ArticlePloS one2018
Exploring temporal patterns of bacterial and fungal DNA accumulation on a ventilation system filter for a Singapore university library.
Article in PloS one, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 12 citations in OpenAlex.
- Recovery and Quantification of Norovirus in Air Samples from Experimentally Produced Aerosols.Food and environmental virology · 2024Article
- Airborne SARS-CoV-2 surveillance in hospital environment using high-flowrate air samplers and its comparison to surface sampling.Indoor air · 2022Article
- Experimental parameters defining ultra-low biomass bioaerosol analysis.NPJ biofilms and microbiomes · 2021Article
- Temporal variation of airborne fungi in university library rooms and its relation to environmental parameters and potential confounders.Environmental science and pollution research international · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 4 institutions in 5 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionVentilation system filters process recirculated indoor air along with outdoor air. This function inspires the idea of using the filter as an indoor bioaerosol sampler. While promising, there remains a need to investigate several factors that could limit the accuracy of such a sampling approach. Among the important factors are the dynamics of microbial assemblages on filter surfaces over time and the differential influence of outdoor versus recirculated indoor air.
methodsThis study collected ventilation system filter samples from an air handling unit on a regular schedule over a 21-week period and analyzed the accumulation patterns of biological particles on the filter both quantitatively (using fluorometry and qPCR) and in terms of microbial diversity (using 16S rDNA and ITS sequencing).
resultsThe quantitative result showed that total and bacterial DNA accumulated monotonically, rising to 41 ng/cm2 for total DNA and to 2.8 ng/cm2 for bacterial DNA over the 21-week period. The accumulation rate of bacterial DNA correlated with indoor occupancy level. Fungal DNA first rose to 4.0 ng/cm2 before showing a dip to 1.4 ng/cm2 between weeks 6 and 10. The dip indicated a possible artifact of this sampling approach for quantitative analysis as DNA may not be conserved on the filter over the months-long service period. The sequencing results indicate major contributions from outdoor air for fungi and from recirculated indoor air for bacteria. Despite the quantitative changes, the community structure of the microbial assemblages was stable throughout the 21-week sampling period, highlighting the robustness of this sampling method for microbial profiling.
conclusionThis study supports the use of ventilation system filters as indoor bioaerosol samplers, but with caveats: 1) an outdoor reference is required to properly understand the contribution of outdoor bioaerosols; and 2) there is a need to better understand the persistence and durability of the targeted organisms on ventilation system filters.
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