Background It is well accepted that mold exposure is a major contributor to the development
of asthma, and beta-glucans are often used as a surrogate for mold exposure in the
environment. Beta-glucans are an important component of mold spores and are recognized
by the immune system by their receptor, Dectin-1. Cladosporium cladosporioides spores
have a high beta-glucan content, but the beta-glucans are not available on the surface of
live spores. Objective We sought to determine whether altering the exposure of beta-glucans …