At the first opportunity, bacteria take the opportunity to develop their colonies, causing potential harm to human health. Different studies have already observed the development of this type of infectious agent in bathrooms and even on cell phone screens. Now, a group of Brazilians has decided to investigate app cars. In this case, vehicles can have up to 30 times more bacteria than cars for individual use.
The small survey on the bacteria present in cars per app was developed by biomedicine students at the Pontifical Catholic University of Campinas (PUC-Campinas), in the interior of São Paulo. It also had the participation of researchers Andréia Rodrigues Bucci and Maria Magali Stelato.
Bacteria are more common in cars by application
In the study, the authors considered three types of cars: a vehicle used by a driver who works with mobility applications, a family car, and an individual car. Bacterial samples were collected from the surface of the steering wheel, gearshift and vehicle door handles.
The focus was to identify the presence and level of contamination, specifically, of two types of bacteria:
- Bacteria of the genus Staphylococcus, known to cause throat and skin infections;
- Enterobacteria that settle in the intestine, which can cause diarrhea.
What did the study reveal about the level of contamination?
In the analysis of enterobacteria, the average growth of colony forming units was 10 to 15 colonies in a particular vehicle. In the family car, the index rose, being calculated between 100 and 120 colonies. Now, in the driver’s car per application, 300 colony-forming units have been exceeded.
The result of the analysis with staphylococcus bacteria was very similar to the previous one. In cars for individual use, there were 5 to 10 colony-forming units. The total rose to 80 units in family cars. Now, it has skyrocketed in cars per app, reaching more than 300 units.
Observation: as this is a small survey and, so far, has not been published by any scientific journal, in which it would undergo peer review, it must be understood with caution. However, the hypothesis that the risk of contamination is greater the more people share the same space is highly likely.
What happens to air conditioning that is not sanitized?
In a second stage of the research, the same group analyzed the bacteria that live in air conditioning, regardless of the type of use of the vehicle. Samples were collected from plates left for a period of 15 minutes inside vehicles with the air on.
In vehicles that do not change the air filter, contamination was very high. Now, in cars where it occurs in periods above 30,000 km, there is less contamination. Finally, when switching is done with the correct frequency, it is close to being unnoticeable.
Here, it must be pointed out that, when air maintenance is not carried out, mold particles can eventually contaminate people through breathing. In these cases, drivers or passengers can report cases of allergies and various types of irritation.
“Products that have chemical components with cleaning and sanitizing action will already reduce the bacterial load on the surface”, says researcher Bucci, in a note. However, the expert points out that, more important than the product, is the number of times the cleaning is done, which will reduce the proliferation of bacteria.
