Fungal flora in indoor and outdoor air of different residential houses in Tekirdag City (Turkey): Seasonal distribution and relationship with climatic factors

• Published in: Environmental monitoring and assessment 2009-04, Vol.151 (1-4), p.209-219
• Main Authors: Sen, Burhan, Asan, Ahmet
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Air Microbiology; Air Pollutants - analysis; Air pollution; Air Pollution, Indoor - analysis; Air. Soil. Water. Waste. Feeding; airborne microorganisms; Airspora; Alternaria; Applied sciences; Aspergillus niger; Asthma; Atmospheric pollution; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Biological and medical sciences; biomass; Cities; Cladosporium; Cladosporium cladosporioides; Climate; Colony Count, Microbial; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecology; Ecotoxicology; Environment; Environment. Living conditions; Environmental impact; Environmental Management; Environmental monitoring; Exact sciences and technology; Flora; Fungi; Fungi - classification; Fungi - isolation & purification; Houses; Housing; Humans; I/O ratio; Indoor air; Indoor air quality; Indoor environments; Indoor pollution and occupational exposure; Medical sciences; Meteorological Concepts; Microfungi; Monitoring/Environmental Analysis; Monthly distribution; Mycoflora; Outdoor air; Outdoor air quality; Penicillium; Penicillium brevicompactum; Pollutants physicochemistry study: properties, effects, reactions, transport and distribution; Pollution; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; Regression analysis; Relative humidity; Research centers; Residential areas; Seasonal distribution; Seasons; Spores, Fungal - classification; Spores, Fungal - isolation & purification; Studies; Sulfur dioxide; Turkey; Urban air
• ISSN: 0167-6369; 1573-2959
• DOI: 10.1007/s10661-008-0262-1

This study was investigated the density and monthly distribution of indoor and outdoor microfungi in six different residential houses in Tekirdag City through the exposure of Petri dishes containing Rose-Bengal Streptomycin Agar media. Samples were collected in 1-month intervals over a period of 12 months between March, 2001, and February, 2002. We used 432 Petri dishes and counted a total of 4,205 microfungi colonies, 1,790 from indoor air and 2,415 from outdoor air. As a result, 42 species belonging to 12 genera were identified. The most frequent fungal genera were Penicillium (28.61%), Cladosporium (16.08%) and Alternaria (15.98%). While Penicillium (40.61%) and Cladosporium (15.92%) were the dominant genera of indoor air, Alternaria (20.62%) and Penicillium (19.71%) were isolated most frequently from outdoor air (Table 3). Alternaria citri (10.15%) and Penicillium brevicompactum (10.15%) were found to be the most frequent among the 42 identified species. While P. brevicompactum (19.55%) and Aspergillus niger (6.37%) were the most frequent indoor species, A. citri (13.37%) and Cladosporium cladosporioides (8.20%) were the most frequent outdoor species. Linear Regression Analysis was applied to determine whether or not there was a relationship between the number of colonies of isolated fungal genera and meteorological factors during the research period. Correlations between the presence of Aspergillus and temperature, relative humidity, duration of sunny periods and agents of air pollution such as SO₂ and PM were statistically significant. No significant correlations, however, were found between other fungal genera and environmental variables.