Analysis of selected fungi variation and its dependence on season and mountain range in southern Poland-key factors in drawing up trial guidelines for aeromycological monitoring

Airborne fungi in Longyearbyen area (Svalbard, Norway) - case study

Studies on the presence of atmospheric fungi in both Arctic and Antarctic polar areas are rare, and many of them were carried out briefly. Currently, when climate change is a fact, polar areas may be subject to various changes and fluctuations, negatively affecting sensitive polar ecosystems. The paper presents the results of tests on presence of fungi in the air over 30 years after the last investigations at the Svalbard Archipelago. A total of fifteen taxa of fungi were isolated in area of Longyearbyen, the majority of which were saprotrophic fungi of the genus Cladosporium that are associated with dead organic matter. Therefore, the presence of this taxon may be a good bioindicator of changes occurring in the Arctic environment, indirectly indicating the melting of glaciers and exposing increasingly larger areas inhabited by microorganisms, including fungi, which increase in number in the air. Additionally, the number of tourists visiting Longyearbyen is increasing, which may significantly affect the number and type of fungi in the air.

Isolation of nucleic acids using silicon dioxide powder as a tool for environmental monitoring

Isolation and purification of nucleic acids are basic laboratory procedures used in molecular analysis supporting determination of organisms in environmental monitoring. However, many different methods of isolation are commonly used, often being designed for a particular type of DNA extraction. While researchers commonly decide on commercial isolation kits for their ease of use and efficiency, they require large amounts of studied tissue, and the cost of purchasing such kits over a long run can be high. To provide an alternative to using commercial kits, we have developed a simple, rapid, cost-effective, and reliable protocol for DNA isolation from cultured fungi on slants and from dried fungal samples using silica particles (silicon dioxide powder) in chaotropic conditions. With the presented method, it is possible to isolate good-quality DNA from fungi in less than 1.5 h, using easily accessible chemicals. Compared with other methods employing CTAB or commercial kits, it allows fast, easy, and cheap DNA purification from two main sources of fungi routinely used for research. In addition to the method protocol, we also provide advice for further optimization of the isolation process to account for specific conditions, making the procedure more useful.

Airborne Microbial Communities at High-Altitude and Suburban Sites in Toyama, Japan Suggest a New Perspective for Bioprospecting

Airborne microorganisms, especially those at high altitude, are exposed to hostile conditions, including ultraviolet (UV) radiation, desiccation, and low temperatures. This study was conducted to compare the composition and abundance of airborne microorganisms at a high-altitude site, Mt. Jodo [2,839 m above mean sea level (AMSL)] and a suburban site (23 m AMSL) in Toyama, Japan. To our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate microbial communities in air samples collected simultaneously at two sites in relatively close proximity, from low and high altitude. Air samples were collected over a period of 3 years during 2009-2011. We then examined the bacterial and eukaryotic communities and estimated the abundance of bacteria and fungi with real-time TaqMan PCR. The airborne bacterial and eukaryotic communities differed between high-altitude and suburban sites on each sampling day. Backward trajectory analysis of air masses that arrived at high-altitude and suburban sites on each sampling day displayed almost the same paths. The bacterial communities were dominated by Actinobacteria, Firmicutes, and Proteobacteria, while the eukaryotic communities included Ascomycota, Basidiomycota, and Streptophyta. We also predicted some application of such microbial communities. The airborne bacterial and fungal abundance at the high-altitude site was about two times lower than that at the suburban site. These results showed that each airborne microbial communities have locality even if they are collected close location.

DNA metabarcoding uncovers fungal diversity of mixed airborne samples in Italy

Fungal spores and mycelium fragments are particles which become and remain airborne and have been subjects of aerobiological studies. The presence and the abundance of taxa in aerobiological samples can be very variable and impaired by changeable climatic conditions. Because many fungi produce mycotoxins and both their mycelium fragments and spores are potential allergens, monitoring the presence of these taxa is of key importance. So far data on exposure and sensitization to fungal allergens are mainly based on the assessment of few, easily identifiable taxa and focused only on certain environments. The microscopic method used to analyze aerobiological samples and the inconspicuous fungal characters do not allow a in depth taxonomical identification. Here, we present a first assessment of fungal diversity from airborne samples using a DNA metabarcoding analysis. The nuclear ITS2 region was selected as barcode to catch fungal diversity in mixed airborne samples gathered during two weeks in four sites of North-Eastern and Central Italy. We assessed the taxonomic composition and diversity within and among the sampled sites and compared the molecular data with those obtained by traditional microscopy. The molecular analyses provide a tenfold more comprehensive determination of the taxa than the traditional morphological inspections. Our results prove that the metabarcoding analysis is a promising approach to increases quality and sensitivity of the aerobiological monitoring. The laboratory and bioinformatic workflow implemented here is now suitable for routine, high-throughput, regional analyses of airborne fungi.