Exposure Level and Distribution Characteristics of Airborne Bacteria and Fungi in Seoul Metropolitan Subway Stations

A field survey was conducted to quantify indoor exposure levels and emission rates of airborne microorganisms generated from domestic poultry buildings. There were three types of poultry buildings (caged layer house, broiler house, and layer house with manure belt), classified by the mode of manure treatment and ventilation, investigated in this study. Nine sites for each poultry building were selected and visited for measuring the exposure level and emission rate of airborne microorganisms. The total number of airborne bacteria and fungi among the airborne microorganisms were analysed based on the incubation method. Their emission rates were estimated by dividing the emission amount, which was calculated through multiplying indoor concentration (cfu/m3) by ventilation rate (m3/h), into the indoor area(m2) and the number of poultries reared in the poultry building. The mean exposure levels of the total airborne bacteria and fungi in the poultry building were 7.92 (SD:2.66) log (cfu m-3) and 4.92 (SD:1.79) log (cfu m-3), respectively. Emission rates of airborne microorganisms in poultry buildings were estimated to be 0.263 (±0.088) log (cfu hen-1h-1) and 0.839 (±0.371) log (cfu m-2h-1) for total airborne bacteria, and 0.066 (±0.031) log (cfu hen-1h-1) and 0.617 (±0.235) log (cfu m-2h-1) for total airborne fungi. The distribution patterns of the total airborne bacteria and fungi were similar regardless of poultry building type. Among poultry buildings, the broiler house showed the highest exposure level and emission rate of total airborne bacteria and fungi, followed by the layer house with manure belt and the caged layer house (p<0.05). The finding that the broiler house showed the highest exposure level and emission rate of airborne microorganisms could be attributed to sawdust, which can be dispersed into the air by the movement of the poultry when it is utilized as bedding material. Thus, a work environmental management solution for optimally reducing airborne microorganism exposure is necessary for the broiler house.

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Assessment of the indoor air quality based on airborne bacteria and fungi measurements in a public school of Istanbul

Arabian Journal of Geosciences ◽

10.1007/s12517-020-06252-3 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 13 (24) ◽

Author(s):

Nuket Sivri ◽

Ahmet Ozgur Dogru ◽

Arzu Funda Bagcigil ◽

Kemal Metiner ◽

Dursun Zafer Seker

Keyword(s):

Air Quality ◽

Public School ◽

Indoor Air Quality ◽

Indoor Air ◽

Airborne Bacteria ◽

Bacteria And Fungi

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Exposure Assessment of Airborne Bacteria Emitted from Swine Manure Composting Plant

Processes ◽

10.3390/pr9081283 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (8) ◽

pp. 1283

Author(s):

Ki-Youn Kim

Keyword(s):

Relative Humidity ◽

Environmental Factors ◽

Swine Manure ◽

Airborne Bacteria ◽

Particulate Matters ◽

Distribution Characteristics ◽

E Coli ◽

Enterococcus Spp ◽

Staphylococcus Spp ◽

Rotary Type

This study was performed to investigate the distribution characteristics of airborne bacteria emitted from swine manure composting plants. The types of swine manure composting plants selected for the survey in this study were as follows: screw type, rotary type, and natural dry type. Mean levels of airborne bacteria in swine manure composting plants were 7428 (±1024) CFU m−3 for the screw type, 3246 (±1407) CFU m−3 for the rotary type, and 5232 (±1217) CFU m−3 for the natural dry type, respectively. Based on the results obtained from this study, the swine manure composting plant operated by screw type showed the highest concentration of airborne bacteria, followed by the natural dry type and rotary type. The monthly concentration of airborne bacteria was the highest in August and the lowest in November, regardless of the type of swine manure composting plant. The respirable size of airborne bacteria accounted for about 50% of the total. The ratio of respirable to the total quantity of airborne bacteria was 50%. The correlation relationships between airborne bacteria and environmental factors (temperature, relative humidity, particulate matters, and odor) were not found to be significant in the swine manure composting plants. The predominant genera of airborne bacteria identified were Micrococcus spp., Staphylococcus spp., Escherichia(E-coli) spp., Enterococcus spp., and Enterobacteriaceae spp.

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Characterization of Airborne Bacteria at an Underground Subway Station

Applied and Environmental Microbiology ◽

10.1128/aem.07212-11 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 78 (6) ◽

pp. 1917-1929 ◽

Cited By ~ 48

Author(s):

Marius Dybwad ◽

Per Einar Granum ◽

Per Bruheim ◽

Janet Martha Blatny

Keyword(s):

Real Life ◽

Performance Criteria ◽

Anthropogenic Sources ◽

Subway Station ◽

Airborne Bacteria ◽

Surveillance Systems ◽

Operational Environment ◽

Biological Detection ◽

Content Type ◽

Subway Stations

ABSTRACTThe reliable detection of airborne biological threat agents depends on several factors, including the performance criteria of the detector and its operational environment. One step in improving the detector's performance is to increase our knowledge of the biological aerosol background in potential operational environments. Subway stations are enclosed public environments, which may be regarded as potential targets for incidents involving biological threat agents. In this study, the airborne bacterial community at a subway station in Norway was characterized (concentration level, diversity, and virulence- and survival-associated properties). In addition, a SASS 3100 high-volume air sampler and a matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization–time of flight mass spectrometry-based isolate screening procedure was used for these studies. The daytime level of airborne bacteria at the station was higher than the nighttime and outdoor levels, and the relative bacterial spore number was higher in outdoor air than at the station. The bacterial content, particle concentration, and size distribution were stable within each environment throughout the study (May to September 2010). The majority of the airborne bacteria belonged to the generaBacillus,Micrococcus, andStaphylococcus, but a total of 37 different genera were identified in the air. These results suggest that anthropogenic sources are major contributors to airborne bacteria at subway stations and that such airborne communities could harbor virulence- and survival-associated properties of potential relevance for biological detection and surveillance, as well as for public health. Our findings also contribute to the development of realistic testing and evaluation schemes for biological detection/surveillance systems by providing information that can be used to mimic real-life operational airborne environments in controlled aerosol test chambers.

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Thermal Environmental Interference with Airborne Bacteria and Fungi Levels in Air-Conditioned Offices

Indoor and Built Environment ◽

10.1177/1420326x08089260 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 17 (2) ◽

pp. 122-127 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

L.T. Wong ◽

K.W. Mui ◽

P.S. Hui ◽

W.Y. Chan ◽

A.K.Y. Law

Keyword(s):

Airborne Bacteria ◽

Bacteria And Fungi ◽

Environmental Interference

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Airborne Bacteria and Fungi Concentration in Relation with Bedding Type in Broiler Houses

Bulletin of University of Agricultural Sciences and Veterinary Medicine Cluj-Napoca Veterinary Medicine ◽

10.15835/buasvmcn-vm:2018.0033 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 76 (2) ◽

pp. 222

Author(s):

Silvana POPESCU ◽

Cristin BORDA ◽

Cristina EL MAHDY ◽

Eva Andrea LAZAR ◽

Anamaria BLAGA PETREAN ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sunflower Seed ◽

Microbial Contamination ◽

Production Cycle ◽

Airborne Bacteria ◽

Airborne Concentration ◽

Commercial Farms ◽

Bacteria And Fungi

The aim of this work was the investigation of the effect of bedding type on the airborne concentration of bacteria and fungi in broiler houses. The study was performed in two commercial farms (A and B) with different bedding (chopped straw in farm A, sunflower seed hulls in farm B). The determination of the bacteria and fungi’s numbers was performed in the first and the sixth weeks of the production cycle. Both the concentration of the bacteria and fungi showed higher values in the farm A compared with the farm B, especially in the latter period of the production cycle. In both farms, significant differences (P < 0.05) were recorded between the two periods of the determinations. The results of this study suggest that using sunflower seed hulls as bedding leads to lower levels of microbial contamination of the air in broiler houses, comparing with the use of chopped straw.

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