Visible Contamination Research Articles

Skin decontamination with and without water irrigation.

Rinsing only with water or washing with soap and water are common methods of skin decontamination for skin contaminated during a chemical hazard release. The null hypothesis was that a 15-minute water irrigation (decontamination method 1) would not be superior to decontamination using a microfiber towel, followed by a wet wipe (Signature Select Softly Flushable Tissue Better Living Brands LLC, Pleasanton, CA), followed by using another microfiber towel (decontamination method 2). A simulated contaminant (Magic Fluorescent Glow Paint for Face and Body, iLC Shenzhen Fulimei Technology Co. LTD, Shenzhen, the People's Republic of China) was applied to the dorsal skin of each subject's forearms. Then, photographs of these subject's skin were taken before and after decontamination of the simulated contaminant by using either decontamination method 1 or 2. Each of the subjects underwent both decontamination methods in separate trials, with each subject using one forearm for decontamination method 1 and their other forearm for decontamination method 2. Discrete points of contamination were quantified on the photographs that were taken with the skin illuminated by ambient visible light or ultraviolet light (395nm, Roceei ultraviolet flashlight, China). Under visible light, no residual contamination was seen by inspecting photographs taken after decontaminating with either method. Under ultraviolet light, less visible contamination was seen by inspecting photographs taken after decontaminating with method 1 than after decontaminating with method 2. In this study, skin decontamination with water irrigation was superior to skin decontamination without water irrigation.

Testing of parenteral drug products for visible particles: comparison of the Ph. Eur. method with an alternative method using polarised light

ObjectivesParenteral drug products should be essentially free from visible particulate contamination. To ensure this, every batch produced must be subject to a 100% visual inspection. Monograph 2.9.20 of the European...

P-223 Follicular fluid from women stimulated with hMG protocol displays altered energy metabolism and this impacts embryo morphokinetics

Abstract Study question Does different type of ovarian stimulation affect follicle metabolism? Summary answer Patients stimulated hMG-only show increased levels of glucose and MDA in follicular fluid and longer Cc3 embryo time compared to patients stimulated rFSH and hMG. What is known already Oocyte growth and maturation strongly rely on energy metabolism. However, there is a notable lack of studies examining the influence of ovarian stimulation protocols on individual follicular fluid. While certain studies indicate changes in genes associated with glucose metabolism in patients subjected to different protocols, there remains a need for prospective studies in this field. Study design, size, duration This is a single-center prospective analysis from March 2022 to August 2022 including 20 patients. From the total, 14 were stimulated with rFSH + hMG and 6 with hMG only. A total of 81 embryos were submitted to morphokinetics analysis. Patients with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), Ovarian insufficiency, Endometriosis in stages III and IV, and patients who have already undergone other attempts at the clinic were excluded. Participants/materials, setting, methods Patients were firstly assessed by age, body mass index (BMI), and dosage of stimulation hormones. Puncture of follicles was performed individually after system wash and only follicular fluid (FF) with no visible blood contamination were submitted for analysis. FFs were analyzed for glucose, lactate, insulin (specific fluorometric assays), and MDA (important oxidative stress marker). Morphokinetics analyses were performed for all available embryos from day 0 until day 6. Main results and the role of chance Body Mass Index (BMI) and ages were similar among the categories (p = 0.388 and p = 0.373, respectively). FSH dosage used in both groups was not different (p = 0.85) but LH used was higher in patients treated with human menopausal gonadotropin (hMG) (p = 0.002). Women whose treatment was hMG presented more glucose in FF (p = 0.02) and MDA (p = 0.02) while no differences were observed for insulin and lactate content (p = 0.57 and p = 0.72 respectively). There was a significant increase of 3º Cell Cicle (Cc3) time of embryos from women treated with hMG only. Taken together, these data suggest that hMG is modifying the glucose metabolism by interrupting glycolysis in the oocyte, resulting in a higher amount in FF, which increases Malondialdehyde (MDA) levels. Considering that oocytes from women treated with hMG only had an altered metabolic profile, this could impact the further embryo development, with consequences specifically at the time of the embryonic metabolic shift. Limitations, reasons for caution The limited number of patients is a limitation of the study and the lack of standardization in the use of trigger, despite of not having significant difference. Wider implications of the findings Understanding the implication of hormones in follicular microambient might help individualization of hormones usage and improve the outcomes of IVF treatment. Trial registration number 44895621.1.0000.5594

Correlation between Aerosol Particulates, Carcass Dirtiness, and Hygiene Indicators of Bovine Carcasses in the Abattoir Environment: Results of a Study in Italy

The objective of this study was to demonstrate the possible correlation of visible carcass contamination and abattoir aerosol quality with microbial hygiene criteria. A total of 279 bovine carcasses were analyzed on 23 different working days. The aerobic colony count and total coliforms on the carcasses were calculated together with the presence of Escherichia coli. To determine the visible contamination of carcasses, we used a 100 cm2 sheet of transparent, adhesive plastic material, applied to the side of the carcass, to collect all the particles, which were then counted against both black and white backgrounds. The daily particulate index in the abattoir aerosol was determined using an air sampler device. The results showed that aerobic colony counts, which ranged from 1.41 to 2.40 log cfu cm−2, total coliforms (from 0.00 to 0.73 log cfu cm−2), and E. coli presence (from 0.00% to 60% of the sampled carcasses per day) are not correlated with the carcasses’ visual dirtiness or the aerosol quality. The factor analysis showed a correlation between the three groups of variables investigated: group 1, representing “aerosol quality”, group 2, representing the “microbiology of the carcass”, and group 3, the “visual dirtiness of the carcass”. Thus, even though microbiology analysis is useful in diagnosing the microorganisms which the official veterinarian is unable to detect during the post-mortem inspection, it is ineffective in evaluating slaughtering procedures. Aerosol monitoring and the visual classification of carcass dirtiness, instead, could provide good indications of the slaughtering process and the quality of the abattoir environment, and guarantee control of manufacturing practices, protecting both animals’ and operators’ health.

Risk Factors for Empyema Following Penetrating Diaphragmatic Injuries.

Empyema resulting as a complication of penetrating diaphragmatic injuries is a subject that requires further investigation, and the aim of this study was to determine the risk factors associated with empyema in patients with penetrating trauma. Consecutive adult trauma patients from a level 1 trauma center were searched for penetrating diaphragm injuries. Data were collected on patient demographics, pre-existing conditions, injury type and severity, hospital interventions, in-hospital complications, and outcomes. Patients were stratified by empyema formation and univariant analyses were performed. 164 patients were identified, and 17 patients (10.4%) developed empyema. Empyema was associated with visible abdominal contamination (35.3% vs 15%, P = .04), thoracotomy (35.5% vs 13.6%, P = .03), pneumonia (41.2% vs 14.3%, P = .01), sepsis (35.3% vs 8.8%, P = .006), increased hospital length of stay (25.5 vs 10.1 days, p =<.001), increased intensive care unit length of stay (9.6 vs 4.3 days, P = .01), and decreased in-hospital mortality (0% vs 20.4%, P = .04).

Assessment of the of fixed dental prosthesis impressions received at commercial dental laboratories in Aljabal-Alakhdar region, Libya0

Background: Crown and bridge prosthodontics needs an accurate and precise impression (positive replica) of the abutment teeth and the edentulous region to be rehabilitated for the dental technician to be able to construct the high quality and well adapted fixed dental restoration without mistakes. The aim of the current survey was to assess any visible mistakes commonly observed in fixed dental prosthesis impressions received at five commercial dental laboratories, frequency errors determination, and to determine any possible association between the preparation finish line errors and other assessed factors. Materials and methods: 150 fixed prosthodontic impressions were collected from five commercial dental laboratories located at Aljabal-Alakhdar region, Libya. All the fixed prosthodontic impressions which had been received by the visited commercial dental laboratories were assessed for many factors in relation to the accuracy such as the dental arch involved, prepared abutment teeth, dental impression materials used, and final techniques and viscosity of the impression, the type of impression tray, full-arch or segmental impression tray, the impression tray size, type of fixed dental restoration requested, mistakes in impression material or tray used, gingival tissue dilation errors, closed-mouth impression technique errors, and finish line errors. No attempts were made to determine the reason of the detected errors in each fixed prosthodontic impression assessed. Association between dental practitioner years of experience and gender and impression errors was evaluated. The association between categorical variables and the outcomes were examined by the use of Chi square and Fisher exact tests. Results: Condensation silicone was the most impression material used. Of the impressions evaluated 121(80.6%), 97% have at least one detectable error, 103(68.6%) had finish line errors, 53.9% had tooth preparation area errors. Visible contamination of impression with blood was seen in about 79(52.2%) of the assessed impressions. There was significant association between the type of dental impression material and errors in the preparation cervical finish line and tooth preparation area. Conclusion: In the present study, it has been found that a high frequency of recognizable errors was detected in crown and bridge impressions received by the five commercial dental laboratories. This can result in poorly fitted fixed restorations cemented for the fixed prosthodontic patients.

Badanie udarowego napięcia przebicia zanieczyszczonych izolatorów kompozytowych średniego napięcia

Some issues related to the surge impulse strength of MV line composite insulators with visible contamination deposits have been discussed in the article. Additionally, the resistance of composite insulators to bird droppings (surface degradation) together with the impact of these deposits on surge impulse strength have been verified by laboratory experiments.

Structurally regulated hydrogel evaporator with excellent salt-resistance for efficient solar interfacial water evaporation

Hydrogel-based solar interfacial evaporator has been a promising tool for energy-efficient fresh water production. However, the slow water transportation and dissatisfactory performance in strong brain were a common suffering for hydrogel evaporator. Herein, with the aid of direct ink writing (DIW) printing technology, we propose a novel strategy of structural control for accelerating the water transportation of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) / sodium alginate (SA) hydrogel evaporator by fabricating vertically ordered microchannels. The capillary pressure insides microchannels would be a strong power of fast water transportation. Resultingly, the structural evaporator demonstrated an evaporation rate of 3.23 kg m−2 h−1 with the energy conversion efficiency of 92% under 1 sun irradiation. The weight change of structural hydrogel was only 6.12%, presenting largely enhanced structure stability. Simultaneously, through morphological optimization of evaporation surface, the DIW-printed hydrogel evaporator reached a remarkable evaporation rate of 4.07 kg m−2 h−1. Based on the sufficient water pathway, the competitive evaporation performance could be maintained in sewage rich in dyes and salts. There is no visible contaminants accretion on the evaporation surface after sunlight exposure in 20 wt% brine for 30 days. With the versatile solar evaporation strategy, various hydrogel evaporators could be developed for fresh water production application.

Evaluation of visible contamination on power grid insulators using convolutional neural networks

Evaluation of visible contamination on power grid insulators using convolutional neural networks

Bacterial contamination of endoscopist and assistant face visors during gastrointestinal endoscopy: a pilot study

Background and aimDuring the COVID-19 pandemic, health workers’ facial exposure to pathogens has been brought into focus. In this study, we aimed to determine the occurrence and degree of facial...

Small extracellular vesicles derived from human adipose-derived mesenchymal stromal cells cultured in a new chemically-defined contaminate-free media exhibit enhanced biological and therapeutic effects on human chondrocytes in vitro and in a mouse osteoarthritis model.

Human small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) derived from adipose-derived mesenchymal stromal cells (ASC) have been reported to suppress the progression of osteoarthritis (OA) in animal studies and subsequently, translation of this potential to assess their clinical efficacy is anticipated. However, fabrication protocols for sEVs to eliminate potential contamination by culture medium-derived components need to be established prior to their clinical use. The purpose of the present studies was to elucidate the influence of medium-derived contaminants on the biological effects of sEVs, and to establish isolation methods for sEVs using a new clinical grade chemically-defined media (CDM). The quantity and purity of ASC-derived sEVs cultured in four different CDMs (CDM1, 2, 3 and 4) were evaluated. The concentrates of the four media incubated without cells were used as the background (BG) control for each set of sEVs. The biological effect of sEVs fabricated in the four different CDMs on normal human articular chondrocytes (hACs) were evaluated in vitro using a variety of methodological assessments. Finally, the sEVs with the highest purity were tested for their ability to suppress the progression of knee OA mouse model. Analysis of the BG controls revealed that CDM1-3 contained detectable particles, while there was no visible contamination of culture media-derived components detected with CDM4. Accordingly, the sEVs fabricated with CDM4 (CDM4-sEVs) exhibited the highest purity and yield. Notably, the CDM4-sEVs were the most efficient in promoting the cellular proliferation, migration, chondrogenic differentiation, and anti-apoptotic activity of hACs. Furthermore, CDM4-sEVs significantly suppressed the osteochondral degeneration in vivo model. Small EVs derived from ASCs cultured in a CDM without detectable contaminants demonstrated enhanced biological effects on hACs and the progression of OA. Thus, sEVs isolated with CDM4 most optimally meet the requirements of efficacy and safety for assessment in their future clinical applications.

Beyond Cultivation: Combining Culture-Dependent and Culture-Independent Techniques to Identify Bacteria Involved in Paint Spoilage

Due to globally increasing problems concerning biodeterioration of paints, it is worthwhile to enhance the determination of colony forming units (CFU) as a gold standard method via more rapid and culture-independent techniques. Here, we combined traditional culture-dependent techniques with subsequent sequencing, quantitative qPCR, and a serial quantification method (most probable number; MPN) to detect paint degrading bacteria in general and sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) in particular. During our investigation of three water-based paints that showed visible contamination, we found high bacterial counts of up to 107 CFU mL−1. Subsequent sequencing allowed the identification of common paint degraders including Bacillus sp. and Pseudomonas sp., but less frequently detected bacteria such as Rhodococcus sp. and Delftia spp. were also found to be present. MPN, as well as dsrA-targeted qPCR to detect SRB, only showed positive results for two out of three samples. These results coincided with the inherent physicochemical properties of the paints offering suitable conditions for microbial growth or not. The MPN method can be used for a diversity of aerobic and anaerobic bacteria and is rapid and reproducible. A combination of culture-independent techniques such as qPCR or NGS can help to fully elucidate the bacterial diversity in spoiled paint by also recovering anaerobic and unculturable ones.

Quality of dorzolamide hydrochloride and timolol maleate containing eye drops distributed online

Patient safety risks associated with the online purchase of medications, especially in case of ophthalmic preparations, are significant. Our study aimed to carry out quality assessment of dorzolamide hydrochloride (DZA) and timolol maleate (TIM) eye drops preserved with benzalkonium chloride (BAC) via online test purchases.Three samples were purchased online, while control preparations were acquired through authorized national drug supply chain. Our method was based on the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) Inspection Checklist and integrated the evaluation of packaging and labelling. Sterility was established according to the European Pharmacopoeia (Ph. Eur.), while qualitative and quantitative quality was assessed with high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) analysis.Several signs of falsification were recognized upon visual inspection of the online samples. All the products were clear, colourless, slightly viscous solutions. They were free from visible contaminants. The samples were sterile as no evidence of microbial growth was found. A quick and inexpensive HPLC analysis, optimized by the authors showed that active ingredients and the preservative deviated significantly (p < 0,05) with more than 10% from the values stated on the labels for at least one component (DZA: 99.3–113.1%, TIM: 112.8–139.2%, BAC: 82.4–97.7%).Development of comprehensive and reliable quality assessment methods are vital to increase public safety of pharmaceutical products sold online. A complex approach, integrating visual inspection, labelling assessment, microbiological analysis coupled with qualitative and quantitative methods provide a most reliable method. Due to its limited feasibility and cost-effectiveness, raising public awareness and limiting illegal online sellers should be the primary approaches to protect patients from substandard and falsified medicinal products sold via the internet. Particularly important for health professionals to understand this market and its public health concern, and to raise patient awareness of the risks associated with uncontrolled online purchase of medication.

Small Contaminations on Broiler Carcasses Are More a Quality Matter than a Food Safety Issue.

Depending on the interpretation of the European Union (EU) regulations, even marginally visibly contaminated poultry carcasses could be rejected for human consumption due to food safety concerns. However, it is not clear if small contaminations actually increase the already present bacterial load of carcasses to such an extent that the risk for the consumers is seriously elevated. Therefore, the additional contribution to the total microbial load on carcasses by a small but still visible contamination with feces, grains from the crop, and drops of bile and grease from the slaughter line was determined using a Monte Carlo simulation. The bacterial counts (total aerobic plate count, Enterobacteriaceae, Escherichia coli, and Campylobacter spp.) were obtained from the literature and used as input for the Monte Carlo model with 50,000 iterations for each simulation. The Monte Carlo simulation revealed that the presence of minute spots of feces, bile, crop content, and slaughter line grease do not lead to a substantial increase of the already existing biological hazards present on the carcasses and should thus be considered a matter of quality rather than food safety.

Active packaging of corn starch with pectin extract and essential oil of Turmeric Longa Linn: Preparation, characterization and application in sliced bread

The use of active packaging to reduce food waste has been a very effective alternative. An eminent concern is the use of plastic materials of petroleum origin and toxic additives in the processing of these packages. Thus, the focus on the use of biodegradable and natural raw materials that minimize waste generation and promote greater consumer safety has been preferable. The objective of the research was to investigate the effects of turmeric essential oil (TEO) on corn starch and pectin extract films manufactured by solution casting method. The antioxidant and antimicrobial potential of the oil was confirmed by the tests: antimicrobial diffusion disk, determination of the content of phenolic compounds and antioxidant activity by the DPPH and FRAP method. The chromatographic analysis confirmed the presence of active chemical constituents such as Turmerone, Ar-Turmerone and β–Turmerone. The results showed that the oil promoted a change in the color of the films, increased mechanical strength and reduced flexibility, keeping transparency, solubility, WVP and thermal stability unchanged. In the direct application test of the film as packaging for sliced bread, no visible contamination was detected during the nine weeks of analysis. Therefore, the active film with 3 % TEO was shown to be a viable solution for manufacturing biodegradable and safe active films that can be applied as food packaging.

A novel, patented method for semen collection in dromedary camel (Camelus dromedarius).

In the current article, a developed, patented method denoted the 'Camel Semen Collection Kit-CSCK', was designed to solve the problem of semen collection in dromedary camels. CSCK is composed of three main parts: (1) Semen collection sac: made from supersensitive flexible low-density polyethylene- (LDPE); (2) Metal stainless steel applicator: designed to introduce the collection sac intravaginally and fixate it to the vaginal wall of a female camel through air insufflation; (3) Fixation sticker: a cushion sheet sticker is used to secure the outer portion of the collection sac to the female's perineal area. Semen was collected twice a week from eight dromedary bulls by using electroejaculation (EJ), artificial vagina (AV) and CSCK. Successful semen collections were 81.3%, 84.4% and 43.8% using EJ, CSCK and AV techniques respectively. Semen obtained by EJ technique showed lower semen volume, gross activity, sperm concentration, total sperm motility and percentage of live sperm cells compared to the other two techniques. Semen collected by CSCK showed a longer collection period and higher volume, gross activity, sperm motility and percentage of live spermatozoa and a lower rate of visible contamination compared to AV technique. The advantages and disadvantages of the three techniques were compared and discussed. In conclusion, CSCK represents a practical and easy method to reliably collect high-quality semen from any untrained male dromedary camel and may facilitate the widespread application of assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs) on a large scale in this species.

Risk factors for posttraumatic empyema in diaphragmatic injuries

BackgroundPenetrating diaphragmatic injuries are associated with a high incidence of posttraumatic empyema. We analyzed the contribution of trauma severity, specific organ injury, contamination severity, and surgical management to the risk of posttraumatic empyema in patients who underwent surgical repair of diaphragmatic injuries at a level 1 trauma center.MethodsThis is a retrospective review of the patients who survived more than 48 h. Univariate OR calculations were performed to identify potential risk factors. Multiple logistic regression was used to calculate adjusted ORs and identify independent risk factors.ResultsWe included 192 patients treated from 2011 to 2020. There were 169 (88.0) males. The mean interquartile range, (IQR) of age, was 27 (22–35) years. Gunshot injuries occurred in 155 subjects (80.7%). Mean (IQR) NISS and ATI were 29 (18–44) and 17 (10–27), respectively. Thoracic AIS was > 3 in 38 patients (19.8%). Hollow viscus was injured in 105 cases (54.7%): stomach in 65 (33.9%), colon in 52 (27.1%), small bowel in 42 (21.9%), and duodenum in 10 (5.2%). Visible contamination was found in 76 patients (39.6%). Potential thoracic contamination was managed with a chest tube in 128 cases (66.7%), with transdiaphragmatic pleural lavage in 42 (21.9%), and with video-assisted thoracoscopy surgery or thoracotomy in 22 (11.5%). Empyema occurred in 11 patients (5.7%). Multiple logistic regression identified thoracic AIS > 3 (OR 6.4, 95% CI 1.77–23. 43), and visible contamination (OR 5.13, 95% IC 1.26–20.90) as independent risk factors. The individual organ injured, or the method used to manage the thoracic contamination did not affect the risk of posttraumatic empyema.ConclusionThe severity of the thoracic injury and the presence of visible abdominal contamination were identified as independent risk factors for empyema after penetrating diaphragmatic trauma.

Microplastic distribution and composition on two Galápagos island beaches, Ecuador: Verifying the use of citizen science derived data in long-term monitoring

Monitoring beach plastic contamination across space and time is necessary for understanding its sources and ecological effects, and for guiding mitigation. This is logistically and financially challenging, especially for microplastics. Citizen science represents an option for sampling accessible sites to support long term monitoring, but challenges persist around data validation. Here we test a simple citizen science methodology to monitor visible microplastic contamination on sandy beaches using a standard quadrat unit (50 cm × 50 cm x 5 cm depth) sieved to 1 mm, to support the analysis of microplastic on two islands within the marine protected area of the Galápagos Archipelago, Ecuador (San Cristóbal and Santa Cruz islands). High school and university students undertook supervised sampling of two beaches in 2019–2020 collecting over 7000 particles. A sub-sample of the suspected microplastics collected (n = 2,213, ∼30% total) were analysed using FTIR spectrometry, confirming 93% of particles >1 mm visually identified by students were microplastics or rubber, validating this method as a crowd-sourced indicator for microplastic contamination. These data provide important insights into the plastic contamination of Galápagos, revealing plastic abundances of 0–2524 particles m−2 over the two beaches (the highest reported in Galápagos). Strong accumulation gradients were measured parallel to the waterline at Punta Pitt (San Cristobal island) and perpendicular to the waterline at Tortuga Bay (Santa Cruz island), where four-fold higher concentrations were recorded at the sea turtle nesting habitat on the back-beach dune. No significant seasonal trends were measured during one year. These results demonstrate the value of citizen science in filling spatiotemporal knowledge gaps of beach contamination to support intervention design and conservation.

Automatic classification of textile visual pollutants using deep learning networks

Urban pollution is a massive global problem, especially in industrialized and developing nations. Visual pollution is an issue concerned with the external noticeable appearance of the modern urban areas causing human health disorders, emotional distress, driving distraction, environmental hazards, etc. Amidst the plethora of different forms of environmental pollution, visual pollution deteriorates the aesthetics of an urban environment, endorsing the importance of research and assessing it from different dimensions. The main objective of this study is to initialize a new concept of automatic identification and classification of visible contaminants related to textile industries using computer vision techniques. In this work, deep learning techniques have been applied for the automatic detection and classification of three categories of textile-based visual pollutants, i.e., cloth garbage, advertising billboards and signages, and textile dyeing waste materials. Initially, 1,709 visual pollutants images were obtained through web crawling of search engines. Additionally, 954 images were collected from two local garments factories, roadside vendors and shopping malls of Bangladesh. Next, the dataset was manually annotated by an open-source labeling tool. Finally, various deep learning techniques, Faster R-CNN, YOLOv5, and EfficientDet, have been used to classify the obtained dataset automatically. The EfficientDet framework achieved the best performance with 97% and 93% training and test accuracies, respectively. The YOLOv5 approach exhibits acceptable precision with a considerably lower number of epochs. The proposed automated classification system is expected to create future visual pollution ratings for the textile industries. Consequently, the corresponding stakeholders (industry owners, government authorities, factory workers, etc.) can introduce regulatory frameworks and control the proliferation of visual pollution. The open-source images obtained by web crawling, locally collected visual pollutants dataset and implementation code of this work are available at: https://github.com/SadiaAfrin163/Textile-Visual-Pollutants-Dataset.

Screening of Mycotoxigenic Fungi in Barley and Barley Malt (Hordeum vulgare L.) Using Real-Time PCR—A Comparison between Molecular Diagnostic and Culture Technique

Filamentous fungi have a crucial impact on the food safety and technological quality of malting barley. Commonly used techniques for the detection of seed-borne fungi are based on cultivation and identification by morphological criteria. In contrast, this study established a quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay based on SYBR green technology for the detection and quantification of black fungal species (Alternaria spp., Epicoccum nigrum, Cladosporium cladosporioides, Penicillium verrucosum and Aspergillus niger) on brewing barley and compares it with the traditional cultivation technique and visual assessment. To screen the fungal spectrum over different barley varieties and harvest years, naturally infected samples of malting barley and corresponding malts (Hordeum vulgare L.) were analyzed over four consecutive years (2018–2021), grown under different climatic conditions in Germany. Alternaria and Cladosporium spp. DNA were present in all examined barley samples, even without visible contamination. In contrast, detection via culture-based methods does not reliably cover all species. Molecular analysis showed that there was less fungal biomass after malting, by 58.57% in the case of A. alternata, by 28.27% for Cladosporium spp. and by 12.79% for Epicoccum nigrum. Correlation analysis showed no causal relationship between fungal DNA and the number of black kernels. The qPCR provides a highly sensitive and time-saving screening method for detecting latent fungal infections in brewing grains to identify batches that are potentially highly contaminated with toxigenic fungi.