Mycometer Fungi, Allergen and Bacteria Tests

Technology

We call the technology Enzyme Targeted Fluorogenic Detection (ETFD). It is about identifying naturally occurring enzyme activities that are present only in the taxonomic group of interest e.g. bacteria or fungi. The enzyme activity is determined using highly sensitive fluorescence detection.

Rapid and Accurate Quantification of Fungi or Bacteria
The application of the technology is very versatile and can be used to measure fungi or bacteria in almost all environments.

The built environment
The Mycometer technology is used to determine the level of fungi and bacteria on surfaces of building materials, wood, painted surfaces, concrete, gypsum board, coatings, render, ceramic and fiberboard tiles, plastic, furniture, textiles, leather goods.
It can be used to determine the level of fungi inside porous building materials

Fungal levels can be determined inside porous materials such as insulation materials, concrete, and other cementitious materials.

Air Testing

Levels of fungi or of total allergens (pollen, fungi, dust mites, dander, insect parts and other) can be determined in the indoor air, industrial air, and the air in waste treatment plants.

Food and agriculture

Fungal and bacterial levels can also be determined in powders and raw materials such as fertilizer, compost, soil, grain and in liquids such as fruit juice as well as fermented milk products such as yogurt. Another application is early detection of fungal contamination on crop leaves.

Cultural artifacts and coatings

Fungal and bacterial levels can also be determined on delicate surfaces such as paintings, sculpture, books leather goods, textiles, and paper documents to determine level of damage and efficacy of restoration cleaning. Fungal deterioration of coatings and other surface products such as paint and sealants can be determined to inform product development, and early detection during weathering.

Mycometer is a versatile and easy to use tool for:

• Investigation buildings:
• Determine and document whether a surface contains fungal growth (indicative of moisture problems) (Mycometer Surface Fungi).
• Determine and document presence of a fungal source that is fungal growth using activated air samples; (Mycometer Air FAI).
• Determine and document potential exposure to fungi using activated air samples (Mycometer Air Fungi).
• Determine and document if porous materials such as insulation or cementitious materials contain fungal growth) (bulk samples) (Mycometer Surface Fungi test assays).
• Determine and document bacterial contamination on surfaces after flooding, sewage backflow or leakage, or growth on moist surfaces (Mycometer surface Bacteria).\
• Checking the overall cleaning standard using activated air sampling (Mycometer Air Allergen).

Post remediation or verification:

Perform QA/QC of surfaces cleaned for fungal growth (Mycometer surface Fungi samples)
Perform QC of cleaning for spores dispersed prior to and during remediation using activated air samples (Mycometer Air Fungi)
Perform QA/QC of surfaces cleaned for bacterial contamination (Mycometer surface Bacteria samples)

Checking the cleaning standard:
Checking for presence of total allergens using activated air sampling (Mycometer Air Allergen).

Comparison to other technologies

ETFD is very rapid compared to the classical microbiological cultivation giving results in minutes to hours compared to after several days of incubation with cultivation. The ability of ETFD to target different taxonomical groups makes it possible to measure bacteria or to measure fungi with only minor interferences as compared to an older rapid technology known as the ATP test. This test measures ATP (Adenosine triphosphate) which is present in all living cells, and exudates. The ATP is therefore, more like a general measure of the biological load and cannot be used as a specific measure of bacteria or fungi.

High reproducibility

The ETFD technology is robust and easy to work with and therefore well suited for field methods as well as laboratory methods. Mycometer adapts the test procedure for different applications that match all the qualities of a laboratory test. Both sampling protocols and analysis protocols are standardized specialized for each application, including proper chemistry blank values, instrument normalization which together with a mandatory calibration procedure performed prior to the analysis ensures highly reproducible results across replicate samples as well as multiple instruments, something that is verified by US-EPA in a test report (2011). They found that the reproducibility of samples tested by different technicians using two different instruments was very good with a relative standard deviation on the mean between 1.4 and 8.7 % when different assays and conditions were used. The calculated standard deviation calculation included variability contributions from all steps including both e.g. the air sampling, the analysis, the analyst and the instrumentation. Mycometers tests are used as accredited methods in laboratories, and are documented in numerous independent peer-reviewed scientific publications. Most importantly though, its usability has been verified through its use by our loyal clients some of which are still using it after 20 years, when the company was first started. Mycometer technology has been a DOD preferred technology with the US Department of Defence since 2010. Mycometer is a Danish standard and is mentioned as an accepted method in ASTM Standard 7338 “Standard Guide for Fungal Assessment in Buildings” since 2010. It is also referenced as a recommended method by the Institute of Medicine in the publication “Damp Indoor Spaces and Health” pp 290 ( 2004).