TY - JOUR
T1 - A cohort study of cucumber greenhouse workers' exposure to microorganisms as measured using NGS and MALDI-TOF MS and biomarkers of systemic inflammation
AU - Madsen, Anne Mette
AU - White, John Kerr
AU - Markouch, Amal
AU - Kadhim, Sarah
AU - de Jonge, Nadieh
AU - Thilsing, Trine
AU - Hansen, Vinni M
AU - Bælum, Jesper
AU - Nielsen, Jeppe Lund
AU - Vogel, Ulla
AU - Tendal, Kira
N1 - Copyright © 2020 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
PY - 2021/1
Y1 - 2021/1
N2 - Work in greenhouses entails exposure to airborne fungi and bacteria. The aims of this study are to obtain knowledge about whether exposure to fungal and bacterial genera and species during work in a cucumber greenhouse is affected by work tasks, and whether a cohort of greenhouse workers' serum levels of serum amyloid A (SAA) and C-reactive protein (CRP), biomarkers of systemic inflammation, are associated with this. Data on personal exposure to airborne fungal and bacterial species measured over 4 years as well as serum levels of SAA and CRP sampled over two years were analyzed. For data analysis, the main work tasks were grouped into three different groups, called ‘grouped work task’. Microorganisms were identified using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF MS) and next-generation sequencing (NGS). The ‘daily exposure’ of greenhouse workers' were as follows: 4.8 × 10
4 CFU bacteria/m
3, 1.4 × 10
6 CFU fungi/m
3, and 392 EU/m
3 of endotoxin. Workers were exposed to many different microbial species including several species within the genera Acinetobacter, Bacillus, Microbacterium, Pseudomonas, Staphylococcus, and Streptomyces. The genera Ralstonia and Cladosporium were found in most samples. The exposure levels as well as the microbial composition were associated significantly with grouped work task and season with high exposures during tasks in close contact with mature and old plants and in the autumn. CRP and SAA levels were also associated with exposure level and grouped work tasks. The Shannon-Wiener indices were not different in the 3 ‘grouped work tasks’. Several specific species including e.g. Halomonas elongata, Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, Podosphaera fusca, and Wallemia spp. were found frequently or in high concentrations in the exposures associated with the highest levels of CRP and SAA. The microorganisms S. maltophilia, P. fusca, and Wallemia spp. were also found on the cucumber plant leaves. In conclusion, both exposure level and the species composition seem to have an effect on the serum levels of CRP and SAA of exposed workers. The greenhouse workers were exposed to only a few species characterized as human pathogens.
AB - Work in greenhouses entails exposure to airborne fungi and bacteria. The aims of this study are to obtain knowledge about whether exposure to fungal and bacterial genera and species during work in a cucumber greenhouse is affected by work tasks, and whether a cohort of greenhouse workers' serum levels of serum amyloid A (SAA) and C-reactive protein (CRP), biomarkers of systemic inflammation, are associated with this. Data on personal exposure to airborne fungal and bacterial species measured over 4 years as well as serum levels of SAA and CRP sampled over two years were analyzed. For data analysis, the main work tasks were grouped into three different groups, called ‘grouped work task’. Microorganisms were identified using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF MS) and next-generation sequencing (NGS). The ‘daily exposure’ of greenhouse workers' were as follows: 4.8 × 10
4 CFU bacteria/m
3, 1.4 × 10
6 CFU fungi/m
3, and 392 EU/m
3 of endotoxin. Workers were exposed to many different microbial species including several species within the genera Acinetobacter, Bacillus, Microbacterium, Pseudomonas, Staphylococcus, and Streptomyces. The genera Ralstonia and Cladosporium were found in most samples. The exposure levels as well as the microbial composition were associated significantly with grouped work task and season with high exposures during tasks in close contact with mature and old plants and in the autumn. CRP and SAA levels were also associated with exposure level and grouped work tasks. The Shannon-Wiener indices were not different in the 3 ‘grouped work tasks’. Several specific species including e.g. Halomonas elongata, Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, Podosphaera fusca, and Wallemia spp. were found frequently or in high concentrations in the exposures associated with the highest levels of CRP and SAA. The microorganisms S. maltophilia, P. fusca, and Wallemia spp. were also found on the cucumber plant leaves. In conclusion, both exposure level and the species composition seem to have an effect on the serum levels of CRP and SAA of exposed workers. The greenhouse workers were exposed to only a few species characterized as human pathogens.
KW - Acute-phase response
KW - Biodiversity
KW - Fungal exposure
KW - Occupational exposure
KW - Serum amyloid A
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85093652669&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.envres.2020.110325
DO - 10.1016/j.envres.2020.110325
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 33068575
SN - 0013-9351
VL - 192
JO - Environmental Research
JF - Environmental Research
M1 - 110325
ER -