A systematic review of outdoor airborne fungal spore seasonality across Europe and the implications for health

Anees-Hill, Samuel; Douglas, Philippa; Pashley, Catherine H.; Hansell, Anna; Marczylo, Emma L.

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.151716

Cited by 62 publications

(58 citation statements)

References 130 publications

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“…Further studies are needed to clarify the seasonal variation in airborne fungal community diversity and structure, and to better understand the role of different environmental parameters on each fungal taxon constituting a certain community over varying seasons. In this respect, we found that the effect of outdoor environmental parameters was more pronounced on Alternaria and Cladosporium than on other fungal genera, which is in agreement with the results from Anees-Hill et al, (2021), who observed a stronger effect of the seasonal variation of environmental parameters on the presence and concentration of Alternaria and Cladosporium, compared to the average effect on the total fungal community [ 65 ]. Numerous studies have shown that meteorological variables are associated with fungal seasonality [ 40 , 44 , 47 ].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…The statistical analyses performed in our study demonstrated that sampling month, temperature, relative humidity, and wind speed ( p = 0.002) had significant impact on the investigated airborne fungal community, diversity and concentration. Previous studies have shown that seasonal variations, types of ventilation, human activities, and other abiotic factors effected the airborne fungal concentrations in the analyzed environments [ 9 , 31 , 32 , 40 , 65 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Environmental Factors Affecting Diversity, Structure, and Temporal Variation of Airborne Fungal Communities in a Research and Teaching Building of Tianjin University, China

Wang

Almeida

et al. 2022

JoF

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Airborne fungi are widely distributed in the environment and may have adverse effects on human health. A 12-month survey on the diversity and concentration of culturable airborne fungi was carried out in a research and teaching building of Tianjin University. Indoor and outdoor environments were analyzed using an HAS-100B air sampler. A total of 667 fungal strains, belonging to 160 species and 73 genera were isolated and identified based on morphological and molecular analysis. The most abundant fungal genera were Alternaria (38.57%), Cladosporium (21.49%), and Aspergillus (5.34%), while the most frequently appearing species was A. alternata (21%), followed by A. tenuissima (12.4%), and C. cladosporioides (9.3%). The concentration of fungi in different environments ranged from 0 to 150 CFU/m3 and was significantly higher outdoor than indoor. Temperature and sampling month were significant factors influencing the whole building fungal community, while relative humidity and wind speed were highly correlated with fungal composition outdoor. Variations in the relative abundance of major airborne fungal taxa at different heights above-ground could lead to different community structures at different floors. Our results may provide valuable information for air quality monitoring and microbial pollution control in university building environments.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental Factors Affecting Diversity, Structure, and Temporal Variation of Airborne Fungal Communities in a Research and Teaching Building of Tianjin University, China

Wang

Almeida

et al. 2022

JoF

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“…and Alternaria spp. spores are among the causes of allergic diseases or sensitizations [ 66 ], and an increasing trend of the incidence of these symptoms was recently claimed [ 67 ]. Similarly, Pseudomonas represented the core bacterial taxon.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Specific Microbial Communities Are Selected in Minimally-Processed Fruit and Vegetables according to the Type of Product

Sequino

Valentino

Torrieri

et al. 2022

Foods

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Fruits and vegetables (F&V) products are recommended for the daily diet due to their low caloric content, high amount of vitamins, minerals and fiber. Furthermore, these foods are a source of various phytochemical compounds, such as polyphenols, flavonoids and sterols, exerting antioxidant activity. Despite the benefits derived from eating raw F&V, the quality and safety of these products may represent a source of concern, since they can be quickly spoiled and have a very short shelf-life. Moreover, they may be a vehicle of pathogenic microorganisms. This study aims to evaluate the bacterial and fungal populations in F&V products (i.e., iceberg lettuces, arugula, spinaches, fennels, tomatoes and pears) by using culture-dependent microbiological analysis and high-throughput sequencing (HTS), in order to decipher the microbial populations that characterize minimally-processed F&V. Our results show that F&V harbor diverse and product-specific bacterial and fungal communities, with vegetables leaf morphology and type of edible fraction of fruits exerting the highest influence. In addition, we observed that several alterative (e.g., Pseudomonas and Aspergillus) and potentially pathogenic taxa (such as Staphylococcus and Cladosporium) are present, thus emphasizing the need for novel product-specific strategies to control the microbial composition of F&V and extend their shelf-life.

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“…The high concentration and predominance of Aspergillus can be attributed to the small size of their spores which can allow a long lifetime in the air (Reponen et al, 2001;Richardson & Rautemaa-Richardson, 2021). While Cladosporium is the most abundant outdoor fungal spore (Anees-Hill et al, 2022;Sánchez Espinosa et al, 2021), and Curvularia is highly frequent in tropical or subtropical climates (Almaguer et al, 2021).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of fungal aerosols in a public library with natural ventilation

et al. 2022

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Fungal aerosols deteriorate library collections and can impact human health, mainly via respiratory diseases. Their spread is influenced by factors such as temperature and relative humidity. This study aims to assess the concentration of fungal aerosols in the interior environment of the Popular Library of Gaira in the District of Santa Marta, Colombia, using a two-stage cascade impactor utilizing Sabouraud dextrose agar on Petri dishes for the collection of samples. The sampler was positioned at 1.5 m above ground level, operated with a flow rate of 28.3 l/min for 4 min and thermo-hygrometric conditions were also recorded. Concentrations in the air of up to 1197.0 CFU/m3 were reported, with a mean value close to 150 CFU/m3. Higher values during the morning samples were noted. Seven genera of fungi were found, Aspergillus and Curvularia were the most abundant. The temperature was between 30.80 and 33.51 °C, and the relative humidity was between 62.61 and 64.80%. Statistical analysis showed a significant correlation between the fungal aerosol concentration and relative humidity, where an increase of 10% in moisture could double the fungal aerosol concentration. We concluded that potentially favorable conditions exist indoors for the growth and survival of the following fungi: Aspergillus, Penicillium, Cladosporium, and Curvularia, and to a lesser extent for Chrysonilia, Cunninghamella, and Paecylomices. Relative humidity was seen to be the factor that affects the concentration of aerosols fungal in the library most significantly.

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A systematic review of outdoor airborne fungal spore seasonality across Europe and the implications for health

Cited by 62 publications

References 130 publications

Environmental Factors Affecting Diversity, Structure, and Temporal Variation of Airborne Fungal Communities in a Research and Teaching Building of Tianjin University, China

Environmental Factors Affecting Diversity, Structure, and Temporal Variation of Airborne Fungal Communities in a Research and Teaching Building of Tianjin University, China

Specific Microbial Communities Are Selected in Minimally-Processed Fruit and Vegetables according to the Type of Product

Assessment of fungal aerosols in a public library with natural ventilation

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