Annual variations of airborne fungal propagules in two wine cellars in French Jura

Two wine cellars in the French Jura region, one of recent construction and the second one traditional, were studied with a view to determining the qua ntitative and qualitative seasonal variations of their airborne flora. The enumeration of fungal genera and species varied widely according to the typ e of cellar; in the traditional type or old cellar the microflora consisted of high concentrations of mainly two Aspergillus species (A. versicolor, A . restrictus) in summer, and Cladosporium sphaerospermum in spring and autu mn. Much exposed to the outdoor atmosphere, the modern cellar also showed C . sphaerospermum as the predominant species detected in the summer. Penicil lium spora were abundant during the summer months. (C) 2000 Adac/Editions s cientifiques et medicales Elsevier SAS.