Fungi, Asthma and the Built Environment: A Pilot Study

Funding agency: FIPI & support from the School of Architecture UPRRP

Researchers: Benjamín Bolaños, Humberto Cavallin, Stephen Vesper

Students: Cristina Agosto, Edgardo Agosto, Luis Betancourt, Nelmaris Camacho, Dieunel Derilus, Humberto Durand, Xaymara Hernández, Gabriel Ramírez, Lorraine, Carolina Paredes, Kiara Sierra

Asthma has a notably high prevalence of 16.1% in the island of Puerto Rico. One major factor tied to asthma is the high levels of fungi in built environments; these can magnify the amount of spores by 30 or 40 times the amount in the surrounding exterior. This study aims for a better understanding on how built environment in Puerto Rican households impacts these spore quantities. We will systematically collect samples from the walls and objects from 20 different households where asthma is most prevalent in Puerto Rico during both dry and rainy seasons, while also measuring the physical information of the built environment. In addition, settled dust samples will be collected using a Swiffer electrostatic cloth for an Environmental Relative Moldiness Index (ERMI) value measurement. We will also collect the same type samples from households in the non-prevalent areas of Puerto Rico for comparative purposes. Additionally, we will also collect the inhabitant’s behavioral and asthma related clinical data, and swabs of both nostrils and palm of the hands. Each collected sample via swabs will be sequenced for taxonomical identification of fungi. With the collected information we expect that we will be able to establish connections between the physical aspects of the built environment to conditions correlated to the appearance of fungi/spores, while providing a design guideline that will help both designers and users to develop a more efficient habitable space that can contribute to minimize the presence of fungi/spores, and thus positively impacting the health of asthmatic patients.