Microbiological characterization of 3193 French dwellings of Elfe cohort children

• Published in: The Science of the total environment 2015-02, Vol.505, p.1026-1035
• Main Authors: Rocchi, S., Reboux, G., Frossard, V., Scherer, E., Valot, B., Laboissière, A., Zaros, C., Vacheyrou, M., Gillet, F., Roussel, S., Raherison, C., Millon, L.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Air Microbiology; Air Pollution, Indoor - statistics & numerical data; Alternaria alternata; Bacteria; Biodiversity and Ecology; Child; Cohort Studies; Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus; Dust - analysis; Dust collectors; Dwelling qPCR profiles; Dwellings; Electrostatic dust fall collector (EDC); Elfe cohort; Environmental Exposure - analysis; Environmental Exposure - statistics & numerical data; Environmental Sciences; France; Fungi; Houses; Housing - statistics & numerical data; Humans; Microorganism geographical location; Microorganisms; Mites; Respiratory diseases; Respiratory disorders
• ISSN: 0048-9697; 1879-1026
• DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2014.10.086

Although exposure to indoor microorganisms in early life has already been associated with respiratory illness or allergy protection, only a few studies have performed standardized samplings and specific microbial analysis. Moreover, most do not target the different groups of microorganisms involved in respiratory diseases (fungi, bacteria, dust mites). In our study, ten specific qPCR targets (6 fungal species, 1 family and 2 genera of bacteria, 1 house dust mite) were used to analyze the microorganism composition of electrostatic dust fall collector (EDC) from 3193 dwellings of the Elfe French cohort study. Multivariate analyses allowed us to show that the microbial composition of dwellings, assessed with simultaneous analysis of 10 microorganisms, can be characterized by four entities: three bacteria, house dust mite Dermatophagoïdes pteronyssinus, fungi Alternaria alternata, and five other molds. Some dwellings' intrinsic characteristics (occupational ratio, type of dwelling and presence of pets) clearly influence microorganism distribution, and six different profiles of dwellings, characterized by their composition in microorganisms, have been described across France. The use of these clusters seems promising in the evaluation of allergic risk. Allergic respiratory diseases will develop in the near future in some children of the Elfe cohort and will indicate to what extent our approach can be predictive of respiratory disease. •Electrostatic dust collector and qPCR analysis in 3193 Elfe children dwellings•qPCR targets were 6 fungal species, 1 family and 2 genera of bacteria, 1 dust mite.•6 dwelling profiles across France have different geographical repartitions.•Occupational ratio, pets, dwelling types influence microorganism concentration.•High microorganism levels in West France in coherence with high wheezing area