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Chemical marker analysis used to detect microbial colonization in water-damaged building materials

Szponar B, Larsson L (2000) · Indoor Air 10(1):13–18

A method study reported that 3-hydroxy fatty acid markers of gram-negative bacteria remained detectable in building materials for weeks after water damage.

What they studied

Building material samples from water-damaged and reference buildings.

Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry analysis of 3-hydroxy fatty acids as endotoxin markers.

Repeat measurement over a period of weeks after wetting.

What they found

The authors reported that the chemical markers reliably distinguished colonized from reference materials.

Marker levels were reported to persist for at least six weeks after the water event.

The method was reported to detect bacterial contamination that culture methods missed.

What it does not establish

A method-development study on a limited sample set.

Marker persistence in material is not a measure of airborne exposure.

No health outcomes were measured.

This entry reports the study. It is not a statement about any building Sage Co. designs or constructs.

Source

  • Szponar B, Larsson L (2000). Determination of microbial colonisation in water-damaged buildings using chemical marker analysis by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry · Indoor Air 10(1):13–18 · Read at the source

Last reviewed August 30, 2026.

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