Airborne Fungi in the Atmosphere in Beyazıt Square, Istanbul, Turkey

Year 2017, Volume: 13 Issue: 2, 343 - 351, 30.06.2017

Duygu Göksay Kadaifçiler

Abstract

This study aimed at determining the airborne fungal
concentration and genera/species diversity (especially potential allergens and
opportunist pathogenic species) in Beyazit Square, Istanbul, where people
congregate heavily, between September 2012 and August 2013. Air samples were
collected each month using a volumetric air sampling device. Dichloran glycerol
18 agar (DG-18) and malt extract agar (MEA) were used for isolation, and the
traditional morphologic diagnosis method enabled naming the fungal isolates at
genera and species levels. The average minimum and maximum fungal
concentrations in the DG-18 were found to be 10–705 CFU/m³ and in
the MEA, 20–710 CFU/m³. The highest fungal concentrations were
recorded in the fall season. The most populated airborne fungi were Cladosporium, Penicillium, and Alternaria,
but the most isolated fungal species were, in descending order, Cladosporium sphaerospermum, Alternaria alternata, and Penicillium brevicompactum. Many fungal
species that can cause asthma and allergic respiratory tract infections were
also isolated. For people sensitive to fungal spores, the determination of fungal
flora in their locality is very important. This study’s results might play a
leading role in providing support to existing knowledge, as well as in human
protection and treatment.

Keywords

Airborne fungi, Alternaria, Cladosporium, Istanbul, volumetric air sampling

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