New papers on Microbiology of the Built Environment, January 21, 2017

  Microbes in the house and office A survey of xerophilic Aspergillus from indoor environment, including descriptions of two new section Aspergillus species producing eurotium-like sexual states – Cobus M. Visagie – MycoKeys (OA) Xerophilic fungi grow at low water activity or low equilibrium relative humidity and are an important part of the indoor fungal …

Studies in Mycology 78: Species diversity in Aspergillus, Penicillium and Talaromyces

A new volume of Studies in Mycology was published recently and is dedicated to the diversity in the fungal genera Aspergillus, Penicillium and Talaromyces, all of which play a significant role indoors. The issue includes 6 papers related to our Indoor Mycota Barcode of Life (IM-BOL) project funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Program …

Are Green Building Materials Tastier for Fungi than Conventional Materials?

With the recent popularity of “green” buildings, we have to wonder how these new materials affect the microbes in the built environment. This 2010 paper from researchers at the University of Texas examines fungal growth in such materials. The study involved artificially and naturally inoculating four green building materials and their non-green counterparts with Aspergillus niger, as well as …

microBEnet Microbiology blog of the day: The Aspergillus Website Blog

Going through the list of Microbiology Blogs we have curated at microBEnet and going to try to feature one of them every day or so.  And just going to do this in semi-alphabetic order. Today’s blog: The Aspergillus WebSite Blog  Author: Graham Atherton Tagline/Summary: The Aspergillus Website is dedicated to providing information on aspergillus, aspergillosis, aspergilloma and other …

Yes, microbes in healthcare facilities are important, but fear mongering doesn’t help

Ugg – not impressed by this press release from Clark Seif Clark: Healthcare Facilities need to be Aware of Microbial Pathogens.  This release has some accurate points such as that people with compromised immune systems need to worry about pathogens in the world around the.  And that people with compromised systems can be harmed by breathing …