In the indoor environment, mites and fungi are two of the most important causes of asthma and rhinitis in people. Although these two subjects are often studied separately, to do so ignores the important ecological relationship between them. For example, fungi may be a source of nutrients, providing the sterols and vitamins required by one of the most important house-dust mites, Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus. In addition, two other mite species also found in the indoor environment, Acarus siro and Tyrophagus putrescentiae, are attracted by fungi and feed on some species of them. In return, these two mite species are capable of inoculating the micro-organisms into clean food commodities. This review is an attempt to highlight the complex interaction between mites and fungi and to give an overview of our knowledge of this microscopic world. It also hopes to give a clearer understanding of the mechanisms by which fungicides can control, or not, the development of domestic mite populations.
In the indoor environment, mites and fungi are two of the most important causes of asthma and rhinitis in people. Although these two subjects are often studied separate ly, to do so ignores the important ecological relationship between them. For example, fungi may be a source of nutrients, providing the sterols and vitamins required by one of the most important house-dust mites, Dermato phagoides pteronyssinus. In addition, two other mite species also found in the indoor environment, Acarus siro and Tyrophagus putrescentiae, are attracted by fun gi and feed on some species of them. In return, these two mite species are capable of inoculating the micro-organ isms into clean food commodities. This review is an attempt to highlight the complex interaction between mites and fungi and to give an overview of our knowl edge of this microscopic world. It also hopes to give a clearer understanding of the mechanisms by which fun gicides can control, or not, the development of domestic mite populations.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.