Characterization of Ambient PM10 Bioaerosols in a California Agricultural Town

Abstract

Ambient bioaerosols in PM 10 samples were measured at three sites in Corcoran, an agricultural town in the southern San Joaquin Valley (SJV) of California, during fall of 2000 corresponding to the cotton harvest season. Elevated bioaerosol concentrations were measured near grain elevators (GRA site) and a cotton handling facility (BAI site) as compared to levels in a residential community (COP site), ~2 km northeast of these sources. Average endotoxin levels (13 ± 17 EU/m 3 ) at the grain elevator site were three to eight times higher than averages at the nearby cotton-handling and residential sites. The highest level (47.6 EU/m 3 ) at the grain elevator site was about half of the exposure limit of 90 EU/m 3 set by the Dutch Expert Committee on Occupational Safety. Particle counts of fungal spore (66,333 particles/m 3 ) and pollen grain (2,600 particles/m 3 ) concentrations were more than double those reported in the literature. Average fungal biomarker concentrations of 170 and 131 ng/m 3 for arabitol and mannitol, respectively, were 1-2 orders of magnitude higher than those from nonagricultural areas. The low correlation (r < 0.11) of three fungal markers (i.e., (1→3)-β-D-glucan, arabitol, and mannitol) with fungi counts is consistent with findings by others and indicates that these are insufficient as surrogates to represent fungal exposure. Agricultural activities contributed measureable amounts to PM 10 mass and organic carbon (OC), dominated by fungal spores (i.e., 5.4-5.8% PM 10 mass and 11.5-14.7% OC). The sum of fungal spores, pollen grains, and plant detritus accounted for an average of 11-15% PM 10 and 24-33% OC mass. Bioaerosols can be important contributors to PM 10 mass in farming communities similar to Corcoran, especially during intense agricultural activities.

Preparation and Characteristic of Antibacterial Facemasks with Chinese Herbal Microcapsules

“…Bioaerosols generated from airborne particles of biological origin include fungi, bacteria, viruses, and fragments of the foregoing or their metabolic products (e.g., endotoxins, mycotoxins) (Chow et al, 2015;Walser et al, 2015;Chen et al, 2016;Zhang et al, 2016;Lal et al, 2017). Environmental health studies have indicated that constant exposure to bioaerosols containing high concentrations of bacteria can lead to respiratory diseases including allergies, infections, and other adverse health effect (Bünger et al, 2007;Lu et al, 2016;Mirhoseini et al, 2016).…”

Atmospheric Deposition of Polychlorinated Dibenzo-p-dioxins and Dibenzofurans in Two Cities of Southern China

“…Fine particulate matter (dp ≤ 2.5 µm, PM 2.5 ) has aroused widespread public concern, since it has been found to contain toxic compounds like PCDD/Fs, contribute to poor air quality, and have adverse effects on human health and global climate change (Laden et al, 2000;Chow et al, 2015). Previous investigations have shown good correlations between PM 10 and total-PCDD/Fs mass concentrations (Wang et al, 2010;.…”

Fungal Bioaerosol Exposure and its Effects on the Health of Mushroom and Vegetable Farm Workers in Taiwan

“…Various studies have evaluated bioaerosol exposure on agricultural farms (Chang et al, 2002;Lee et al, 2006;Matkovic et al, 2009;Madsen, 2011;Hansen et al, 2012;Lee and Liao, 2014;Madsen et al, 2014;Viegas et al, 2014;Chow et al, 2015); of these, only a few have been conducted in Taiwan (Chang et al, 2002;Lee and Liao, 2014). In addition, studies focusing on the health risks of occupational fungal exposure on farms are scant (Yoshikawa et al, 2007;Adhikari et al, 2011;Ampere et al, 2012).…”

“…Airborne particles that are living and those originating from living organisms are collectively called bioaerosols, including pollen, fungal spores, bacteria, viruses, animal dander, and mite-associated fragments (ACGIH, 1999;Krop et al, 2014;Chow et al, 2015). Fungi are almost omnipresent on the Earth.…”