Determination of the carbon content of airborne fungal spores

Airborne fungal spores contribute potentially to the organic carbon of the atmospheric aerosol, mainly in the “coarse aerosol” size range 2.5−10 μm aerodynamic equivalent diameter (aed). Here, we report about a procedure to determine the organic carbon content of fungal spores frequently observed in the atmosphere. Furthermore, we apply a new (carbon/individual) factor to quantify the amount of fungal-spores-derived organic carbon in aerosol collected at a mountain site in Austria. Spores of representatives of Cladosporium sp., Aspergillus sp., Penicillium sp., and Alternaria sp., the four predominant airborne genera, were analyzed for their carbon content using two different analytical procedures. The result was an average carbon content of 13 pg C/spore (RSD, 46%), or expressed as a carbon-per-volume ratio, 0.38 pg C/μm3 (RSD, 30%). These values are comparable to conversion factors for bacteria and some representatives of the zooplankton. Because biopolymers are suspected of interfering with elemental c...