ECOLOGY. 357 



Research in Hay-Fever. 

 Pacific Coast and Great Basin: H. M. Hall. 



Studies of the hay-fever plants of these two regions have led to certain 

 definite conclusions as to the species responsible, and hence to the kinds of 

 pollens to be used in the treatment of this malady. Several fundamental 

 principles have been confirmed or established, such as the negligible import- 

 ance of insect-borne pollens, the relatively high virulence of certain groups of 

 plants, and the varying constitution of the hay-fever flora in different regions. 

 It follows from this that pollen extracts very useful in the East or in Europe 

 may have little or no value for the treatment of cases in the West, where for 

 the most part the flora is very different. On account of this, as well as the 

 large number of causative species in the Great Basin and Pacific States, it 

 becomes necessary to make detailed hay-fever surveys for each district. This 

 permits the preparation of lists of the principal hay-fever plants, in which is 

 given the period of pollen production, the relative importance, and the results 

 obtained from the testing of patients by specialists. Such lists have now been 

 prepared for 12 western districts, and the typewritten copies are in use by 

 practicing specialists, who have supplied much valuable information as to the 

 results obtained. 



These studies were first undertaken in cooperation with Dr. Grant Selfridge, 

 of San Francisco, and other specialists now cooperating in the work are Dr. 

 A. H. Rowe, of Oakland, and Dr. George Piness, of Los Angeles, Dr. T. C. 

 Chamberlain, of Portland, and Dr. Wm. Scheppegell, of New Orleans. At the 

 University of California, Dr. Legge and Dr. McVey are assembling a large 

 collection of pollens to be used in a cooperative study of the causes and treat- 

 ment of hay-fever among university students. The frequent requests for 

 lists of hay-fever plants and for assistance in procuring pollens, which come 

 from physicians and specialists of nearly every Western State, indicate the 

 demand for information on this subject, and the need of a thorough scientific 

 investigation of the underlying principles of pollen therapy. A hay-fever 

 survey of California, with special lists for three of the more densely populated 

 districts, has been prepared at the request of the United States Public Health 

 Service and published in its reports during the year. Similar surveys for other 

 States are under way and will be issued as soon as they are completed. 



Rocky Mountain and Mississippi Valley Regions: F. E. Clements, W. V. Mullin, 



AND R. W. Gilmore. 



A similarly comprehensive investigation of the causes, diagnosis, treatment, 

 and prevention of hay-fever has been undertaken in the regions indicated. 

 While the emphasis has been placed upon diagnosis and therapy, special 

 studies have been made of the production, distribution, and collection of 

 pollen and the occurrrence, abundance, and eradication of hay-fever plants. 

 In order to make a knowledge of the latter and their pollens accessible to 

 physician and patient alike, a manual is in preparation which will illustrate all 

 the important species and pollens by means of color-plates. The amount of 

 pollen produced, the time of day when it is shed, and the curve of production 

 during the flowering season for a particular species have been investigated and 

 a chart devised to show the beginning, maximum, and close of pollen produc- 

 tion for each of the important species of a definite region. The occurrence and 



