SYSTEMATIC REVIEW article
Front. Built Environ.
Sec. Sustainable Design and Construction
Volume 11 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fbuil.2025.1657297
Microbiomes of the Built Environment: A Systematic Literature Review
Provisionally accepted
- 1American University of Sharjah College of Engineering, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
- 2Cleveland State University, Cleveland, United States
- 3American University of Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
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This systematic literature review explores the critical role of microbiomes in the built environment (MoBE) and their impact on public health, particularly in pathogen transmission and infection control. Microbial communities in indoor and outdoor spaces are shaped by architectural design, ventilation, human occupancy, and other environmental factors. The COVID-19 pandemic has intensified the need to understand airborne, surface, waterborne, and other transmission pathways to mitigate disease spread. Despite advancements in microbial ecology, gaps remain in integrating findings with architectural and urban planning strategies. Future research should incorporate smart technologies, study long-term MoBE dynamics, explore sustainable building materials, and assess climate change impacts on microbial compositions. Strengthening policies on microbial risk management, air quality, and sanitation in high-occupancy environments, addressing these gaps, and fostering interdisciplinary collaboration will help create healthier, safer, and more resilient built environments aligned with global sustainability and public health goals.
Keywords: Microbiomes in the Built Environment, Airborne, aerosol, surface, Fomite, Waterborne, Microbial transmission
Received: 02 Jul 2025; Accepted: 12 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Joseph, Abdulmaksoud, Mortula, Beheiry and Zareen. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Tania Mariam Joseph, American University of Sharjah College of Engineering, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
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