Outdoor Allergens

Burge, Harriet A.; Rogers, Christine A.

doi:10.2307/3454401

Cited by 46 publications

(50 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…Ambient fungi also have complex interactions with meteorological parameters, local air pollutants and sampling location (Burge and Rogers 2000;Ho et al 2005;Jones and Harrison 2004;Lin and Li 2000;Wu et al 2007). Wu et al (2007) found that total airborne fungal concentrations and diversity of fungal species (as measured by the number of fungal taxa identified) were generally higher in urban than in rural areas.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effects of transported Asian dust on the composition and concentration of ambient fungi in Taiwan

et al. 2011

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This study was conducted to evaluate the effects of transported Asian dust and other environmental parameters on the levels and compositions of ambient fungi in the atmosphere of northern Taiwan. We monitored Asian dust events in Taipei County, Taiwan from January 2003 to June 2004. We used duplicate Burkard portable air samplers to collect ambient fungi before, during, and after dust events. Six transported Asian dust events were monitored during the study period. Elevated concentrations of Aspergillus (A. niger, specifically), Coelomycetes, Rhinocladiella, Sporothrix and Verticillium were noted (p < 0.05) during Asian dust periods. Botryosporium and Trichothecium were only recovered during dust event days. Multiple regression analysis showed that fungal levels were positively associated with temperature, wind speed, rainfall, non-methane hydrocarbons and particulates with aerodynamic diameters ≤10 μm (PM(10)), and negatively correlated with relative humidity and ozone. Our results demonstrated that Asian dust events affected ambient fungal concentrations and compositions in northern Taiwan. Ambient fungi also had complex dynamics with air pollutants and meteorological factors. Future studies should explore the health impacts of ambient fungi during Asian dust events, adjusting for the synergistic/antagonistic effects of weather and air pollutants.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The effects of transported Asian dust on the composition and concentration of ambient fungi in Taiwan

et al. 2011

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“…3a). The fraction of dust in coarse-mode aerosol, which is observed to be very high during pre-monsoon and the first few days from the onset of monsoon rainfall, gradu- ally decreased as the monsoon progressed, likely as a result of washout and wet deposition due to persistent rainfall in the path of air masses (Hirst, 1953;Madden, 1997;Burge and Rogers, 2000). The M T exhibited a similar pattern to that of N T during three distinct focus periods, with an average mass concentration of ∼ 16.3, ∼ 5.1, and ∼ 7.7 µg m −3 for the dusty, clean, and high bio periods, respectively (Fig.…”

Section: Particle Number and Mass Concentrationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fluorescent biological aerosol particle measurements at a tropical high-altitude site in southern India during the southwest monsoon season

Valsan

Ravikrishna

Biju³

et al. 2016

Atmos. Chem. Phys.

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Abstract. An ultraviolet aerodynamic particle sizer (UV-APS) was continuously operated for the first time during two seasons to sample the contrasting winds during monsoon and winter to characterize the properties of fluorescent biological aerosol particles (FBAPs), at a high-altitude site in India. Averaged over the entire monsoon campaign (1 June–21 August 2014), the arithmetic mean number and mass concentrations of coarse-mode (> 1 µm) FBAPs were 0.02 cm−3 and 0.24 µg m−3, respectively, which corresponded to ∼  2 and 6 % of total aerosol loading, respectively. Average FBAP number size distribution exhibited a peak at ∼  3 µm, which is attributed to the fungal spores, as supported by scanning electron microscope (SEM) images, and these results are consistent with previous studies made for FBAPs. During 11 weeks of measurements the variability of the total coarse-mode particle number (TAP) concentration was high compared to that observed in FBAP number concentrations. The TAP and FBAP number concentrations measured at this site were strongly dependent on changes in wind direction and rainfall. During periods of westerly/southwesterly winds with heavy persistent rainfall, the TAP and FBAP concentrations exhibited very low values (1.3 and 0.005 cm−3, respectively) with no significant diurnal variations, whereas during periods of northerly winds with scattered rainfall FBAPs exhibited relatively high concentration values (0.05 cm−3) with pronounced diurnal variations, which were strongly coupled with diurnal variations in meteorological parameters. The campaign-averaged FBAP number concentrations were shown to correlate with daily patterns of meteorological parameters and were positively correlated with relative humidity (RH; R2  =  0.58) and negatively with temperature (R2  =  0.60) and wind speed (R2  =  0.60). We did not observe any significant positive correlation with precipitation as reported by previous researchers from selected areas. These measurement results confirm the fact that the ratio of PBAPs to TAP is strongly dependent on particle size and location and thus may constitute a significant proportion of total aerosol particles.

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“…Fungal spores are the biological airborne agent most predominant in many areas [12,23,24,29,42,43,44], and in others fungal fragments have been demonstrated to be reactive in subjects with allergies [19,20,21]. A significant number of them are small enough to penetrate into the upper and lower airways and induce immunological reactions in subjects with rhinitis and asthma [17].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sensitization to Airborne Ascospores, Basidiospores, and Fungal Fragments in Allergic Rhinitis and Asthmatic Subjects in San Juan, Puerto Rico

Rivera-Mariani

Nazario-Jiménez²,

López-Malpica³

et al. 2011

Int Arch Allergy Immunol

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Background: Fungal spores are the predominant biological particulate in the atmosphere of Puerto Rico, yet their potential as allergens has not been studied in subjects with respiratory allergies. The purpose of this study was to determine the level of sensitization of subjects with respiratory allergies to these particles. Methods: Serum samples were drawn from 33 subjects with asthma, allergic rhinitis, or nonallergic rhinitis and 2 controls with different skin prick test reactivity. An MK-3 sampler was used to collect air samples and the reactivity of the sera to fungal particles was detected with a halogen immunoassay. Results: All subjects reacted to at least 1 fungal particle. Thirty-one subjects reacted to ascospores, 29 to basidiospores, 19 to hyphae/fungal fragments, and 12 to mitospores. The median percentage of haloes in allergic rhinitis subjects was 4.82% while asthma or nonallergic rhinitis subjects had values of 1.09 and 0.39%, respectively. Subjects with skin prick tests positive to 3, 2, 1, or no extract had 5.24, 1.09, 1.61, and, 0.57% of haloed particles, respectively. If skin prick tests were positive to basidiomycetes, pollen, animals, or deuteromycetes, the percentages of haloes were 4.72, 4.15, 3.63, and 3.31%, respectively. Of all haloed particles, 46% were unidentified, 25% ascospores, 20% basidiospores, 7% hyphae/fungal fragments, and 2% mitospores. IgE levels and the number of positive skin prick test extracts correlated with the percentage of haloes. Conclusion: In tropical environments, sensitization to airborne basidiomycetes, ascomycetes, and fungal fragments seems to be more prevalent than sensitization to mitospores in subjects with active allergies, suggesting a possible role in exacerbations of respiratory allergies.

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Outdoor Allergens

Cited by 46 publications

References 19 publications

The effects of transported Asian dust on the composition and concentration of ambient fungi in Taiwan

The effects of transported Asian dust on the composition and concentration of ambient fungi in Taiwan

Fluorescent biological aerosol particle measurements at a tropical high-altitude site in southern India during the southwest monsoon season

Sensitization to Airborne Ascospores, Basidiospores, and Fungal Fragments in Allergic Rhinitis and Asthmatic Subjects in San Juan, Puerto Rico

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