Indoor air fungal pollution of a historical museum, Egypt: a case study

Awad, Abdel Hameed A.; Saeed, Yuosra; Shakour, Alia A.; Abdel‐Latif, Nasser M.; Ibrahim, Yasser; Elghanam, Manal; Elwakeel, Fatma

doi:10.1007/s10453-019-09623-w

Cited by 27 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…One possible explanation for this is that different environmental conditions prompt sporulation during different seasons for different species, but one cannot discard the fact that there was a much more limited amount of CFUs in the Fall, likely due to higher humidity in the air, as a dryer air usually contains a higher spore amount (Medrela-Kuder, 2003;Awad et al, 2020). Overall (Figure 6), the most common species were Penicillium brevicompactum (~9,7%), Cladosporium cladosporioides (~7,8%), Fusarium graminearum (~6,3%), Cladosporium perangustum (~5,8%), Epicoccum nigrum (~5,8%), Alternaria infectoria (~4,6%), Alternaria alternata (~4,3%) and Cladosporium delicatulum (~4,3%).…”

Section: X32 -Species Identificationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Air and wall mycobiota interactions—A case study in the Old Cathedral of Coimbra

Mesquita

Soares

Carvalho

et al. 2022

Viruses, Bacteria and Fungi in the Built Environment

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Section: X32 -Species Identificationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Air and wall mycobiota interactions—A case study in the Old Cathedral of Coimbra

Mesquita

Soares

Carvalho

et al. 2022

Viruses, Bacteria and Fungi in the Built Environment

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“…Recent studies in the field reveal that microclimatic conditions (temperature, humidity, dust, light, etc.) have a critical role in the proliferation of colonies of germs and fungi [7][8][9]. Deterioration of the exhibits due to biological factors and agents is a serious problem, causing damage to the constitutive material [10,11].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The main threat in this regard is given by the microbiological contamination and especially by the fungi [21]. The vast majority of fungi identified inside museums are of medical interest and with pathogenic potential for humans, especially in the case of subjects with weak immunity system or with allergies [9,[22][23][24].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Museal Indoor Air Quality and Public Health: An Integrated Approach for Exhibits Preservation and Ensuring Human Health

et al. 2022

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The quality of the indoor microclimate in museums is a problem of great interest to the contemporary society, given that it is in close connection with the health and comfort of visitors and employees, as well as with the integrity of the exhibits. Taking into account the fact that museums are places that have a special role in the community’s life and therefore attract a very large number of visitors of all ages, a very important issue is to determine the degree of safety that the indoor microclimate presents. Thus, the quality of the indoor microclimate was investigated inside an iconic museum in Romania, dating back to the 19th century, because pollutants from external or internal sources of the building, generated secondary, often anthropogenic, as a tendency to defend/adapt to climate change (CC), contribute to both local and regional pollution, but also lead to challenges in identifying links between air quality (AQ) and and climate change (CC). The methodology used was based on monitoring the main parameters of the microclimate (temperature, relative humidity and CO2) over a period of between October 2020 and March 2021, 21 weeks, as well as on determining the microbiological contamination of the air and some indoor exhibits located in three different areas of the museum. At the same time, the study aims to identify cheap, easy to implement and non-invasive solutions for removing fungi identified on exhibits for long-term preservation and reducing the risk of various pathologies in humans following prolonged exposure. The results obtained show that the indoor microclimate in the old heritage building favours the development of fungi, which have a high degree of contamination of the air (over 800 CFU/m3) and of the exhibits, representing a potential risk for the health of the visitors and museum workers. Thus, six species of yeast and five different fungi genera were identified in the air, while on the exhibits were individualised six fungi genera, a species of yeast and a bacterium. The most viable solution for cleaning materials, prolonging their lifespan and reducing the risk of disease in humans was represented by the use of essential oils (EO). Three essential oils (lavender, mint and lemon) were applied on an exhibit with five different microorganism genera, and it was observed that they have the ability to inhibit the spores from moulds and bacteria, being a very good alternative to the usual chemical treatments that are used in the cultural heritage field.

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“…Wide ranges of microbial concentrations and different biodiversity have been reported in indoor environments in previous studies. However, some genera appeared to be typical of indoor air such as Staphylococcus , Bacillus , Micrococcus , Cladosporium , Aspergillus , and Penicillium 1,9,10,11 . Several studies have shown the importance of the ventilation for air purification, improvement of air quality, and respiratory health 2,10,12,13 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Indoor air quality assessment in dwellings with different ventilation strategies in Nunavik and impacts on bacterial and fungal microbiota

et al. 2021

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Indoor air quality is a major issue for public health, particularly in northern communities. In this extreme environment, adequate ventilation is crucial to provide a healthier indoor environment, especially in airtight dwellings. The main objective of the study is to assess the impact of ventilation systems and their optimization on microbial communities in bioaerosols and dust in 54 dwellings in Nunavik. Dwellings with three ventilation strategies (without mechanical ventilators, with heat recovery ventilators, and with energy recovery ventilators) were investigated before and after optimization of the ventilation systems. Indoor environmental conditions (temperature, relative humidity) and microbiological parameters (total bacteria, Aspergillus/Penicillium, endotoxin, and microbial biodiversity) were measured. Dust samples were collected in closed face cassettes with a polycarbonate filter using a micro‐vacuum while a volume of 20 m3 of bioaerosols were collected on filters using a SASS3100 (airflow of 300 L/min). In bioaerosols, the median number of copies was 4.01 × 103 copies/m3 of air for total bacteria and 1.45 × 101 copies/m3 for Aspergillus/Penicillium. Median concentrations were 5.13 × 104 copies/mg of dust, 5.07 × 101 copies/mg, 9.98 EU/mg for total bacteria, Aspergillus/Penicillium and endotoxin concentrations, respectively. The main microorganisms were associated with human occupancy such as skin‐related bacteria or yeasts, regardless of the type of ventilation.

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Indoor air fungal pollution of a historical museum, Egypt: a case study

Cited by 27 publications

References 38 publications

Air and wall mycobiota interactions—A case study in the Old Cathedral of Coimbra

Air and wall mycobiota interactions—A case study in the Old Cathedral of Coimbra

Museal Indoor Air Quality and Public Health: An Integrated Approach for Exhibits Preservation and Ensuring Human Health

Indoor air quality assessment in dwellings with different ventilation strategies in Nunavik and impacts on bacterial and fungal microbiota

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