathogenetic role of pollen and the interaction between pollen and air pollutants, gave new insights into the mechanisms of respiratory allergic diseases.