Estimating the abundance of airborne pollen and fungal spores at various elevations using an aircraft: How high can they fly?

11. April 2017

Airborne pollen and fungal spores are monitored mainly in highly populated, urban environments, for allergy prevention purposes. However, their sources can frequently be located outside cities’ fringes with more vegetation.

In order to shed light on this paradox, we investigated the diversity and abundance of airborne pollen and fungal spores for various environmental regimes. We monitored pollen and spores using an aircraft and a car, at elevations from sea level to 2,000 m above ground, in the region of Thesssaloniki, Greece. We found a total of 24 pollen types and more than 15 spore types. Pollen and spores were detected throughout the various elevations. Lower elevations exhibited higher pollen concentrations in only half of plant taxa and higher fungal spore concentrations in only Ustilago. Pinaceae and Quercus pollen were the most abundant recorded by aircraft (>54% of the total). Poaceae pollen were the most abundant via car measurements (>77% of the total). Cladosporium and Alternaria spores were the most abundant in all cases (aircraft: >69% and >17%, car: >45% and >27%, respectively). We conclude that pollen and fungal spores can be diverse and abundant even outside the main source area, evidently because of long-distance migration incidents.

Author information: Damialis A1,2,3, Kaimakamis E4, Konoglou M4, Akritidis I5, Traidl-Hoffmann C1,2, Gioulekas D6.
¹ Chair and Institute of Environmental Medicine, UNIKA-T, Technical University of Munich and Helmholtz Zentrum München, Germany – German Research Center for Environmental Health, Augsburg, Germany.
² CK-CARE, Christine Kühne – Center for Allergy Research and Education, Davos, Switzerland.
³ Department of Ecology, School of Biology, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece.
⁴1st Pulmonary Department, “G. Papanikolaou” General Hospital of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece.
⁵ Internal Medicine Department, “G. Gennimatas” General Hospital of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece.
⁶ Pulmonary Department, Faculty of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece.

20th CK-CARE Team Meeting 2025

27. February 2025

The 20th CK-CARE Team Meeting took place on 24 and 25 February 2025 under the motto ‘Embracing the concept of data analysis to further personalised patient care’. The aim of the meeting was to develop innovative ideas and prepare a draft publication for the CK-CARE Scientific Board based on the data from the CK-CARE registry and biobank. The event began with an informative presentation of the data from the CK-CARE repository and the biobank, which provided the framework for intensive group work. The participants were divided into four teams: Team 1, 2 and 3 chose the topic according to their personal interest based on the available data from the CKC repository and the biobank, while team 4 focused on science communication for the NIA app. The day was rounded off with a guided tour of the historic Fuggerei in Augsburg followed by a tapas dinner at the Tafeldecker restaurant, which provided space for lively discussions. On Tuesday, each group presented their idea in a 3-minute ‘Scientific Paper Pitch’ to the critical members of the ‘CK-CARE Scientific Board-lion’s den’.

(Copyright Image: Samuel Tschaffon, UK Augsburg)

Global Allergy Forum 2022

19. September 2024

The 4th Davos Declaration: A Milestone for Atopic Dermatitis Patient Care

During the last Global Allergy Forum (GAF) key opinion leaders from science, medicine and industry met in Davos to discuss the current state of the art of patient care in atopic dermatitis (AD) and proposed new strategies for its improvement. The thinktank addressed the high prevalence of AD and strategized methods to advance research, diagnostics, management and prevention. The findings are now published as «Navigating the Evolving Landscape of Atopic Dermatitis: Challenges and Future Opportunities: the 4th Davos Declaration».

Annual Report CK-CARE 2023

30. May 2024

CK-CARE’s work has global resonance and, thanks to this strong position, significant projects in clinical allergy research were again launched or catalysed in the reporting year. CK-CARE’s working methods were sharpened in terms of medical translation and a strengthening of research capacities on the medical campus in Davos was defined in order to increase CK-CARE’s performance.

Annual Report 2023

30. May 2024

CK-CARE’s work now has global resonance and, thanks to this strong position, significant projects in clinical allergy research were again launched or catalysed in the reporting year. CK-CARE’s working methods were sharpened in terms of medical translation and a strengthening of research capacities on the medical campus in Davos was defined in order to increase CK-CARE’s performance.

Kühne-Foundation Annual Report 2023

6. May 2024

“Entrepreneurial success should go hand in hand with the promotion of the common good. The Kühne Foundation fulfills this task. With a variety of programs and projects, the founder and the Kühne Foundation also assume their socio-political responsibility.”

The activities were significantly expanded, particularly in the area of logistics. In addition, the new focus area of climate action was established, and the first projects were launched.

Prof. Dr. h.c. Klaus-Michael Kühne

Annual Report 2023

How flexible are neutrophils to opposing signaling?

22. February 2024

Paola Martinez Murillo a postdoctoral researcher in Pierre-Yves Mantel’s group from CK-CARE obtained a Spark grant from the SNSF to investigate the effect of opposite signals on neutrophil biology in atopic dermatitis.

Spark is a Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) funding scheme aiming to support projects that show unconventional thinking and introduce a unique approach. The Spark is highly competitive and supports projects based on promising ideas of high originality. CK-CARE was recognized as an eligible institution in June 2023 by the SNSF, opening new funding opportunities for the CK-CARE researchers.

This project aims to understand how two opposing signals: eczema dysregulated immune environment (Th2 response) and bacterial colonization (Th1 response) impact neutrophils function.

Neutrophils are tiny but powerful immune cells in our blood that fight off bacteria and viruses. They live for only 2-3 days and can quickly respond to infections. Neutrophils can adapt to different situations thanks to their genetic instructions (RNA). Our body’s reversible changes in reading DNA, called epigenomic modifications, are crucial for a functional immune response.

Eczema, a chronic skin condition, happens when various factors like genetics, skin damage, and immune reactions go haywire. People with eczema have neutrophils that do not work as well in fighting bacteria, making them more prone to infections.

This study addresses a knowledge gap in neutrophil adaptation to an allergic milieu, by evaluating neutrophil adaptation to anti-bacterial response in a type 2 immune response dominated context such as atopic dermatitis using transcriptional and epigenomic profiling along with comprehensive analysis of neutrophil functionality (netosis, phagocytosis, ROS-production, bactericidal activity, chemotaxis). Building upon in-vitro stimulation insights, then we will aim for a comprehensive analysis of neutrophil functionality in atopic dermatitis patients treated or not with Dupilumab.