Traditional mould analysis compared to a DNA-based method of mould analysis.
Traditional environmental mould analysis is based on microscopic observations and counting of mould structures collected from the air on a sticky surface or culturing of moulds on growth media for identification and quantification. These approaches have significant limitations. A DNA-based method of mould analysis called mould specific quantitative PCR (MSQPCR) was created for more than 100 moulds. Based on a national sampling and analysis by MSQPCR of dust in US homes, a scale for comparing the mould burden in homes was created called the Environmental Relative Mouldiness Index (ERMI).
Vesper
Stephen
S
United States Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati OH, USA. vesper.stephen@epa.gov
D004271:DNA, Fungal / Q000032:analysis / Q000235:genetics; D004783:Environmental Microbiology; D005658:Fungi / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006798:Housing; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods*
D004271:DNA, Fungal