Characterization of Indoor Air Quality on a College Campus: A Pilot Study

Sleep: An Essential and Understudied Process in the Biology of Blood-Feeding Arthropods

Understanding the biology of blood-feeding arthropods is critical to managing them as vectors of etiological agents. Circadian rhythms act in the regulation of behavioral and physiological aspects such as blood feeding, immunity, and reproduction. However, the impact of sleep on these processes has been largely ignored in blood-feeding arthropods, but recent studies in mosquitoes show that sleep-like states directly impact host landing and blood feeding. Our focus in this review is on discussing the relationship between sleep and circadian rhythms in blood-feeding arthropods along with how unique aspects such as blood gluttony and dormancy can impact sleep-like states. We highlight that sleep-like states are likely to have profound impacts on vector-host interactions but will vary between lineages even though few direct studies have been conducted. A myriad of factors, such as artificial light, could directly impact the time and levels of sleep in blood-feeding arthropods and their roles as vectors. Lastly, we discuss underlying factors that make sleep studies in blood-feeding arthropods difficult and how these can be bypassed. As sleep is a critical factor in the fitness of animal systems, a lack of focus on sleep in blood-feeding arthropods represents a significant oversight in understanding their behavior and its role in pathogen transmission.

Assessment of indoor air quality and risk of COVID-19 infection in Spanish secondary school and university classrooms

Despite the risk of transmission of SARS-CoV-2, Spanish educational centers were reopened after six months of lockdown. Ventilation was mostly adopted as a preventive measure to reduce the transmission risk of the virus. However, it could also affect indoor air quality (IAQ). Therefore, here we evaluate the ventilation conditions, COVID-19 risk, and IAQ in secondary school and university classrooms in Toledo (central Spain) from November 2020 to June 2021. Ventilation was examined by monitoring outdoor and indoor CO₂ levels. CO₂, occupancy and hygrothermal parameters, allowed estimating the relative transmission risk of SARS-CoV-2 (Alpha and Omicron BA.1), H _r, under different scenarios, using the web app COVID Risk ^airborne . Additionally, the effect of ventilation on IAQ was evaluated by measuring indoor/outdoor (I/O) concentration ratios of O₃, NO₂, and suspended particulate matter (PM). University classrooms, particularly the mechanically ventilated one, presented better ventilation conditions than the secondary school classrooms, as well as better thermal comfort conditions. The estimated H _r for COVID-19 ranged from intermediate (with surgical masks) to high (no masks, teacher infected). IAQ was generally good in all classrooms, particularly at the university ones, with I/O below unity, implying an outdoor origin of gaseous pollutants, while the source of PM was heterogeneous. Consequently, controlled mechanical ventilation systems are essential in educational spaces, as well as wearing well-fitting FFP2-N95 masks indoors is also highly recommended to minimize the transmission risk of COVID-19 and other airborne infectious diseases.

A Review of Field Measurement Studies on Thermal Comfort, Indoor Air Quality and Virus Risk

People spend up to 90% of their time indoors where they continuously interact with the indoor environment. Indoor Environmental Quality (IEQ), and in particular thermal comfort, Indoor Air Quality (IAQ), and acoustic and visual comfort, have proven to be significant factors that influence the occupants’ health, comfort, productivity and general well-being. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has also highlighted the need for real-life experimental data acquired through field measurement studies to help us understand and potentially control the impact of IEQ on the occupants’ health. In this context, there was a significant increase over the past two decades of field measurement studies conducted all over the world that analyse the IEQ in various indoor environments. In this study, an overview of the most important factors that influence the IAQ, thermal comfort, and the risk of virus transmission is first presented, followed by a comprehensive review of selected field measurement studies from the last 20 years. The main objective is to provide a broad overview of the current status of field measurement studies, to identify key characteristics, common outcomes, correlations, insights, as well as gaps, and to serve as the starting point for conducting future field measurement studies.

Understanding "Atmosome", the Personal Atmospheric Exposome: Comprehensive Approach

BACKGROUND

Modern environmental health research extensively focuses on outdoor air pollutants and their effects on public health. However, research on monitoring and enhancing individual indoor air quality is lacking. The field of exposomics encompasses the totality of human environmental exposures and its effects on health. A subset of this exposome deals with atmospheric exposure, termed the "atmosome." The atmosome plays a pivotal role in health and has significant effects on DNA, metabolism, skin integrity, and lung health.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this work is to develop a low-cost, comprehensive measurement system for collecting and analyzing atmosomic factors. The research explores the significance of the atmosome in personalized and preventive care for public health.

METHODS

An internet of things microcontroller-based system is introduced and demonstrated. The system collects real-time indoor air quality data and posts it to the cloud for immediate access.

RESULTS

The experimental results yield air quality measurements with an accuracy of 90% when compared with precalibrated commercial devices and demonstrate a direct correlation between lifestyle and air quality.

CONCLUSIONS

Quantifying the individual atmosome is a monumental step in advancing personalized health, medical research, and epidemiological research. The 2 main goals in this work are to present the atmosome as a measurable concept and to demonstrate how to implement it using low-cost electronics. By enabling atmosome measurements at a communal scale, this work also opens up potential new directions for public health research. Researchers will now have the data to model the impact of indoor air pollutants on the health of individuals, communities, and specific demographics, leading to novel approaches for predicting and preventing diseases.