Culturable airborne fungi in outdoor environments in Manisa, Turkey

Abstract

Airborne fungi may be causative agents of adverse health effects. They may adversely affect human health through allergy, infection and toxicity. Moreover, they have a great influence on urban air quality in Manisa. In this study, a systematical survey on the culturable airborne fungi was carried out for one year in the urban area of Manisa. Fungal samples were collected each month with the Merck MAS100 air sampler from eleven sampling sites. Fungal concentrations were reported as colony forming units (CFU) per cubic meter of air using the MAS100 conversion unit table. Results showed that the average concentration of culturable fungi is 382 CFU/m3 in Manisa air. 14 genera, including 48 species of culturable fungi were identified in this study. The identification of the fungi was made both according to their microscopic and macromorphological properties and through the references. Penicillium is the most abundant species, which comprised more than 25% of the total isolated fungal species. Cladosporium was the most dominant fungal genus, followed by Penicillium, Aspergillus and Alternaria. Also three fungal species, Acremonium byssoides Gams & Lim, Arthrobotrys arthrobotryoides (Berl.) Lindau, and Oidiodendron truncatum Baron were new records for Turkey's mycoflora. © by PSP 2008.