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Soil samples collected from 9 parks in the Italian province of Pavia were baited with hair and feathers for the isolation of keratinophilic fungi. The dominant species were the teleomorphs Arthroderma gypsea, A. uncinatum, Ctenomyces serratus and Aphanoascus fulvescens with their anamorphs. Among the other species isolated, Amauroascus mutatus, Gymnascella dankaliensis, Gymnoascus intermedius and Gymnoascus reessii were recorded. The distribution of these fungi is discussed and related to previous records.

Keratinophilic fungi were isolated from samples of soil collected in the extremity of Chile, in Southern Shetland and Antarctic continent. Two new species, Microsporum magellanicum and Cunninghamella antarctica are described. Microsporum magellanicum is characterized by verrucose or verruculose clavate macroconidia predominantly uniseptate, 4-87-2micronx14-4-21-6micron. Cunninghamella antarctica has conidiophores usually verticillately, pseudoverticillately and sympodially branched; and globose conidia with evident spines, 12-8-16micron in diameter.

The examination of keratinophilic fungi in 125 soil samples collected in Pavia, Italy revealed the following organism: Microsporum gypseum 23, M. vanbreuseghemii 4, Arthroderma uncinatum 4, Ctenomyces serratus 5, Chrysosporium tropicum 5, unidentified gymnoascacean 1. Arthroderma uncinatum, M. gypseum, M. vanbreuseghemii were isolated from a city park and cultivated soils; C. tropicum, Ct. serratus and an unidentified gymnoascacean were found only in soils from natural woods. The distribution of the different species is discussed.

Abstract: A study of airborne fungi was carried out in the architectural complex of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela (Spain) during 2002, by using viable volumetric sampling methods. This resulted in a total of 35 identified taxa, of which the most abundant were: Alternaria, Aspergillus, Cladosporium and Penicillium. Sampling was completed with data from the outdoor atmosphere and swab samples in specific places. In general there were no statistically significant indoor/outdoor differences and in both cases the highest CFU m-3 were obtained during the spring-summer. Similar relatively low numbers of the same fungi were likewise detected at different points in the Cathedral nave, while up to nearly 6500 CFU m-3 were recorded in the Corticela Chapel. The study of intradiurnal levels carried out in the Cathedral nave reveals greater abundance of fungal concentrations at 13:00h, the moment of massive influx of visitors in the Cathedral, with 406 CFU m-3 compared to the 380 CFU m-3 sampled at 9:00h and the 350 CFU m-3 at 21:00h. The whole investigation is the first study of the atmospheric fungal content of the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]