Buying a house?
This mold test can be very valuable!
Mold-Specific Quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction (MSQPCR) is a fast and highly accurate DNA-based analytical method for identifying and quantifying molds. MSQPCR methods can determine the genus and species level of molds. It was developed by scientists at the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) to detect and quantify molds associated with indoor air quality problems.
Many methods for quantifying molds rely on visually counting mold spores, a time-consuming and laborious process. MSQPCR improves upon these methods because it detects molds based on unique DNA sequences.
MSQPCR methods look for a combination of molds from two groups. One group consists of molds species associated with water-damaged homes and buildings.
Group 1:
Stachybotrys chartarum
Chaetomium globosum
Cladosporium sphaerospermum
Aspergillus versicolor
Eurotium (A.) amstalodami
Penicillium variabile
Aspergillus flavus
Aspergillus restrictus
Penicillium crustosum
Aspergillus niger
Aspergillus sclerotiorum
Penicillium purpurogenum
Aspergillus fumigatus
Penicillium corylophilum
Aureobasidium pullulans
Aspergillus ochraceus
Penicillium brevicompactum
Paecilomyces variotii
Aspergillus sydowii
Penicillium spinulosum
Wallemia sebi
Aspergillus unguis
Scopulariopsis brevicaulis
Scopulariopsis chartarum
Aspergillus penicillioides
Trichoderma viride
Group 2:
Acremonium strictum
Alternaria alternate
Aspergillus ustus
Cladosporium cladosporioides v1
Cladosporium cladosporioides v2
Cladosporium herbarum
Epicoccum nigrum
Mucor & Rhizopus group
Penicillium chrysogenum
Rhizopus stolonife
The results of the test are then compared to a national database to produce a “moldiness” index specific to the property tested.
So why can this mold test be so valuable when buying a house?