Strong variance in the inflammatory and cytotoxic potentials of Penicillium and Aspergillus species from cleaning workers' exposure in nursing homes

• Published in: The Science of the total environment 2020-07, Vol.724, p.138231, Article 138231
• Main Authors: Lu, Rui, Tendal, Kira, Frederiksen, Margit W., Uhrbrand, Katrine, Li, Yanpeng, Madsen, Anne Mette
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Exposure risk; Fungi; Indoor exposure; Linear dose-response; Occupational health
• ISSN: 0048-9697; 1879-1026
• DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.138231

Penicillium and Aspergillus are among the dominant genera of fungi in many environments. Exposure to these fungi may cause inflammation-related health effects, however the knowledge about this at species level is limited. The aim of this study was to obtain knowledge about cleaning workers' exposure to fungi and to investigate the total inflammatory potential (TIP) and the cytotoxic potential of fungal species. The fungi were obtained from the personal exposure of cleaning workers' in five nursing homes. In total 271 fungal isolates were identified using MALDI-TOF MS. The TIP and cytotoxic potential were determined for 30 different fungal isolates covering 17 species in an in vitro assay by exposing HL-60 cells to the fungal spores of each isolate. The geometric mean exposure of the cleaning workers was 351 CFU fungi/m3 air. We showed that the TIP and cytotoxicity varied among both species and isolates. At the two lowest doses, there was a positive relationship between spore concentration and TIP. The species with highest TIPs were A. candidus and P. italicum, while the most cytotoxic ones were A. niger and A. fumigatus. There was no obvious relationship between the TIP of an isolate and its cytotoxicity. The results of this study provide a better understanding of the inflammatory potential and cytotoxicity of different environmental fungal species and contribute to the risk evaluation of exposure to different Penicillium and Aspergillus species. [Display omitted] •Cleaning workers' exposure was dominated by 7 Penicillium and 4 Aspergillus species.•The inflammatory potential of Penicillium and Aspergillus was species dependent.•P. expansum, P. italicum and A. candidus caused a high level of inflammation.•A. niger and A. fumigatus were the most cytotoxic species.