The contaminants of biological origin in indoor environments can be dispersed in the air (bioaerosols) or deposited on surfaces. Humid and poorly ventilated indoor environments can be characterized by a high concentration of allergens and potentially toxic fungal spores: these compounds can be easily inhaled. In recent years, indoor exposure to mycotoxin-producing fungi has attracted particular attention. Mycotoxins can in fact be cytotoxic, damage cell membranes, interfere with RNA/DNA synthesis.
In recent years, there has been a growing interest in the use of essential oils (EO), as antimicrobial substances, as they have two interesting properties: the synergy of action with antibiotics and the absence of microbial resistance to their constituents. Among the indoor disinfection strategies, alternatives to synthetic products, EOs seem to represent a new frontier, in terms of safety, effectiveness and compliance with customers. Their effectiveness has been demonstrated against different microbial classes: bacteria, viruses and mycotoxin-producing filamentous fungi.