Medizinische Universität Graz Austria/Österreich - Forschungsportal - Medical University of Graz
Gewählte Publikation:
Mantaj, P.
Characterization of the indoor microbiome in a newly built hospital.
Humanmedizin; [ Diplomarbeit ] Graz Medical University; 2020. pp. 84
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- Autor*innen der Med Uni Graz:
- Betreuer*innen:
- Koskinen Mora Kaisa
- Krause Robert
- Altmetrics:
- Abstract:
- Nowadays, we spend an average of 87% of our time indoors but lack important knowledge about the microbial communities of these indoor spaces.1 Especially in the hospital environment, these microorganisms are of particular importance for our health and well-being, since nosocomial infections are the fifth leading cause of death in acute-care hospitals. Here we study the microbiome of the newly built surgical department at the hospital of the Medical University of Graz, Austria by identifying and characterizing bacteria and archaea. Samples were taken in three patient rooms of the department of General Surgery on seven different days (before and in increasing intervals after they had been first occupied) over a period of one year. Sampled surfaces include floors, toilets, door handles and pillows and rarely touched surfaces like lightbars. After direct DNA extraction from the sample and amplification of a marker in the 16s rRNA gene, the gained material was sequenced on an Illumina MiSeq platform. The sequencing data was then filtered, denoised and analysed through specialised bioinformatical software (Qiime2, Calypso). Apart from the 16s rRNA analysis, direct contact tests were performed on the same locations. Overall, the surfaces are dominated by human-associated genera like Corynebacterium, Staphylococcus, Streptococcus and Acinetobacter. Floor and door handle samples have the significantly highest diversities compared to other locations, while toilet and water tap samples have significantly low richness. We also found seasonal differences and were able to cluster co-occurring bacterial species regarding the surface types they were found on. Although harmless and beneficial species were in the majority, several pathogens and their spread on the studied floor were identified. These findings are helping to understand the dynamics of hospital microbiomes and identify operational characteristics that influence these communities, thereby for instance finding ways to leave harmless or beneficial bacteria in their environment while specifically targeting and reducing harmful species.