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The Built Environment Is a Microbial Wasteland.

Sean M Gibbons1

  • 1Department of Biological Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA.

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|November 11, 2016
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This summary is machine-generated.

The built environment (BE) has less microbial diversity than the outdoors. In office buildings, surface location and geography significantly shape microbial communities, with human skin microbes present even without direct contact.

Keywords:
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Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Environmental Science
  • Ecology

Background:

  • Human transition to built environments (BE) reduces microbial diversity exposure.
  • Factors influencing microbial communities in BE are not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • Investigate factors shaping microbial communities in an office building.
  • Determine the relative importance of environmental factors, geography, surface material, sampling location, and human interaction on BE microbial structure.

Main Methods:

  • Controlled study in an office building.
  • Analysis of microbial community structure.
  • Consideration of environmental factors, geography, surface material, sampling location, and human interaction.
  • Sequencing techniques to identify microbial taxa.

Main Results:

  • Surface location and geography were the strongest predictors of microbial community structure.
  • Surface material had minimal impact on microbial composition.
  • Human skin-associated taxa comprised 25-30% of microbes on BE surfaces, even without direct interaction.
  • Technical variation in sequencing runs is a significant challenge in BE microbiome studies due to low biomass and PCR contamination.

Conclusions:

  • Built environment surfaces act as 'desert-like' environments where microbes passively accumulate.
  • Geographic location and surface placement are key drivers of BE microbial communities.
  • Standardized methods are crucial for accurate microbiome analysis in low-biomass built environments.