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Biocide-Containing Varnish for the Protection of Sandstone: Comparison of Formulations and Laboratory Test Methods

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Abstract

Two formulations of acrylic varnish, with and without either of two dry film biocides—one a mixture of isothiazolinones and benzimidazole derivatives, and the other a carbamate—were tested in vitro for their activity against mixtures of filamentous fungi and cyanobacteria found on sandstone buildings. Growth on filter-paper squares coated with the varnishes was assessed semi-quantitatively by naked eye, quantitatively by image analysis and chemically by measurement of ergosterol and chlorophyll a. The lower solvent content (higher resin) varnish was more inhibitory to cyanobacteria than the higher varnish content, whilst the opposite was true for the fungal inoculum. The carbamate biocide was effective against cyanobacteria, unlike the isothiazolinone mixture, but the latter produced more inhibition of fungal growth. The three assay methods produced generally similar results, although visual observation was obviously the most imprecise. There was an anomaly in the ergosterol measurements, which was considered to be caused by the varying ergosterol content and unequal inhibition of the three fungal genera used in the inoculum. Fusarium sp. was shown to contain higher levels of this membrane component than Cladosporium sp. and Penicillium sp. For this reason, the most appropriate method overall, giving reliable quantitative results, was deemed to be the image analysis.

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank the Brazilian funding body, CNPq, for a post-graduate scholarship to MREB and partial funding of materials for this project.

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Author notes

  1. Martín R. E. Barrionuevo

    Present address: Math. Department, FCEQyN - Universidad Nacional de Misiones (UNaM), Felix de Azara 1532, Posadas, Misiones, Argentina

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Soils Department, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Av. Bento Gonçalves 7712, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil

    Martín R. E. Barrionuevo

  2. University of Portsmouth, Microbiology Research Laboratory, School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, St. Michael’s Building, White Swan Rd, Portsmouth, PO1 2DT, UK

    Christine C. Gaylarde

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  1. Martín R. E. Barrionuevo
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  2. Christine C. Gaylarde
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Correspondence to Christine C. Gaylarde.

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Barrionuevo, M.R.E., Gaylarde, C.C. Biocide-Containing Varnish for the Protection of Sandstone: Comparison of Formulations and Laboratory Test Methods. Curr Microbiol 62, 1671–1676 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-011-9912-6

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