Bioaerosols in the Suburbs of Ostrava during a One Year Period.

AIM: The aim of this paper is to provide information about the concentrations of airborne bioaerosols (airborne bacteria, fungi and endotoxins) in outdoor suburban environments in Ostrava, Moravian-Silesian region, Czech Republic.

METHODS: The methods were based on systematic bioaerosol monitoring during one calendar year, subsequent analysis of the samples and statistical processing. The regression, correlation analysis and analysis of variance for one factor and pairwise comparisons were performed on bioaerosol data to determine their dependence on season, daytime, temperature, humidity and dew point.

RESULTS: The results show higher fungi concentrations especially in summer (corrected mean 365 colony forming units - CFU per m3 ) compared to other seasons (75-209 CFU/m3 ) and higher concentrations of bacteria in the evening (380 CFU/m3 ) compared to other parts of the day and seasons (in summer 206-252 CFU/m3 and in winter 81-87 CFU/m3 ). Concentrations of endotoxins were relatively low throughout the year, on average 0,056 endotoxin units (EU) per m3 .

CONCLUSIONS: The concentration of bioaerosol (bacteria, fungi and endotoxins) were found in ambient air at substantially lower levels than in an indoor environment. Although the concentrations of this bioaerosol greatly fluctuate with temperature, dew point, season and daytime, they do not represent increased health risks.