UNIMORE – Laboratory of Palynology and Palaeobotany (LPP)

The Laboratory of Palynology and Palaeobotany (LPP) of the Department of Life Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia was established in 1981 and has always operated in the several fields of palynology, botany and environmental studies in interdisciplinary research.
Main topics of teaching and research collaborations are pollen as bioindicator of human environments and climate change, pollen morphology and applied palynology (forensic sciences, palaeo-archaeopalynology, aerobiology, melissopalynology).

The Lab coordinates national and international networks (GPP-SBI: Group of Palynology and Palaeobotany of the Italian Botanical Society; BRAIN: Botanical Records of Archaeobotany Italian Network – https://brainplants.successoterra.net/index.html). The LPP publication record is a benchmark for studies on applied palynology and archaeobotany.

The LPP team is coordinated by prof. Anna Maria Mercuri – Full Professor of Systematic Botany, teaches botany to schools of doctorate, and Botany/Forensic Palynology to Master – and prof.  Assunta Florenzano – Associate Professor of Systematic Botany for the Bachelor’s Degrees in Natural and in Biological Sciences; Italian Councillor at the International Federation of Palynological Societies (IFPS). The research group also includes 2 researchers, 1 post-doc, 1 PhD technician, and 5 PhD students.

LPP includes about 300 sqm of fully equipped laboratories for palynological extraction, and pollen and macroremain isolation. LPP hosts the largest reference of both modern and fossil pollen collection in Italy (‚Palinoteca‘), consisting of about 10,000 slides; a special section includes slides from forensic material, melissopalynology, and a 20-year collection of aerobiological slides.

Website: http://www.palinopaleobot.unimore.it/site/home.html

EQUIPMENT:

Seven research optical microscopes, two digital optical microscopes and three stereomicroscopes (2 for seeds/fruits, one for charcoals) are in the analysis room of UNIMORE. Two hoods in separate chemical laboratories for extractions of modern and fossil material. An Atomic Force Microscope (AFM), a Confocal Microscope (CLSM) and Scanning Electron Microscopes (SEM and ESEM) are available in the UNIMORE Big Instruments center.

Doctoral candidate – Daniil Gornov

I have studied in Saint-Petersburg State University: 2012-2016 – BSc (Geography); 2016-2018 – MSc (Ecology). My education was focused mainly on palaeopalynology and morphology of pollen and spores. My work experience contains the period from 2014 to 2022 at the Laboratory of Palynology in Komarov Botanical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, where I have worked as a laboratory technician and the period from 2023 to 2024 in the Unit of Natural Sciences in German Archaeological Institute, where I was a scientific assistant.

My research interests are on a variety of scales, from pollen and non-pollen palynomorphs to carpology, plant anatomy, morphology, systematics and taxonomy. My interests also include the larger scale objects studied by geobotany and geomorphology. The history of the development of human-environmental interactions which is part of the field of Quaternary science and palaeogeography inspires me to investigate new horizons of the edge of this knowledge. I am also very interested in different applications of pollen analysis like aeropalynology, melissopalynology, forensic palynology.

Working title of the Phd Thesis and research interests “Natural Traces in forensic investigations – how pollen imprints can solve crime.” The project focuses on forensic palynology. The aim of the research is to extend the sampling methods and analysis of pollen and palynomorphs to dry (terrestrial) surfaces such as soil or clothing, or bodies, combining them with the sampling and analytical methods of forensic aerobiology. The study should aim to identify indicator species of botanical and geographical origin in palynological spectra, in accordance with the methods of palaeoecology, botany and ecology.