(1-3)-β-D-GULCANS IN INDOOR ENVIRONMENTS - LABORATORY ANALYSIS AND WHEEZE IN INFANTS

 
 
 
 

(1-3)-β-D-GULCANS IN INDOOR ENVIRONMENTS - LABORATORY ANALYSIS AND WHEEZE IN INFANTS

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dc.contributor.advisor Reponen, Dr. Tiina en_US
dc.contributor.author IOSSIFOVA, YULIA en_US
dc.date.accessioned 2008-07-08T16:43:17Z
dc.date.available 2008-07-08T16:43:17Z
dc.date.created 2006 en_US
dc.date.issued 2008-07-08T16:43:17Z
dc.identifier.uri http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin1163791748 en_US
dc.identifier.uri http://hdl.handle.net/2374.OX/12605
dc.description Indoor exposure to fungi has been associated with respiratory symptoms, often attributed to their major cell wall component, (1-3)-b-D-glucan. Currently there are two methods available for the analysis of (1-3)-b-D-glucan: the Limulus Amebocyte Lysate assay (LAL) and the inhibition Enzyme Immunoassay (EIA). (1-3)-b-D-glucan is a fungal cell wall component, suspected to cause respiratory and general symptoms in adults. However, very little is known on the possible health effects of (1-3)-b-D-glucan during infancy. The first aim of this research was to compare the specificity of the LAL vs. EIA methods in detecting eight alpha and beta-glucan standards, and their sensitivity for the analysis of (1-3)-b-D-glucan content of common indoor fungal species and indoor dust samples. It was also examined which indoor mold species predict (1-3)-b-D-glucan concentration in field dust samples, and thus whether (1-3)-b-D-glucan can be used as a surrogate for mold exposure. The second aim was to asses the association between (1-3)-b-D-glucan exposure and the prevalence of allergen sensitization and wheezing during the first year of life in a birth cohort of 574 infants born to atopic parents. Common indoor fungal species were cultured from pure ATCC strains on agar media, and analyzed for (1-3)-b-D-glucan content by both the LAL and EIA. (1-3)-b-D-glucan exposure was also measured in settled dust collected from infants’ primary activity rooms using LAL. The primary outcomes at approximately age one included parental reports of recurrent wheezing and allergen sensitization evaluated by skin prick testing to a panel of 15 aeroallergens. This study revealed that most prevalent species in indoor environments, such as Cladosporium and Aspergillus species were the main (1-3)-b-D-glucan contributors followed by Epicoccum nigrum, Wallemia sebi and Penicillium brevicompactum. In contrast, Alternaria alternata did not contribute much to the (1-3)-b-D-glucan load. Exposure to high (1-3)-b-D-glucan concentration was associated with reduced likelihood of both recurrent wheezing and recurrent wheezing combined with allergen sensitization. Similar trends were found between (1-3)-b-D-glucan concentrations and allergen sensitization. en_US
dc.format application/pdf en_US
dc.format 272p. en_US
dc.rights restricted; full text unavailable until 2008-11-17 en_US
dc.rights Copyright and permissions information available at the source archive en_US
dc.title (1-3)-β-D-GULCANS IN INDOOR ENVIRONMENTS - LABORATORY ANALYSIS AND WHEEZE IN INFANTS en_US
dc.type Electronic Thesis or Dissertation en_US
dc.degree.name PhD en_US
dc.degree.level doctoral en_US
dc.degree.discipline Medicine : Environmental Health en_US
dc.degree.grantor University of Cincinnati en_US
dc.contributor.publisher University of Cincinnati / OhioLINK en_US

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