Microbiological Air Quality and Drug Resistance in Airborne Bacteria Isolated from a Waste Sorting Plant Located in Poland-A Case Study.

Ewa Brągoszewska,Wojciech Hryb,Izabela Biedroń

doi:10.3390/microorganisms8020202

Abstract

International interests in biological air pollutants have increased rapidly to broaden the pool of knowledge on their identification and health impacts (e.g., infectious, respiratory diseases and allergies). Antibiotic resistance and its wider implications present us with a growing healthcare crisis, and an increased understanding of antibiotic-resistant bacteria populations should enable better interpretation of bioaerosol exposure found in the air. Waste sorting plant (WSP) activities are a source of occupational bacterial exposures that are associated with many health disorders. The objectives of this study were (a) to assess bacterial air quality (BAQ) in two cabins of a WSP: preliminary manual sorting cabin (PSP) and purification manual sorting cabin (quality control) (QCSP), (b) determine the particle size distribution (PSD) of bacterial aerosol (BA) in PSP, QCSP, and in the outdoor air (OUT), and (c) determine the antibiotic resistance of isolated strains of bacteria. Bacterial strains were identified on a Biolog GEN III (Biolog, Hayward, CA, USA), and disc diffusion method for antimicrobial susceptibility testing was carried out according to the Kirby–Bauer Disk Diffusion Susceptibility Test Protocol. A large share of fecal bacteria, Enterococcus faecalis and Alcaligenes faecalis spp. feacalis, was found in the tested indoor air, which is a potential health hazard to the workers of the monitored WSP. Our results demonstrate the necessity to take into account fecal air pollution levels to avoid making erroneous assumptions regarding the environmental selection of antibiotic resistance. Total elimination of many anthropogenic sources is not possible, but important findings of this study can be used to develop realistic management policies methods to improve BAQ.

Highlights

Bioaerosols are crucial indicators of air pollution and play an instrumental role as risk factors when it comes to the adverse health outcome [1]
Similar studies carried out in a sorting plant in Finland showed that the maximum value of bacterial aerosol (BA) in the Waste sorting plant (WSP) ranged from ~500 to ~1500 CFU/m3 [21]
Of the airborne bacteria isolated from air samples in the two cabins, the dominance of the following species was noted: in the preliminary cabin of sorting plant (PSP), the dominant species were Staphylococcus saprophyticus, Enterecoccus faecalis, and Alcaligenes faecalis spp. feacalis, while in QCSP, Mycobacterium setense and Micrococcus luteus were dominant

Summary

Introduction

Bioaerosols are crucial indicators of air pollution and play an instrumental role as risk factors when it comes to the adverse health outcome [1]. These indicators, known as primary biological airborne particles (PBAPs), have been linked to various health effects, from allergic, through infections, to toxic reactions [2,3,4,5,6]. Waste sorting plants (WSPs) are a specific source of bacteria emission into the air. This information is indispensable for the assessment of population exposure, as well as for the identification of the sources of bacterial aerosols (BAs) emission [9]

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Conclusion