Air sampling of fungal spores on filters. An investigation on passive sampling and viability

Näsman, Åsa; Blomquist, Göran; Levin, Jan‐Olof

doi:10.1039/a902832c

Cited by 11 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 12 publications

(4 reference statements)

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“…The culturable bacterial concentrations presented in this article should therefore be considered as minimum exposure levels for the workers during this measurement campaign. The same caveat do not apply, however, to the concentrations of culturable fungi, as fungi -and sporulating microorganisms generally -are not, or are only mildly sensitive to the stress induced by filtration, even with sampling durations of several hours (Lin and Li, 1998;Li et al, 1999;Nasman et al, 1999;Wang et al, 2001;Durand et al, 2002). Likewise, culturable fungi concentrations remained steady after overnight shipping at room temperature of the sampling cassettes before the analysis (Thorne et al, 1994;Nasman et al, 1999).…”

Section: Culturable Bacteriamentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of Workers’ Exposure to Bioaerosols in a French Cheese Factory

Simon

Duquenne

2014

The Annals of Occupational Hygiene

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Hundreds of different cheeses are produced in France, where 23.9kg of cheese were consumed per inhabitant in 2009, when it was ranked the second cheese-consuming nation. To meet this considerable demand, a large number of cheese factories exist where many workers, especially cheese washers, may be exposed to fungal bioaerosols that can lead to adverse toxinic and allergic effects. Airborne bacteria, fragments, or microbial by-products (endotoxins) are also found and contribute to total worker exposure. However, there is almost no published data concerning worker exposure or characteristics of bioaerosols emitted during these activities. Here, we measured the parameters (concentrations, species present, and size distribution) of the culturable fungal bioaerosol emitted in a French natural-rind cheese-maturing cellar. Concentrations of airborne bacteria and endotoxins were also measured. The main tasks were investigated using stationary or personal sampling over three consecutive days. Depending on the work area, high concentrations of culturable mesophilic microorganisms were measured (using closed-face cassettes): from 10(4) to 2×10(8) CFU m(-3) for fungi and from 10(3) to 10(6) CFU m(-3) for bacteria. These concentrations are 10- to 100000-fold higher than those measured at two reference points (indoor and outdoor) that are assumed not to be contaminated by the plant's activities. Endotoxin concentrations were between 10 and 300 EU m(-3) in the plant. Exposure was further assessed by identifying the predominant culturable fungi (allergenic Mucor fuscus and Penicillium sp.) and by measuring particle size distributions (cascade impactor). Airborne fungal entities (spores, mycelium strands and fragments, agglomerates, etc.) were found with aerodynamic diameters from 3 to over 20 µm. A metrological approach was used to fully characterize the culturable fungal aerosols generated during cheese maturing in this plant. The results show that workers are exposed to concentrations of airborne culturable fungi, sometimes very high, throughout the manufacturing process. In addition to fungi, culturable bacteria and endotoxins are also present in the work atmosphere. All these microbial organisms thus contribute in a complex manner to total worker exposure. Despite the lack of both occupational exposure limit values and standardized measuring methods, our results suggest that an immunological risk may occur among workers, especially for cheese brushers, cheese washers, and packagers who are the most exposed workers in the factory.

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Section: Culturable Bacteriamentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of Workers’ Exposure to Bioaerosols in a French Cheese Factory

Simon

Duquenne

2014

The Annals of Occupational Hygiene

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“…They studied the sampling performance of this new type of filter for three different fungal species and also compared its performance with closed-face polycarbonate filters. The glycerol-soaked filter exhibited a better correlation with polycarbonate filters with regards to the total spore count [ 78 ].…”

Section: Bioaerosol Samplingmentioning

confidence: 99%

On-Site Bioaerosol Sampling and Airborne Microorganism Detection Technologies

Rastmanesh,

Boruah,

Lee

et al. 2024

Biosensors

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Bioaerosols are small airborne particles composed of microbiological fragments, including bacteria, viruses, fungi, pollens, and/or by-products of cells, which may be viable or non-viable wherever applicable. Exposure to these agents can cause a variety of health issues, such as allergic and infectious diseases, neurological disorders, and cancer. Therefore, detecting and identifying bioaerosols is crucial, and bioaerosol sampling is a key step in any bioaerosol investigation. This review provides an overview of the current bioaerosol sampling methods, both passive and active, as well as their applications and limitations for rapid on-site monitoring. The challenges and trends for detecting airborne microorganisms using molecular and immunological methods are also discussed, along with a summary and outlook for the development of prompt monitoring technologies.

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“…Collection media were selected based on literature and on our experience with chlamydophila preservation and stirrer cell cultures. Glycerol, distilled water and mineral oil have been used before (Willeke et al, 1998;Näsman et al, 2008). Carboxymethylcellulose is generally used in stirrer vessels.…”

Section: Impingementmentioning

confidence: 99%