Occurrence of airborne bacteria and fungi in bayside offices in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Brickus, L. S. R., Siqueira, L. F. G., Neto, F. R. D. and Cardoso, J. N.
1998 INDOOR AND BUILT ENVIRONMENT, 7 (5-6): 270-275
Brickus, L. S. R., Siqueira, L. F. G., Neto, F. R. D. and Cardoso, J. N., (1998), "Occurrence of airborne bacteria and fungi in bayside offices in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil", INDOOR AND BUILT ENVIRONMENT, 7 (5-6): 270-275.
Abstract:
This paper provides the first published information on indoor concentrations of micro-organisms in a building in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The building in question was a 1,000 m(2), twenty-nine-story building with a central air conditioning system. Concentrations and genera of bacteria and fungi were determined in several offices using a 6-stage impactor (Andersen sampler) during the summer season. Several gram-positive (Micrococcus, Bacillus, Staphylococcus, Streptococcus) and gram-negative (Pseudomonas, Serratia, Klebsiella) genus of bacteria were detected. Of the 13 fungi identified indoors, Cladosporium, Penicillium, Trichoderma and Aspergillus were predominant. Total bacteria and fungi counts showed a definite pattern in a comparison of results for the indoor and outdoor air. Therefore, the source of these micro-organisms is probably the outdoor air, from where they were transported indoors.