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.

This study was undertaken to investigate whether HEPA filter-equipped air purifiers can remove aerosolized virus, whether the removed virus can re-scatter through the filter, and how long the removed virus keeps its infectivity in the filter. For this investigation, six HEPA filter-equipped air purifiers produced by different companies were tested against PhiX174 and MS2 phages aerosolized by nebulizers. For viral detection from the air, LB agar plates covered with Escherichia coli hosts and an Andersen air sampler were used, and from the surface, the swab method was used. Both the aerosolized PhiX174 and MS2 viruses absorbed by the HEPA filters in the air purifiers were not detected from the air through filters or the surface of the outlet of the air purifiers. During the operation of the air purifiers at medium mode, the infectious viral concentration of these viruses in the HEPA filters decreased to 0%~12.3% as the time period passed. These results regarding infectious viral concentration differences were assumed to be due to the different wind speed and air volume among the six air purifiers. Based on observations over 5 days, the infectious viral concentration of the PhiX174 phage was 8,600 times lower when the air purifier was operated than when it was not operated. Overall, our results demonstrate that HEPA filter-equipped air purifiers can efficiently remove the two aerosolized viruses and the removed viruses in the HEPA filter could not re-spread and maintain their infectivity.

To obtain information on the indoor air quality of un-disinfected libraries used for paper records preservation, temperature, humidity, and bacterial concentration and species were investigated at five un-disinfected libraries from May to September in 2019 in the National Archives, Seoul (Nara Repository), Korea. Temperature and humidity of all the five un-disinfected libraries were well maintained at 18-22oC and 40-55% in compliance with the National Archives Paper Records Preservation Environment Standard. Bacterial concentration ranged from 2 CFU/m3 up to 280 CFU/m3 which were lower than the Korean indoor air quality standard value. A total of 68 bacterial species belonging to 33 genera were identified from indoor air of the five un-disinfected libraries. Among the 33 genera, Bacillus, Micrococcus, and Staphylococcus were the major genera. Only Micrococcus yunnanensis, Roseomonas mucosa, and Moraxella osloensis were commonly found among the five un-disinfected libraries. Bacterial species producing colonies with color on TSA media were present. Among the 68 species, Bacillus circulans and B. megaterium known to produce cellulases were found. There were also 17 species which have harmful effect on human health. The results of this study indicate that continuous monitoring of air borne bacteria is necessary in the un-disinfected libraries used for paper records preservation.

Mold is one of the harmful biological pollutants in the indoor environment. To investigate how the contamination degree of mold existing in the indoor environment differs according to the characteristics of the house, the concentration of mold in the indoor air was investigated for the houses damaged by leakage or flooding. As a result of a survey of 20 houses located in Gyeonggi-do and Chungcheong-do, the concentration of mold in indoor air surprisingly exceeded more than two times the recommended indoor air quality standard of 500 CFU/m3 in all the houses investigated. The fungal concentration was high in houses with condensation and mold odors. As for the housing type, the pollution degree was higher in detached houses than in row houses. As for the type of water damage, mold contamination was higher in the leaky houses than in the flooded houses. The degree of mold concentration was 1,237 CFU/ m3 in the leaky houses. In terms of housing age, pollution was very high in houses over 20 years old. The occurrence of these measured mold concentrations was correlated at a significant level with respect to the properties of the house. This study shows that in the case of water damaged houses, careful management of mold contamination is required.

2016년과 2017년 서천, 장흥, 부여, 여주에 소재하는 표고 재배사에서 진균성 병원균을 모니터링 하는 과정에서 Acrodontium crateriforme, Naganishia friedmannii, Pestalotiopsis trachicarpicola, Penicillium wollemiicola, Trichoderma thailandicum 등 5 종의 국내 미기록 진균을 재배사내 실내 공기, 버섯 파리, 버섯 배지재료 등에서 분리하였다. 이들 진균은 PDA 배양하여 생장시키면서 형태적 특성 조사하고 26S rDNA, 28S rDNA, β-TUB 유전자, TEF 유전자 등을 PCR 기술로 증폭하고 그 염기서열 분석을 수행하여 동정하였다. 본 논문에서는 이들의 분류학적 위치와 위해성에 대해 보고하고자 한다.

Asthma is a chronic diseases that restricts the air passage ways and which is thought to be caused by several factors such as genetics, obesity, mVOC, air pollution, allergens, and fungi. Domestic information on fungi in the indoor air in the houses of asthma patients in the spring and fall is rarely available. Thus, this study was carried out to investigate fungal concentration and diversity. Air samples were collected from the houses of 6 asthma patient in April and October of 2017 located in Seoul and Gyeonggi Provinces using an impaction method. The average concentrations of suspended fungi in the indoor air at the houses of adult asthma patient in October exceeded the 500 CFU/m3 level recommended by the Enforcement Managements of the Indoor Air Quality Control Act. A total of 70 fungi were isolated and identified. Four genera and 11 species were from the April sampling and 10 genera and 27 species were from the October sampling. Among the identified fungi, five species, Arthrinium marii, Penicillium austrosinicum, Penicillium concavorugulosum, Penicillium exsudans and Penicillium johnkrugii were found to be unrecorded species in Korea. The known properties of all identified fungi and the morphological and molecular characteristics of the five unrecorded species were described.

노란달걀버섯은(Amanita javanica) 국내에서 산림법으 로 보호받고 있는 식용 가능한 외생균근성 버섯이나, 중요한 산림자원으로서 활용하기 위한 기초적인 특성 연구에 대한 자료는 부족한 실정이다. 이에 본 연구는 국내 채집 야생버섯 자실체로부터 분리한 노란달걀버섯 NIFoS 1267 균주를 이용하여 PDA 배지 상에서 물리적 요인(온도, pH, 광)과 화학적인 요인(염분, 중금속, 농약)에 따른 균사생장 특성을 조사하였다. 최적의 물리적 환경은 온도가 30oC, pH가 5-6, 암조건으로 배양이었을 때 노란달걀 버섯 균주의 균사생장이 가장 좋은 것으로 나타났다. 화학적 요인으로서 염분은 2.0% 농도 조건까지 버섯균주의 균사 생장이 가능하였다. 50 ppm 농도의 중금속 이온 환경에서 비소(As) 이온은 노란달걀버섯 균주의 균사생장에 영향을 주지 않았으나 카드뮴(Cd)와 납(Pb) 이온은 균사 생장이 불가능하게 하였다. 국내 산림에 사용되고 있는 2가지 농약의 경우, Abamectin 첨가 배지에서는 노란달걀 버섯 균주의 균사 생장에 영향이 없었으나 Acetamiprid, Emamectin benzoate, Thiacloprid가 첨가된 배지 환경에서는 균사 생장이 모두 다 저해 되었다. 본 연구 결과는 향후 상업적 생산을 위한 새로운 자원으로서 노란달걀버섯의 인공재배 연구에 도움이 될 것으로 기대된다.

The use of air cleaners has become popular to quickly remove contaminants present in indoor air such as fine dust and fungi. However, fungal information is rarely available in the filters equipped in the air cleaners. This study was conducted in winter to examine fungal concentration and species in the air cleaner filters of ten residential houses located in Incheon, Seoul, Hwaseong, and Gimpo cities. Fungi were detected in nine out of eleven filters from the ten houses. The level of fungi in the filters ranged from 0 CFU/cm2 to 2,370 CFU/cm2. There were differences in the fungal concentration among the eleven filters. Filters from three houses revealed levels over 1,000 CFU/cm2. The operation time of air cleaners did not seem directly related to the level of fungal concentration. A total of 326 isolates were obtained and classified as six genera belonging to Alternaria, Aspergillus, Cladosporium, Fusarium, Penicillium, and Trichoderma. Among these six genera, 20 species including one Alternaria, one Aspergillus, three Cladosporium spp., two Fusarium spp., eleven Penicillium spp., and two Trichoderma were identified. There were species that cause allergic reaction, pneumoniae, mycosis, and plant disease. Three species were known species of mycotoxin producers. Aspergillus niger, Cladosporium cladosporioides, and Penicillium brevicompactum were the most frequently detected fungi both in the air and in the air cleaner filters. This is the first report of fungal communities present in the air cleaner filters of residential houses in Korea.

Fungus has been regulated as an air contaminant in indoor environments in Korea. To remove the contaminant, air purifiers have been used in houses. However, not much information on the status of fungal contamination in the indoor air of houses is available. The present study was carried out to investigate fungal concentration and species in the indoor air of houses using air purifiers in winter. The results of indoor air sampling of ten houses located in the cities of Incheon, Seoul, Hwaseong, and Gimpo showed that the level of fungi ranged from 9 CFU/ m3 to 782 CFU/m3. Eight out of ten houses showed a level of less than 165 CFU/m3 indicating that the fungal level is generally low. Only one house exceeded the Korean regulatory standard value of 500 CFU/m3. A total of 175 isolates were obtained and classified as three genera belonging to Aspergillus, Cladosporium, and Penicillium. Among these three genera, 15 species including four Aspergillus spp., two Cladosporium spp., and nine Penicillium spp. were identified. Regarding the detection rate of the 15 identified fungal species, A. niger was the most detected species and followed by Cladosporium cladosporioides. Three to six species were present in the individual house that was investigated. Overall, our results showed that the level of fungal concentration and species diversity are low in the indoor air of houses that use air purifiers in winter.

기후 변화에 따른 표고 재배사내 온도와 습도의 변화추이를 알아보기 위하여 5년 동안 봄, 여름, 가을 기간에 걸쳐 국내 49곳의 표고버섯 재배사에서 온도와 습도를 측정 분석하였다. 톱밥배지 재배사의 5년간 평균 온도와 습도는 24.7℃와 60.5%이었다. 원목 재배사의 5년간 평균 온도는 24.4℃, 평균 습도는 60.0%로 나타났다. 여름철 기간 중 온도 평균은 원목재배사의 경우는 2016년 29.8℃, 2017년 29.1℃, 2018년 33.3℃이었으며 톱밥배지 재배사의 경우는 2016년 26.8℃, 2017년 20.4℃, 2018년 24.2℃이었다. 조사 기간 중 30℃가 넘는 고온으로 측정된 재배사는 봄철에 1곳, 여름철에 5곳이었으며 원목 재배사가 5곳을 차지하였다. 원목재배에서 온도가 20℃를 넘지 않는 재배사는 4곳으로 모두 가을에 조사된 온도였다. 본 연구 조사는 기후변화에 대비해 표고 재배사의 경우 원목 재배사 관리에 우선적으로 대비해야 함을 시사하였다.

봄철 천식환자 가정집 9곳에서 실내 공기를 포집하여 부유진균의 농도 및 다양성을 조사하였다. 조사된 천식환자 가정집의 평균 부유진균 농도는 거실 143 CFU/m³, 방 142 CFU/m³ 이었으며 외기보다 낮았다. 이는 다중이용시설 실내공기질 기준법의 권고기준 기준치 500 CFU/m³를 초과하지 않았음을 보여준다. 총 59균주를 분리하였으며 5속 33종으로 동정하였다. 이 중 병원균으로서 인체에 위해성을 가지고 있는 진균은 4속 12종이었다. 동정된 종 중 Cladosporium crousii, Penicillium maximae, Aspergillus protuberus는 국내에 보고되지 않은 미기록 진균 종으로 확인하였다. 이 중 A. protuberus는 국외에서 인체에 질병을 유발시키는 균으로 알려진 진균이다. 이상의 결과는 천식환자 가정에서 진균의 관리는 정량적 수준에서뿐만 아니라 유해종을 파악하여 관리하는 정성적인 수준에서도 이루어져야 함을 제시한다. 본 연구는 봄철 천식환자 가정집에 존재하는 실내 공기 중 부유진균의 농도 및 다양성에 대한 최초의 연구이다.

To obtain basic data on bioaerosols in the indoor environments of houses located adjacent to Gwangyang Iron Works, the concentration and diversity of indoor air molds were comparatively investigated in 33 houses in September of 2016 and 2017, respectively. In areas both adjacent to and nonadjacent to Gwangyang Iron Works, house temperature and humidity ranged from 24~28oC and 47~57%, respectively. Airborne mold concentration was higher in the houses located nonadjacent than in the ones adjacent to the iron works. Interestingly, the level of airborne mold concentration exceeded 500 CFU/m3 in all houses nonadjacent to the iron works. A total of 12 mold species including five pathogenic species were indentified from the investigation. Among the five pathogenic species, the causal agents of otomycosis, Alternaria alternata, Aspergillus fumigatus, and A. niger were present. Overall, Cladosporium cladosporioides was the dominant species. This is the first report on the concentration and diversity of airborne mold in houses located adjacent and nonadjacent to Gwangyang bay industrial complex in Korea.

The potential risk of heavy metals and residual pesticides in imported sawdust media inoculated with oak mushroom cultures is a concern for safe mushroom production in Korea. To obtain preliminary data for a sound analysis of this risk, this study was undertaken to analyze the presence of heavy metals and residual pesticides in the oak mushroom media imported from six different regions in China, between 2013 and 2015. Lead, arsenic, chrome, mercury, and cadmium were analyzed; arsenic, chrome, and mercury were not detected. Lead was detected in the imported oak mushroom media from Jinlin, Shandong, Liaoning, and Tianjin. The detection level of lead ranged from 1.7 to 3.2 mg/kg. Cadmium was detected at a level of 0.028 to 0.037 mg/kg in the media from Shandong and Liaoning. No residual pesticides were detected in any of the samples.

To gather information on the indoor air quality of the greenhouses used for edible oakwood mushroom cultivation, temperature, humidity, and bacterial concentration and species were investigated in 2015 and 2016 in 21 mushroom greenhouses located in ten different regions in Korea. Temperature and humidity of all the mushroom greenhouses ranged from 16.2 to 30.8°C and from 28.2 to 85.6%, respectively. Bacterial concentration exceeded the Korean indoor air quality standard value (800 cfu/m3) in 15 of the 21 mushroom greenhouses. A total of 33 genera and 76 species were identified in the indoor air of the mushroom greenhouses investigated. Of the identified bacteria, 10 genera and 15 species including Acidovorax oryzae, Bacillus infantis, B. licheniformis, Cellulosimicrobium funkei, Ewingella Americana, Exiguobacterium sibiricum, Leclercia adecarboxylata, Lysinibacillus sphaericus, Pseudomonas fulva, Raoultella terrigena, Staphylococcus cohnii, S. haemolyticus, S. saprophyticus, S. sciuri, and Streptomyces sindenensis are among those known to have a harmful effect on human health. These bacteria have been reported to cause sepsis, skin infection, bloodstream infection, bacteremia, spondylitis, peritonitis, acute meningitis, endocarditis and urinary tract infection. The results of this study indicate that continuous hygiene management of indoor air is necessary in the greenhouses used for oakwood mushroom cultivation.

Mold is one of the important bio-aerosols affecting human health in the indoor environment. To manage mold contamination, it is necessary to use an appropriate method for its detection and enumeration. Recently, the impaction method of ISO 16000-18 has been established as one of methods to detect and enumerate molds in air. To investigate the general use of the impaction method for mold detection in domestic indoor environments, the suitability of the method was assessed using different antibiotics, media and air samplers. All of the three antibiotics tested - ampicillin, chloramphenicol and streptomycin - showed inhibitory effects on bacterial colony formation on MEA and DG-18 media, without inhibiting mold growth. Of these three antibiotics, ampicillin was the most effective. There was no statistical difference between MEA and DG-18 media in the measurement of mold concentration. The formation of discriminative colony morphology was more apparent in DG-18 media. No significant difference in the measurement of mold concentration was found between Andersen samplers and MAS- 100NT samplers, which are two major samplers introduced in Korea.

Supplemental substrates for mushroom cultivation media are potent sources for fungal contamination of indoor environment in cultivation houses. The present study was performed to investigate the presence of harmful fungi in the supplemental materials (beet pulp, cotton seed meal, kapok meal, peat moss, wheat straw) imported from China, Egypt, Germany, Indonesia and Pakistan. Fungal concentration in the supplemental materials ranged from 1.3×102 to 1.8×103 cfu/g. A total of 11 genera and 21 species were identified. Two genera and two species were found in Germany peat moss. In Pakistan wheat straw, three genera and four species were detected. In Egypt beet pulp and China cotton seed meal, four genera and five species and seven genera and ten species were shown, respectively. Among the identified fungi, Acremonium sp., Aspergillus chevalieri, Cryptococcus adeliensis, Eurotium amstelodami, Paecilomyces variotii and Rhodotorula mucilaginosa were known as human pathogens. This study provided evidence that pathogenic yeast and filamentous fungi are present in imported agricultural byproduct materials for mushroom cultivation.

Four fungal species, during indoor air monitoring for fungi that possibly affect the field testing of a newly bred shiitake cultivar in cultivation houses located in Cheongyang, Chungnam Province and Jangheung, Jeonnam Province. Of these species, two are known to be plant pathogens and the other two are saprobes but potent contaminators in the mushroom cultivation environment. This study reports the morphological characteristics and phylogenetic relationships of these four species based on nucleotide sequences of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and 18S rDNA region, including their known information.

To obtain information on the sanitary of indoor environment in greenhouses used for shiitake cultivation, bacteria associated with larvae and imagoes of Sciaridae flies, pest to shiitake mushroom, were isolated and identified. A total of 1,048 bacterial colonies were isolated from the flies’ larvae and 984 bacterial colonies were isolated from the flies’ imagoes. Based on molecular analysis of the 16S rDNA sequence, Achromobacter xylosoxidans and Tetrathiobacter kashmirensis of β-proteobacteria, Enterobacter asburiae and Raoultella ornithinolytica of γ -proteobacteria, Curtobacterium sp. and Microbacterium thalassium of Actinobacteria, and Penibacillus taichungensis of Firmicutes were identified from the colonies of the flies’ larvae. While, Bacillus megaterium, B. thuringiensis, Lysinbacillus sphaericus and L. fusifomis of Firmicutes, Microbacterium thalassium and Citricoccus parietis of Actinobacteria, and Enterobacter asburiae of γ-proteobacteria were identified from the flies’ imagoes. Some of the isolated bacterial species were known be human pathogens. Overall, the results of this study suggested that mushroom fly carrying human pathogenic bacteria is one of sources impact on the sanitary of indoor environment of greenhouses used for shiitake cultivation.

To obtain information on the sanitary condition of indoor environment in greenhouses used for shiitake cultivation, bacteria associated with larvae and imagoes of Sciaridae flies, a pest to shiitake mushroom, were isolated and identified. A total of 1,048 bacterial colonies were isolated from the flies’ larvae and 984 bacterial colonies were isolated from the flies’ imagoes. Based on the molecular analysis of the 16S rDNA sequence, Achromobacter xylosoxidans and Tetrathiobacter kashmirensis of betaproteobacteria, Enterobacter asburiae and Raoultella ornithinolytica of gammaproteobacteria, Curtobacterium sp. and Microbacterium thalassium of Actinobacteria, and Penibacillus taichungensis of Firmicutes were identified from the colonies of the flies’ larvae. On the other hand, Bacillus megaterium, B. thuringiensis, Lysinbacillus sphaericus and L. fusifomis of Firmicutes, Microbacterium thalassium and Citricoccus parietis of Actinobacteria, and Enterobacter asburiae of gammaproteobacteria were identified from the flies’ imagoes. Some of the isolated bacterial species were known to be human pathogens. Overall, the results of this study suggested that mushroom fly carrying human pathogenic bacteria is one of factors affecting the sanitary of indoor environment of greenhouses used for shiitake cultivation.