Getting dirty while being healthy

Kelsey RamseyMicrobial Ecology

Dr. SmithApril 16, 2015

IntroductionThe reason why people are told to wipe down gym equipment before and after is because "the overall microbial load and diversity of the environment are often implicated as a critical indicator of hygiene and cleanliness." (Banerjee 2014). Of course the equipment it self is not the cause of these microbes evolving in the gym. According to Banerjee article, human skin was found to be the main source of bacteria. Aside from human skin "soil and outdoor air (by air conditioning), dust from human shoes, etc. could also serve as potential sources of harboring and transmission of various microorganisms in indoor environments." (Banerjee 2014). Even though anyone who utilizes the gym can end up with an infection one study stated "individuals engaged in athletic events in which the participants are in close contact or share equipment, however, may be at additional risk." (DuBois 2009). One specie of a microorganism found in related situations was "Staphylococcus aureus bacteria sensitive to methicillin" (Ayan 2013). There was a wide range of bacterial species found on the gym equipment in the study conducted by Banerjee and they were "Bacillus, Serratia, Aerococcus, Erwinia, and Enterobacter spp." (Banerjee 2014). A very bizarre discovery was found, "S. aureus and S. epidermidis were found to be present on all the surfaces tested." (Banerjee 2014). As other researchers found, my studies also resembled "the major bacterial genera include Pseudomonas, Pantoea, Micrococcus, Staphylococcus, Enterobacter, Klebsiella, and Bacillus" (Banerjee 2014).

Objective and Hypothesis

• The objective of this experiment was to get an idea of what kind of bacteria could possibly grow on ellipticals, barbell benches, water fountains, and treadmills in either a university gym, a neighborhood gym, or a franchise gym.

• My hypothesis is that a wider diversity of bacteria will be found in this order from greatest to least: the university gyms, the franchise gyms, then the neighborhood gyms. That prediction was conducted because athletes will use their school gyms more than any other gym. The franchise gyms came next on the list due to the increase of usage of their equipment by their larger customer base. Last but not least, the neighborhood gyms are predicted to have the least amount of germs because they are smaller facilities and since it is an extension of people's home in a sense, they will be more eager to keep up with cleanliness of that gym.

Materials• Gym locations- Gym A: The University of South Carolina Aiken - Gym B: Tributary in Lithia, Ga- Gym C: The YMCA in Aiken • Gym equipment1. The ellipticals2. The barbell benches3. The water fountains4. The treadmills• Lab equipment- Microscope- Glass slide- Gram staining chemicals- Nutrient rich Petri dishes- Sterile Falcon 14mL Polypropylene Round-Bottom Tubes- Sterile Curity cotton applicators- Small plastic bag

MethodsFirst the hypothesis was formed to decide which locations and what equipment was going to swabbed to collect the specimens. Collected the appropriate equipment (sterile swabs, round- bottom tubes, and small plastic bags) needed to perform the experiment. The round-bottom tubes were labeled with a sharpie marker. Each tube had written on them gym a, b, c, or d and a number out of 1, 2, 3, or 4. Went to the University of South Carolina Aiken (USCA) gym and swabbed the elliptical's handles and buttons and placed the swab in a round-bottom tube and capped quickly. Repeated that swab technique with the water fountain and treadmill using fresh swabs and round-bottom tubes. The barbell bench surface was also swabbed. Performed the same task at the neighborhood gym in Tributary located in Lithia, Ga and the YMCA in

Aiken on different days. The specimen for USCA gym were plated ten minutes later. The ones from Lithia, Ga were plated a day later but the specimens were kept in a cool environment in the between time. The specimens from the YMCA were plated approximately fifteen minutes later. After allowing the bacteria to grow for two weeks the Petri dishes were observed and the bacteria colonies were then isolated. A week later the bacteria that grew was gram stained and observed under the microscope to decipher if the bacteria was gram positive or gram negative and the morphology. A chart was made in order to compare what kind of bacteria grew in which gyms and on what equipment. The different types of bacteria were then compared to similar studies in order to have a better clue to what kind of bacteria colonies that were present in this study.

ResultsIn each of the Petri dishes there was growth present. The gym that displayed the most growth and the most diversity was the franchised gym, YMCA in Aiken, SC. The next contender for the most diversity was neighborhood gym in Tributary located in Lithia, Ga. Unlike the YMCA, that gym's Petri dishes contained mold. Surprisingly the gym at the University of South

Carolina Aiken had the least bacteria diversity within their Petri dishes. For each gym the piece of equipment that came in first for possessing the most bacteria diversity was the barbell bench. The water fountain had the second highest average for bacterial diversity while the elliptical and treadmill tied in third place for their bacterial diversity average

Results

Figure 1. Results from Gym B which is located in Lithia, GaFigure 2. Gram stain of Gym A elliptical

Results

Figure 3. Results from gym A and C

Figure 4. Is the comparison of all 3 gyms' diversity of bacteria.

Results

The type of bacteria that it could possibly be

Conclusion• The YMCA gym in Aiken turned out to have the most

diversity when it came to the type of bacteria colonies found on gym equipment compared to the other two gyms.

• One study showed using ClO2 helped reduced the growth rate on gym surfaces and protective wear drastically.

• The best way to prevent spreading germs in the gym is to take a shower before you work out and wipe the equipment down before and after use. This will not kill all of the colonies but it will decrease the chances of passing infections.

Literature cited Banerjee P, Dowd S, Mukherjee N, Kedia S E., Vohra V, Wise A. 2014 Dec. 3. Diversity of bacterial communities of fitness center surfaces in a U.S. metropolitan area. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2014. [accessed 2015 April 8]. 2014(11):12544-12561. www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph.

DuBois J D., Newsome A L., Tenney J D.. Disinfection of football protective equipment using chlorine dioxide produced by the ICA TriNova system. BMC Public Health 2009. [accessed 2015 April 8]. 2009(9):326. http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2458/9/326.

Black E, Bucciarelli C, Ifantides, C, Ryan K A., Saliba H, Thompson L A., Tuli S. Are gymnasium equipment surfaces a source of staphylococcal infections in the community? Am J Infect Control 2011. [accessed 2015 April 8]. 39(2):148-50. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ajic.2010.06.006.

Ayan S. The hidden danger for the users of playgrounds and sport complexes. Life Sci J 2013. [accessed 2015 April 8]. 10(1):2884-2890. http://www.lifesciencesite.com. 349.