Preliminary insight into the relationship between bioaerosols and urban environment obtained from the COVID-19 self-quarantine period in the Tokyo metropolitan area
Anthropogenic activities and meteorological conditions influence the composition of urban bioaerosols. The COVID-19 epidemic drastically reduced anthropogenic activities in the metropolitan areas of Japan in 2020. This study examined inter-day fluctuations in airborne bacterial and fungal compositio...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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IOP Publishing
2023-01-01
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| Series: | Environmental Research Communications |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1088/2515-7620/ad0e1f |
| _version_ | 1797403027078905856 |
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| author | Kotaro Murata Hiroshi Okochi Masashi Kamogawa |
| author_facet | Kotaro Murata Hiroshi Okochi Masashi Kamogawa |
| author_sort | Kotaro Murata |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Anthropogenic activities and meteorological conditions influence the composition of urban bioaerosols. The COVID-19 epidemic drastically reduced anthropogenic activities in the metropolitan areas of Japan in 2020. This study examined inter-day fluctuations in airborne bacterial and fungal compositions in Tokyo, Japan, between April and June 2020, under exceptionally unusual conditions where the movement of people and economic activity had been greatly reduced. The result showed, as expected, that local meteorological factors, especially wind and precipitation, substantially impacted emissions and changes in bacterial and fungal aerosols. However, we found that variations in the composition of urban bioaerosols could potentially be affected by anthropogenic influences, such as the concentrations of nitrogen oxides, ozone, and particulate matter, and human density. Although such factors are not as influential as wind and precipitation, it was shown for the first time that drastic changes in human activities within an area can affect the dynamics of bioaerosols. This could be a finding that should be considered for public health issues related to air quality in changing urban areas such as fast-growing cities. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T02:32:32Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-6badb8830d384881a312a1efa2db7913 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2515-7620 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T02:32:32Z |
| publishDate | 2023-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Environmental Research Communications |
| spelling | doaj.art-6badb8830d384881a312a1efa2db79132023-12-06T11:50:29ZengIOP PublishingEnvironmental Research Communications2515-76202023-01-0151212100110.1088/2515-7620/ad0e1fPreliminary insight into the relationship between bioaerosols and urban environment obtained from the COVID-19 self-quarantine period in the Tokyo metropolitan areaKotaro Murata0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8902-8653Hiroshi Okochi1Masashi Kamogawa2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5489-0454Global Center for Asian and Regional Research, University of Shizuoka , Shizuoka 420-0839, Japan; Center for Environmental Science in Saitama, Saitama 347-0115, JapanSchool of Creative Science and Engineering, Waseda University , Tokyo 169-8555, JapanGlobal Center for Asian and Regional Research, University of Shizuoka , Shizuoka 420-0839, JapanAnthropogenic activities and meteorological conditions influence the composition of urban bioaerosols. The COVID-19 epidemic drastically reduced anthropogenic activities in the metropolitan areas of Japan in 2020. This study examined inter-day fluctuations in airborne bacterial and fungal compositions in Tokyo, Japan, between April and June 2020, under exceptionally unusual conditions where the movement of people and economic activity had been greatly reduced. The result showed, as expected, that local meteorological factors, especially wind and precipitation, substantially impacted emissions and changes in bacterial and fungal aerosols. However, we found that variations in the composition of urban bioaerosols could potentially be affected by anthropogenic influences, such as the concentrations of nitrogen oxides, ozone, and particulate matter, and human density. Although such factors are not as influential as wind and precipitation, it was shown for the first time that drastic changes in human activities within an area can affect the dynamics of bioaerosols. This could be a finding that should be considered for public health issues related to air quality in changing urban areas such as fast-growing cities.https://doi.org/10.1088/2515-7620/ad0e1fbioaerosolbacteriafungiCOVID-19 |
| spellingShingle | Kotaro Murata Hiroshi Okochi Masashi Kamogawa Preliminary insight into the relationship between bioaerosols and urban environment obtained from the COVID-19 self-quarantine period in the Tokyo metropolitan area Environmental Research Communications bioaerosol bacteria fungi COVID-19 |
| title | Preliminary insight into the relationship between bioaerosols and urban environment obtained from the COVID-19 self-quarantine period in the Tokyo metropolitan area |
| title_full | Preliminary insight into the relationship between bioaerosols and urban environment obtained from the COVID-19 self-quarantine period in the Tokyo metropolitan area |
| title_fullStr | Preliminary insight into the relationship between bioaerosols and urban environment obtained from the COVID-19 self-quarantine period in the Tokyo metropolitan area |
| title_full_unstemmed | Preliminary insight into the relationship between bioaerosols and urban environment obtained from the COVID-19 self-quarantine period in the Tokyo metropolitan area |
| title_short | Preliminary insight into the relationship between bioaerosols and urban environment obtained from the COVID-19 self-quarantine period in the Tokyo metropolitan area |
| title_sort | preliminary insight into the relationship between bioaerosols and urban environment obtained from the covid 19 self quarantine period in the tokyo metropolitan area |
| topic | bioaerosol bacteria fungi COVID-19 |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1088/2515-7620/ad0e1f |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT kotaromurata preliminaryinsightintotherelationshipbetweenbioaerosolsandurbanenvironmentobtainedfromthecovid19selfquarantineperiodinthetokyometropolitanarea AT hiroshiokochi preliminaryinsightintotherelationshipbetweenbioaerosolsandurbanenvironmentobtainedfromthecovid19selfquarantineperiodinthetokyometropolitanarea AT masashikamogawa preliminaryinsightintotherelationshipbetweenbioaerosolsandurbanenvironmentobtainedfromthecovid19selfquarantineperiodinthetokyometropolitanarea |