Work

The molecular impact of life in an indoor environment

Year: 2022

Type: article

Abstract: The chemistry of indoor surfaces and the role of microbes in shaping and responding to that chemistry are largely unexplored. We found that, over 1 month, people's presence and activities profoundly reshaped the chemistry of a house. Molecules associated with eating/cooking, bathroom use, and personal care were found throughout the entire house, while molecules associated with medications, outdoor biocides, and microbially derived compounds were distributed in a location-dependent manner. The house and its microbial occupants, in turn, also introduced chemical transformations such as oxidation and transformations of foodborne molecules. The awareness of and the ability to observe the molecular changes introduced by people should influence future building designs.

Source: Science Advances

DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abn8016

Authors: Alexander A. Aksenov, Rodolfo A. Salido, Alexey V. Melnik, Caitriona Brennan, Asker Brejnrod, Andrés Mauricio Caraballo-Rodríguez, Julia M. Gauglitz, Franck Lejzerowicz, Delphine K. Farmer, Marina E. Vance, Rob Knight, Pieter C. Dorrestein

Institutions: University of Connecticut, University of California San Diego, Colorado State University, University of Colorado Boulder

Language: English

Topic: Indoor Air Quality and Microbial Exposure

Subfield: Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $4,500

Funders: U.S. Department of Energy, Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Department of Energy and Climate Change, National Institutes of Health, University of California, San Diego, National Institute of General Medical Sciences

Awards: DISCOVERY OF SIGNALING SMALL MOLECULES (E.G. QUORUM SENSING MOLECULES) FROM THE MICROBIOME, Center for Computational Mass Spectrometry, G6097802020, Research - University of Colorado, Boulder (2017), A Platform for Rapidly Identifying Molecules in Symbiotic Interactions, G9000254335, Unified Computation Tools for Natural Products research

OpenAlex ID: W4283389358

FWCI: 0.575

Cites: 45

Cited by: 7

Related to: 10