Reduced susceptibilities to biocides and resistance to antibiotics in food-associated bacteria following exposure to quaternary ammonium compounds.

Aims: Our aim was to assess the effects of step-wise exposure to didecyl dimethyl ammonium chloride (DDAC) on the antimicrobial (antibiotics and biocides) susceptibilities of food-associated bacterial strains.

Methods And Results: Adaptive responses of bacterial strains were investigated by exposing the strains daily to increasing subinhibitory concentrations of DDAC for 7 days. Following adaptation to DDAC, a threefold increase in the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values for this biocide was observed in 48% of the Escherichia coli and Listeria monocytogenes strains, and 3% of the Salmonella strains.

Comparative evaluation of three impactor samplers for measuring airborne bacteria and fungi concentrations.

Portable microbial samplers are useful for detecting microorganisms in the air. However, limited data are available on their performance when sampling airborne biological agents in a routine practice. We compared bacterial and fungal concentrations obtained in field conditions using three impactor samplers with different designs (AES Chemunex Sampl'Air, bioMérieux Air Ideal, and Sartorius AirPort MD8/BACTair).

Indoor fungal contamination: health risks and measurement methods in hospitals, homes and workplaces.

Indoor fungal contamination has been associated with a wide range of adverse health effects, including infectious diseases, toxic effects and allergies. The diversity of fungi contributes to the complex role that they play in indoor environments and human diseases. Molds have a major impact on public health, and can cause different consequences in hospitals, homes and workplaces.

Stenotrophomonas, Mycobacterium, and Streptomyces in home dust and air: associations with moldiness and other home/family characteristics.

Respiratory illnesses have been linked to children's exposures to water-damaged homes. Therefore, understanding the microbiome in water-damaged homes is critical to preventing these illnesses. Few studies have quantified bacterial contamination, especially specific species, in water-damaged homes.

Rapid quantification of viable fungi in hospital environments: analysis of air and surface samples using solid-phase cytometry.

Background: Environmental surveillance is important in high-risk areas of hospitals to prevent fungal infections in immunosuppressed patients. Conventional culture methods for enumerating environmental fungi are time-consuming.

Aim: In this field study, a solid-phase cytometry technique (SPC) and a more conventional culture-based method to quantify fungal contamination of hospital air and surface samples were compared.

Correlation between Environmental Relative Moldiness Index (ERMI) values in French dwellings and other measures of fungal contamination.

The Environmental Relative Moldiness Index (ERMI) is a DNA-based metric developed to describe the fungal contamination in US dwellings. Our goal was to determine if the ERMI values in dwellings in north western France were correlated with other measures of fungal contamination. Dust and air samples were obtained from 40 dwellings and analyzed by quantitative PCR and/or by culturing.

Possible application of the Environmental Relative Moldiness Index in France: a pilot study in Brittany.

Our goal was to determine if the US Environmental Relative Moldiness Index (ERMI) scale might have application in France. Twenty homes in Brittany, north western region of France were classified by inspection as "Moldy" or "Non-Moldy". Dust and air samples were collected (MiTest sampler or Coriolis sampler, respectively) from each home and analyzed by quantitative polymerase chain reaction (QPCR) for the 36 fungi that make-up the ERMI.

Molecular systematics in the genus Mucor with special regards to species encountered in cheese.

The genus Mucor, a member of the order Mucorales, comprises different species encountered in cheeses. Although fungi play a fundamental role in cheese manufacturing and ripening, the taxonomy of many fungal species found in cheese is poorly defined; indeed, this is the case for Mucor spp. In the present study, we assessed the phylogenetic relationships among 70 Mucor strains, including 36 cheese isolates, by using a five gene phylogenetic approach combined with morphological analyses.