Pillows: A Hot Bed Of Fungal Spores

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Pillows: A Hot Bed Of Fungal Spores

2005-10-15

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/10/051015093046.htm

Researchers at The University of Manchester funded by the Fungal Research

Trust have discovered millions of fungal spores right under our noses -- in

our pillows.

Aspergillus fumigatus, the species most commonly found in the pillows, is

most likely to cause disease; and the resulting condition Aspergillosis has

become the leading infectious cause of death in leukaemia and bone marrow

transplant patients. Fungi also exacerbate asthma in adults.

The researchers dissected both feather and synthetic samples and identified

several thousand spores of fungus per gram of used pillow - more than a

million spores per pillow.

Fungal contamination of bedding was first studied in 1936, but there have

been no reports in the last seventy years. For this new study, which was

published online today in the scientific journal Allergy, the team studied

samples from ten pillows with between 1.5 and 20 years of regular use.

Each pillow was found to contain a substantial fungal load, with four to 16

different species being identified per sample and even higher numbers found

in synthetic pillows. The microscopic fungus Aspergillus fumigatus was

particularly evident in synthetic pillows, and fungi as diverse as bread and

vine moulds and those usually found on damp walls and in showers were also

found.

Professor Woodcock who led the research said: " We know that pillows

are inhabited by the house dust mite which eats fungi, and one theory is

that the fungi are in turn using the house dust mites' faeces as a major

source of nitrogen and nutrition (along with human skin scales). There could

therefore be a 'miniature ecosystem' at work inside our pillows. "

Aspergillus is a very common fungus, carried in the air as well as being

found in cellars, household plant pots, compost, computers and ground pepper

and spices. Invasive Aspergillosis occurs mainly in the lungs and sinuses,

although it can spread to other organs such as the brain, and is becoming

increasingly common across other patient groups. It is very difficult to

treat, and as many as 1 in 25 patients who die in modern European teaching

hospitals have the disease.

Immuno-compromised patients such as transplantation, AIDS and steroid

treatment patients are also frequently affected with life-threatening

Aspergillus pneumonia and sinusitis. Fortunately, hospital pillows have

plastic covers and so are unlikely to cause problems, but patients being

discharged home - where pillows may be old and fungus-infected - could be at

risk of infection.

Aspergillus can also worsen asthma, particularly in adults who have had

asthma for many years, and cause allergic sinusitis in patients with

allergic tendencies. Constant exposure to fungus in bed could be

problematic. It can also get into the lung cavities created by tuberculosis

which affects a third of the world's population, causing general ill-health

and bleeding in the lung, as well as causing a range of plant and animal

diseases.

Dr Geoffrey , Chairman of the Fungal Research Trust which funded the

study, said: " These new findings are potentially of major significance to

people with allergic diseases of the lungs and damaged immune systems -

especially those being sent home from hospital. "

Professor Woodcock added: " Since patients spend a third of their life

sleeping and breathing close to a potentially large and varied source of

fungi, these findings certainly have important implications for patients

with respiratory disease - especially asthma and sinusitis. "

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The Fungal Research Trust (www.fungalresearchtrust.org) is a registered

charity which funds research into and education about fungal infection. It

was set up in 1991 and since then has distributed in excess of£1 .6m in

research grants resulting in more than 80 research publications in clinical

and scientific aspects of fungal infection. It also supports the Aspergillus

Website which achieves around 160,000 page requests a month. As well as

being a key resource for clinicians, the website also devotes a section to

patients and relatives to help them understand more about the disease. It

can be found at www.aspergillus.man.ac.uk.

This story has been adapted from a news release issued by University of

Manchester.

Editor's Note: The original news release can be found

athttp://www.manchester.ac.uk/aboutus/news/pressreleases/pillows/ .