The present study was carried out to investigate the concentration and species diversity of airborne fungi in thermophilic mushroom cultivation houses. Fungal concentration measurements were performed in April and May 2022 for a Pleurotus ostreatus cultivation house, in July and August 2023 for a Pleurotus sajor-caju and Agaricus blazei cultivation house, and in June, July and August 2023 for a Pleurotus pulmonarius, Pleurotus sajor-caju and Calocybe indica cultivation house. The airborne fungal concentration was 2.95 × 102 CFU/m3~105CFU/m3, above 105CFU/m3, and 1.12 × 103 CFU/m3~ 9.17 × 103 CFU/m3 in the three cultivation houses, respectively. A total of 8 genera and 22 species of airborne fungi were isolated from three mushroom cultivation houses. 5 genera and 7 species were identified from P. ostreatus cultivation house. Furthermore, 4 genera 6 species were found from A. blazei and C. indica cultivation house. In addition, 5 genera and15 species were isolated from P. pulmonarius, P. sajor-caju and C. indica cultivation house. Among the fungi isolated, the class of Eurotiomycetes was the most common. Among the 22 fungal species, Aspergillus flavus, A. ochraceus A. sydowii, A. tubingensis, A. westerdijkiae, Penicillium brevicompactum, P. citrinum, and P. steckii have been reported as harmful species to mushrooms, food, and human.

Airborne bacteria in mushroom growing environments are a potential risk of contamination in commercial mushroom production. Controlling contamination in mushroom farms requires understanding the bacterial ecology in the cultivation environment. This study was conducted to investigate the concentration and species diversity of floating bacteria in a thermophilic mushroom cultivation room. Temperature, humidity, temperature, humidity, and bacterial concentration measurements were performed in April and May 2022 for a Pleurotus ostreatus cultivation house, in July and August 2023 for a Pleurotus sajor-caju and a Agaricus blazei cultivation house, and in June, July and August 2023 for a Pleurotus pulmonarius, Pleurotus sajor-caju and Calocybe indica cultivation house. The airborne bacterial concentration was 5.27 × 103~105 CFU/m3, 3.81 × 102 ~1.37 × 103 CFU/m3, and 2.55 × 102 ~1.37 × 102 CFU/m3 in the three cultivation houses, respectively. A total of 23 genera and 37 species of airborne bacteria were isolated from the three mushroom cultivation houses. 12 genera and 18 species were identified from P. ostreatus cultivation house. Furthermore, 4 genera and 4 species were found from A. blazei and C. indica cultivation house. In addition, 11 genera and 18 species were isolated from P. pulmonarius, P. sajor-caju and C. indica cultivation house. Among the bacteria isolated, the Bacilli class was the most common, followed by Gammaproteobacteria. Among the 37 bacterial species, it was determined that Bacillus cereus, B. licheniformis, Cedecea neteri, Exiguobacterium acetylicum and Raoultella terrigena could negatively affect humans or foodstuff. Cedecea neteri is also known to cause diseases among mushrooms.

This study was carried out to investigate how airborne bacteria are distributed under different temperature conditions while cultivating oyster mushrooms by setting the indoor temperature of the cultivation room to 10°C, 15°C, 20°C, 25°C, and 30°C. The surveys were conducted in April and May, respectively. Airborne bacterial concentrations were distributed in the range of 1.61 × 102 ~ 3.67 × 102 CFU/m3 in April and 5.47 × 102 ~ 7 × 103 CFU/ m3 in May. In May, the indoor air quality maintenance standard (8.0 × 102 CFU/m3) was exceeded in the 10°C, 20°C, and 25°C cultivation rooms. Bacterial concentrations increased significantly in May compared to April. Bacterial concentrations were different between the cultivation rooms at different temperatures. The difference was more pronounced in May than in April. A total of 15 genera and 20 species were isolated from the indoor air of the oyster mushroom cultivation rooms. Overall, it was most abundant in Actinomycetia. Among the species identified, Agrobacterium radiobacter, Brevundimonas vesicularis, Kocuria palustris, K. salsicia, Lysinibacillus fusiformis, and Sphingobacterium siyangense are known to affect human health. This is the first report of airborne bacteria in cultivation rooms at different temperatures used for oyster mushroom cultivation. The results of this study are expected to be used as basic data to understand the indoor environment of thermophilic mushroom cultivation facilities.

Fungi are organisms that must be monitored and controlled in order to preserve valuable paper records. They reduce the quality of paper records by degradation and/or discoloration. As an effort to understand fungal contamination in the National Archives of Korea, the concentration of fungi in the indoor air of the unsterilized record rooms has been reported. However, what species are present in the facilities is not much known. In the present study, we examined the fungi isolated from the National Archives of Korea and found among them that there are fungal species which are newly documented in Korea. They were identified based on morphological properties and nucleotide sequences analysis of the polymerase chain reaction-amplified the internal transcribed spacer region of rDNA, calmodulin gene, and beta-tubulin gene. We report Cladosporium parahalotolerans, Cladosporium subuliforme, Ochroconis mirabilis, Penicillium angulare, and Penicillium fundyense as new instances of fungal species in Korea. Among these five species, P. angulare is known to able to produce cellulase and O. mirabilis as an opportunistic pathogen of human and animals.

Fungi have been known as an irritant or causal agent of asthma. Thus, information on their concentration and diversity in indoor air of asthmatic patient’s houses is valuable for the management of these micro-organisms. The present study was performed to investigate fungal concentration and diversity in indoor air of resident spaces in two adult patient’s houses in winter. Air samples were collected in February of 2018 from living rooms and bedrooms of two asthma patients’ houses located in two different places in Incheon city using an impaction method. The average concentrations of airborne fungi did not exceed the 500 CFU/m3 level which is recommended by the Enforcement Managements of the Indoor Air Quality, Ministry of Environment, Korea. A total of four genera and 23 species were identified based on morphological and molecular methods. Aspergillus and Penicillium were two major genera. Aspergillus pseudoglaucus and Penicillium citrinum were commonly found between the two patient’s houses. Among the identified fungi, three species, Aspergillus venenatus, Penicillium jamesonlandense, and Penicillium salami were found to be unrecorded species in Korea. The morphological and molecular characteristics of these three unrecorded species were described. Since these species produce spores well and a lot, they are considered to be a species that needs management. This study provides basic information on the fungi for indoor air quality management in the living spaces of asthma patients in winter in Korea.

In order for records to be preserved for a long time without physical and chemical transformation, the preservation environment of the library is very important, and environmental problems must be improved through periodic investigation on the preservation environment. Against this background, this study derived fine dust (PM10) and ultrafine dust (PM2.5) concentration data for the libraries, hallways, and workrooms of the National Archives of Korea over two years. There was a difference in the concentration of fine dust and ultrafine dust among facilities, and there was a change in the concentration depending on the month. Both fine dust and ultrafine dust concentrations were present at less than 10 μg/m³ in the libraries. In the hallways, both fine and ultrafine dust concentrations were highest in July. In the workplaces, the monthly fluctuations in the concentration of fine dust and ultrafine dust were large. And the concentration of fine dust and ultrafine dust in the workplaces were higher than those in the library and hallways. Overall, the concentration of fine dust and ultra-fine dust was measured below the maintenance standards stipulated by the Indoor Air Quality Management Act of the Ministry of Environment of Korea in all the investigated facilities. The results of this study are expected to be used as fundamental information to manage the indoor air quality of the facilities of the National Archives.

Temperature, humidity, and fungal concentration were investigated during the period from May 2019 to August 2021 to obtain information on the indoor air quality in the facilities of the National Archive of Koea, located at Seongnam, Daejeon, and Busan, respectively. The temperature and humidity of the undisinfected libraries was properly maintained for the preservation of papepr records. The airborne fungal concentration differed among the libraries, changed according to the season, and increased especially between June and August. Similarily, the concentration of airborne fungi in the hallways adjacent to the libraries also fluctuated depending on the season and showed a tendency to rise in the months when the ourside temperature rose. In general, the concentration of airborne fungi in the hallways was somewhat higher than that of the libraries. Importantly, it was identified that the concentration of airborne fungi exceeded the recommended standard (500 CFU/m3) by the Ministry of Environment of Korea only in the workroom where the classification and condition inspection of undisinfected records imported from outside were performed. Investigation of airborne fungal concentration from May 2021 to August 2021 showed that the 24 undisinfected libraries in Seongnam, Daejeon, and Busan were all good at 100 CFU/m3 or less. The results of this study are expected to be used as basic data to manage the indoor environment of facilities in the National Archives.

Nine districts in Seoul were chosen randomly and a questionnaire containing 23 questions was distributed to survey the perception of noise pollution by the citizens. The results were primarily analyzed to understand the perception of Seoul citizen as a whole, and then analyzed according to 4 demographic variables -district area, age, gender and occupation -to see if there were any possible relation between nonnoise variables and noise annoyance. Actual noise level data measured by the city government were used to compare quantified noise level with the surveyed people`s perception. It was found that people consider road traffic noise to be the main source of noise pollution in Seoul and that most people have experienced annoyance in everyday life. Also it was verified that the responsibility for noise control should be on both city government and the individuals, but it was generally considered that very little effort is actually put into solving noise pollution from both groups. From the survey, it could be analyzed that demographic variables do affect people in the awareness of noise pollution, and that one`s sensitivity and annoyance due to noise increase as one ages. From the study, it was concluded that noise pollution is not considered currently as a hazardous problem to most Seoul citizens, however specific noise reduction policies, especially regarding road traffic noise, should be put into practice in the near future.