Microbial contamination in 20-peso banknotes in Monterrey, Mexico

The authors' aim was to isolate and identify bacteria or yeast that may be present on the surface of 20-peso banknotes from the metropolitan area of Monterrey, Mexico. They randomly studied a total of 70 20-peso banknotes for the presence of bacteria and species of Candida by conventional metho...

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Published inJournal of environmental health Vol. 75; no. 2; pp. 20 - 23
Main Authors Rocha-Gámez, Judith, Tejeda-Villarreal, Paula Nelly, Macías-Cárdenas, Patricia, Canizales-Oviedo, Jorge, Garza-González, Elvira, Ramírez-Villarreal, Elsa Guadalupe
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States National Environmental Health Association 01.09.2012
Subjects
Bacteria
Bacteriology
Bank notes
Burkholderia cepacia
Candida
Colony Count, Microbial
Commerce
Communicable Disease Control
Convenience stores
Currency
E coli
Environmental Microbiology
Food contamination & poisoning
Hands
Humans
Identification systems
Metropolitan areas
Mexico
Microbial contamination
Microbiology
Microorganisms
Yeast
Yeasts
Mexico
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Summary:The authors' aim was to isolate and identify bacteria or yeast that may be present on the surface of 20-peso banknotes from the metropolitan area of Monterrey, Mexico. They randomly studied a total of 70 20-peso banknotes for the presence of bacteria and species of Candida by conventional methods. Out of the 70 banknotes, 48 (69%) were found to be contaminated. The most prevalent species observed was Candida kruseii (19 bills, 27%) followed by Burkholderia cepacia (9 bills, 13%); 22 (31%) bills showed no growth. Of the 48 contaminated bills, four (5.7%) yielded bacteria considered pathogenic and the other 44 bills (63%) yielded bacteria considered potentially pathogenic. Eleven bills showed more than one microbial species. The results of the authors' study show that contamination occurs on paper currency in the metropolitan area of Monterrey. The authors' findings provide evidence that currency banknotes may represent a threat to human health.
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ISSN:0022-0892