洗濯機内部に生育するカビと洗剤成分の関係

抄録

Eight varieties of fungus were cultured on various media containing different surfactants and their rates of growth compared. All eight fungi grew on media containing sodium oleate, a sodium fatty acid used in soap, and some species of Scolecobasidium, Exophiala and Torula also grew on media containing AE, a non-ionic surfactant used in synthetic detergent. Unlike the other fungi, Scolecobasidium grew faster on media containing AE than on that containing sodium oleate. Similarly, unlike in washing machines using soap, Scolecobasidium was dominant in washing machines using synthetic detergent. On the other hand, all 8 fungi grew on media containing 0.01% of the anionic surfactants LAS or ABS. The fungal flora of washing machines using synthetic detergent was therefore thought to be determined by non-ionic surfactant and not by anionic surfactant.