Development of a high-volume aerosol collection system for the identification of air-borne micro-organisms.
OBJECTIVE
A high-volume aerosol collector was developed to efficiently capture airborne bacteria in order to assess levels of diversity in the air.


RESULTS
Particulate matter was collected on a device designed to filter 1.4 x 10(6) litres of air in a 24 h period on a 1-microm pore size polyester membrane. Methods were optimized for extraction of genomic DNA from the air filter concentrate. Preparation times of 90 s with 0.5-0. 05 mm diameter zirconia/silica beads yielded the highest concentration genomic DNA that was able to support PCR. A 24-h air sample was taken in Salt Lake City, Utah and the microbial composition was determined by the amplification and sequence analysis of 16S ribosomal DNA fragments.


CONCLUSIONS
Sequence analysis revealed a large diversity in the type of microbial species present including clones matching the sequence of Clostridium botulinum. The primary components of the aerosol sample included many different spore-forming bacteria as well as more fragile members of the Proteobacteria division.


CONCLUSIONS
The high-volume air collection and genomic DNA recovery system allows for the rapid detection of both cultivable as well as culture-resistant organisms in the environment.
Radosevich
J L
JL
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA 94551, USA.
Wilson
W J
WJ
Shinn
J H
JH
DeSantis
T Z
TZ
Andersen
Gary L
GL
D000336:Aerosols; D000391:Air Microbiology; D001419:Bacteria / Q000145:classification* / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D001431:Bacteriological Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation*; D004587:Electrophoresis, Agar Gel; D006612:High-Frequency Ventilation
D000336:Aerosols