Indoor Air Quality and Microbial Exposure

People spend roughly 90 percent of their time indoors, yet the air inside buildings routinely contains a complex mixture of biological and chemical contaminants—fungal spores, bacteria suspended in bioaerosols, formaldehyde off-gassed from building materials, and dozens of other volatile organic compounds—that can cause or worsen respiratory disease, trigger asthma, and contribute to the diffuse cluster of symptoms known as sick building syndrome. Researchers in this area work to identify which specific exposures drive health outcomes, how ventilation rates and building design either dilute or concentrate harmful agents, and how mold colonization interacts with chemical pollutants to produce effects that neither cause alone would predict. A persistent challenge is establishing dose-response relationships for microbial exposures, since standardized sampling methods and agreed-upon safe thresholds for many bioaerosols and compounds remain elusive. Active work is also probing how climate change—through increased humidity, flooding, and shifting outdoor microbial communities—will reshape the indoor microbiome and alter the disease burden tied to the built environment.

Works

50,321

Total citations

622,641

Keywords

Indoor Air QualityAirborne MicroorganismsVolatile Organic CompoundsHealth EffectsMold ExposureVentilation Rates