Role of wind in alteration of hilltop airborne bacterial communities enriched with pathogens over the Eastern Himalayas in India.

ABSTRACT: Airborne microorganisms play a significant role in atmospheric processes and public health, yet their variations over high-altitude regions are underexplored. To investigate the meteorological influence and role of transport patterns on airborne microorganisms, we analyzed DNA sequencing of bacterial population collected from ambient atmosphere during 2022-2023 over Darjeeling (27.03°N, 88.26°E; 2,200 m amsl), an Eastern Himalayan hilltop site, and categorized as winter (dry: cold, stable), pre-monsoon (semi-dry: warm, transitional), monsoon (wet: humid, rainy), and post-monsoon (semi-wet: cooler, cloudy) seasons. Back-trajectory analysis showed air masses from the western Indo-Gangetic Plain during pre-monsoon and from the Bay of Bengal during monsoon, while winter and post-monsoon air ma

SUBMITTER: Saikh SR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12838236 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature