Project:

Bacteria on Masks used for Covid19

Students:

Xinyi Zhang, Marianne Williams

Institution:

Queensborough Community College, Queens

Mentors:

Marianne Williams

Abstract:

During the current COVID-19 pandemic, the use of face masks has become increasingly recommended and even mandatory in community settings. As a result, a total of 129 billion face masks will likely be used globally each month. Face masks are used to prevent respiratory droplet transmission and lower transmission rates from people infected with respiratory viruses to non-infected people due to the fact that human saliva contains 100 million bacterial cells per milliliter and can harbor a range of pathogens including viruses such as Covid 19. (Delanghe 2021). The general assumptions of masks use do not account for the fact that these microorganisms can also form safety concerns, especially when masks are worn for too long, not properly stored, or re-used without proper disinfection. For optimal growth, bacterial cells need a surface to grow on, warmth, moisture, and nutrients, which is the environment created on the face mask due to exhaled air and water vapor. The growth of these microor

Poster:

Team samples: