Microbial Cell Wall Agents and Sick Building Syndrome

Abstract

Publisher Summary This chapter focuses on the particular role of microbial cell wall agents (MCWA) in sick building syndrome (SBS). It also reviews the role of MCWA for the development of inflammation. Under conditions of increased humidity, there is a very rapid growth of molds. There are specific agents in the cell wall of microbes that have the capacity to induce an inflammatory response without the need for growth of microbes within the host. A common characteristic for these MCWA is their extreme toxicity; they exert biological effects in concentration of nano- and even picograms. A number of MCWA have been identified, such as endotoxins, peptidoglycans, and lipoteichoic acids. In relation to exposure, MCWA retain their biological activity even when the organism is dead. An estimation of the number of viable microbes may thus be very misleading in terms of dose estimate—the number of dead fungal spores may be millions of times higher than the number of viable spores.