Biomarkers and indoor air quality: A translational research review.

Introduction: Air pollution is linked to mortality and morbidity. Since humans spend nearly all their time indoors, improving indoor air quality (IAQ) is a compelling approach to mitigate air pollutant exposure. To assess interventions, relying on clinical outcomes may require prolonged follow-up, which hinders feasibility.

Implementing a negative pressure isolation space within a skilled nursing facility to control SARS-CoV-2 transmission.

Background: Isolation space must be expanded during pandemics involving airborne transmission. Little to no work has been done to establish optimal design strategies and implementation plans to ease surge capacity and expand isolation capacity over long periods in congregate living facilities. The COVID-19 pandemic has an airborne transmission component and requires isolation, which is difficult to accomplish in skilled nursing facilities.

Impact of air quality on the gastrointestinal microbiome: A review.

Background: Poor air quality is increasingly associated with several gastrointestinal diseases suggesting a possible association between air quality and the human gut microbiome. However, details on this remain largely unexplored as current available research is scarce. The aim of this comprehensive rigorous review was to summarize the existing reports on the impact of indoor or outdoor airborne pollutants on the animal and human gut microbiome and to outline the challenges and suggestions to expand this field of research.

Testing the single-pass VOC removal efficiency of an active green wall using methyl ethyl ketone (MEK).

In recent years, research into the efficacy of indoor air biofiltration mechanisms, notably living green walls, has become more prevalent. Whilst green walls are often utilised within the built environment for their biophilic effects, there is little evidence demonstrating the efficacy of active green wall biofiltration for the removal of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) at concentrations found within an interior environment. The current work describes a novel approach to quantifying the VOC removal effectiveness by an active living green wall, which uses a mechanical system to force air through the substrate and plant foliage.

Implementing a negative-pressure isolation ward for a surge in airborne infectious patients.

Background: During a large-scale airborne infectious disease outbreak, the number of patients needing hospital-based health care services may exceed available negative-pressure isolation room capacity.

Methods: To test one method of increasing hospital surge capacity, a temporary negative-pressure isolation ward was established at a fully functioning hospital. Negative pressure was achieved in a 30-bed hospital ward by adjusting the ventilation system.

Impacts of flood damage on airborne bacteria and fungi in homes after the 2013 Colorado Front Range flood.

Flood-damaged homes typically have elevated microbial loads, and their occupants have an increased incidence of allergies, asthma, and other respiratory ailments, yet the microbial communities in these homes remain under-studied. Using culture-independent approaches, we characterized bacterial and fungal communities in homes in Boulder, CO, USA 2-3 months after the historic September, 2013 flooding event. We collected passive air samples from basements in 50 homes (36 flood-damaged, 14 non-flooded), and we sequenced the bacterial 16S rRNA gene (V4-V5 region) and the fungal ITS1 region from these samples for community analyses.

Ambient Coarse Particulate Matter and Human Health: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Airborne particles have been linked to increased mortality and morbidity. As most research has focused on fine particles (PM), the health implications of coarse particles (PM) are not well understood. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of associations for short- and long-term PM concentrations with mortality and hospital admissions.

Errors in coarse particulate matter mass concentrations and spatiotemporal characteristics when using subtraction estimation methods.

In studies of coarse particulate matter (PM10-2.5), mass concentrations are often estimated through the subtraction of PM2.5 from collocated PM10 tapered element oscillating microbalance (TEOM) measurements.

Seasonal variability in bacterial and fungal diversity of the near-surface atmosphere.

Bacteria and fungi are ubiquitous throughout the Earth's lower atmosphere where they often represent an important component of atmospheric aerosols with the potential to impact human health and atmospheric dynamics. However, the diversity, composition, and spatiotemporal dynamics of these airborne microbes remain poorly understood. We performed a comprehensive analysis of airborne microbes across two aerosol size fractions at urban and rural sites in the Colorado Front Range over a 14-month period.