Microbial communities affecting albumen photography heritage: a methodological survey.

ABSTRACT: This study is one of the few investigations which analyze albumen prints, perhaps the most important photographic heritage of the late 19(th) and early 20(th) centuries. The chemical composition of photographic samples was assessed using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray fluorescence. These two non-invasive techniques revealed the complex nature of albumen prints, which are composed of a mixture of proteins, cellulose and salts. Microbial sampling was performed using cellulose nitrate membranes which also permitted the trapped microflora to be observed with a scanning electron microscope. Microbial analysis was performed using the combination of culture-dependent (cultivation in different media, including one 3% NaCl) and culture-independent (bacterial and fungal cloning an

SUBMITTER: Puskarova A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4749957 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature