The Use of Bromeliads as Biomonitors of Air Quality: A Global Review

Air pollution is a global problem in urban and rural areas, mainly related to vehicular traffic and industrial activities. Bromeliads have been widely used globally for active and passive air quality monitoring. However, a systematic review to facilitate the access and analysis of this information i...

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Main Authors: Ángel Benítez, Luis Montaño, Azlan Abas, Omar Cabrera, Esteban Torracchi-Carrasco
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2024-01-01
Series:International Journal of Forestry Research
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2024/6677068
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author Ángel Benítez
Luis Montaño
Azlan Abas
Omar Cabrera
Esteban Torracchi-Carrasco
author_facet Ángel Benítez
Luis Montaño
Azlan Abas
Omar Cabrera
Esteban Torracchi-Carrasco
author_sort Ángel Benítez
collection DOAJ
description Air pollution is a global problem in urban and rural areas, mainly related to vehicular traffic and industrial activities. Bromeliads have been widely used globally for active and passive air quality monitoring. However, a systematic review to facilitate the access and analysis of this information is yet to be made available. The objective of this work was to systematically review the use of bromeliads in biomonitoring of the air quality from articles published between 1990 and 2023 to analyze the progress and impact of the research related to the type of monitoring, species used, pollutants measured, and sampling protocols. The search was carried out in global (Scopus, ISI Web of Science, ScienceDirect, and MDPI) and regional (SciELO and Redalyc) databases with a total of 60 scientific articles, where the neotropical region with 31 articles and the Nearctic region with 11 articles were the most influential regions. In addition, more than 90% of the research has been published in high-impact journals (quartile 1). Passive monitoring registered 25 articles compared to active monitoring with 23, with 23 species of the family Bromeliaceae, predominantly the genus Tillandsia. Tillandsia usneoides was the most common species used in active monitoring, while Tillandsia recurvata was used for passive monitoring. The measurement of heavy metals was the preferred technique (93% of the studies) for air quality monitoring, where Zn, Fe, Pb, Cr, and Mn and the nonessential elements K, Ca, and Na were the most measured. Results obtained by different research groups cannot be compared directly because different methodologies have been used, highlighting the importance of standardized techniques for future work. Thus, as a contribution in this direction, we propose a protocol to facilitate or standardize the selection of the proper methodology for developing air quality monitoring using bromeliads.
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spelling doaj-art-08ee8c13396b4f45bedaa359797b0c7a2025-08-20T03:55:32ZengWileyInternational Journal of Forestry Research1687-93762024-01-01202410.1155/2024/6677068The Use of Bromeliads as Biomonitors of Air Quality: A Global ReviewÁngel Benítez0Luis Montaño1Azlan Abas2Omar Cabrera3Esteban Torracchi-Carrasco4Environmental Management SchoolEnvironmental Management SchoolCentre for Research in DevelopmentBiodiversity of Tropical Ecosystems BIETROP Research GroupDentistry Program and at the Center for ResearchAir pollution is a global problem in urban and rural areas, mainly related to vehicular traffic and industrial activities. Bromeliads have been widely used globally for active and passive air quality monitoring. However, a systematic review to facilitate the access and analysis of this information is yet to be made available. The objective of this work was to systematically review the use of bromeliads in biomonitoring of the air quality from articles published between 1990 and 2023 to analyze the progress and impact of the research related to the type of monitoring, species used, pollutants measured, and sampling protocols. The search was carried out in global (Scopus, ISI Web of Science, ScienceDirect, and MDPI) and regional (SciELO and Redalyc) databases with a total of 60 scientific articles, where the neotropical region with 31 articles and the Nearctic region with 11 articles were the most influential regions. In addition, more than 90% of the research has been published in high-impact journals (quartile 1). Passive monitoring registered 25 articles compared to active monitoring with 23, with 23 species of the family Bromeliaceae, predominantly the genus Tillandsia. Tillandsia usneoides was the most common species used in active monitoring, while Tillandsia recurvata was used for passive monitoring. The measurement of heavy metals was the preferred technique (93% of the studies) for air quality monitoring, where Zn, Fe, Pb, Cr, and Mn and the nonessential elements K, Ca, and Na were the most measured. Results obtained by different research groups cannot be compared directly because different methodologies have been used, highlighting the importance of standardized techniques for future work. Thus, as a contribution in this direction, we propose a protocol to facilitate or standardize the selection of the proper methodology for developing air quality monitoring using bromeliads.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2024/6677068
spellingShingle Ángel Benítez
Luis Montaño
Azlan Abas
Omar Cabrera
Esteban Torracchi-Carrasco
The Use of Bromeliads as Biomonitors of Air Quality: A Global Review
International Journal of Forestry Research
title The Use of Bromeliads as Biomonitors of Air Quality: A Global Review
title_full The Use of Bromeliads as Biomonitors of Air Quality: A Global Review
title_fullStr The Use of Bromeliads as Biomonitors of Air Quality: A Global Review
title_full_unstemmed The Use of Bromeliads as Biomonitors of Air Quality: A Global Review
title_short The Use of Bromeliads as Biomonitors of Air Quality: A Global Review
title_sort use of bromeliads as biomonitors of air quality a global review
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2024/6677068
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