Shukla Vertika, Upreti Dalip K
Lichenology Laboratory, National Botanical Research Institute, Rana Pratap Marg, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh 226001, India.
Environ Pollut. 2007 Dec;150(3):295-9. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2007.02.010. Epub 2007 Apr 2.
The present study was designed with an aim to observe the effect of increasing urbanization and traffic activity on the physiology of a foliose lichen, Phaeophyscia hispidula (Ach.) Essl., collected from 13 different localities, growing in their natural habitat, in Pauri and Srinagar, two cities in the Himalayas. Six parameters i.e., Chl. a, Chl. b, total pigment, chlorophyll degradation, carotenoid and total protein content, proved the most useful to assess air pollution, were measured. Chlorophyll content and protein content are an efficient parameter to measure the air quality of a region. The study indicates that P. hispidula is pollution tolerant (adaptation) and able to withstand local emissions from vehicle exhausts.
