Microbial (fungal, viral, and bacterial) exposures indoors - The Indoor Microbiome

摘要

Humans are constantly exposed to millions of bioaerosols, These include exposures to whole microorganisms, which can have both beneficial and detrimental effects. There is growing understanding of the indoor microbiome as a result, among other things, of the dramatic (approximately thousandfold) reduction in the cost of DNA sequencing during the past 10 years and significant investments in characterizing the indoor microbiome including but not limited to approximately USD 50,000,000 by the Albert P Sloan Foundation during the past 5 years. Much of the recent work has focused on characterizing the various sources of airborne microorganisms and the relative contribution of each. We have identified the following eight major categories of sources of airborne bacteria, viruses, and fungi in the built environment: humans; pets; plants; plumbing systems; heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning systems; mold; dust re-suspension; and the outdoor environment. This work has shown that some species are associated with specific sources. The potential for source characterization and source apportionment can be extended substantially as a part of indoor environmental exposure and total exposure characterization. This potential is currently unrealized. Future studies of indoor exposures will quantify detailed emission rates of microorganisms from each source and identify the relative contributions of each source to the complete indoor microbiome. "This information could then be used to probe fundamental relationships between specific sources and human health, to design interventions to improve building health and human health, or even to provide evidence for forensic investigations." (Microbiome (2015) 3:78).