Microbe-carrying particles

At the lack of proper ventilation, microbes can occupy practically any surface, WPC or not (Fig. 13.13). Several flat pieces of HOPE on my backyard were covered with green algae, namely the backsides, not accessible by the direct sunlight. No wonder, WPC can carry spots of mold when placed in a warm and wet environment, particularly with no draft. Mold grows even indoors, on shower bath plastic curtains. Even when no cellulose fibers are available for microbes (such as with flat pieces of neat HDPE), they consume pollen and other airborne particles. Brushed WPC boards always contain cellulose-derived dust on their surface. 

Saliva can carry disease organisms. To minimize the transmission of disease, disposable cardboard mouthpieces are used with many respiratory measurement devices. Respiratory devices should, if possible, be designed to include sterilizable parts in the airflow path. This would reduce the possibility that microbes hitchhiking on aerosol particles would be passed from patient to patient. When appropriate, disposable Alters may also help prevent microbe transmission. 

Vimses are tiny, simple forms of microbes that require living cells to reproduce. They are classified as DNA or RNA viruses, depending on the genetic material they carry (106). The particle size of viruses ranges from 0.01 to 0.25 j,m. Com-... 

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