{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,18]],"date-time":"2026-08-18T09:33:01Z","timestamp":1787045581802,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":23,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"16","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,18]],"date-time":"2026-08-18T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1787011200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Minister of Science","award":["RID\/SP\/0031\/2024\/01"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["RID\/SP\/0031\/2024\/01"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Int. J. Mol. Sci.","IJMS"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Athletic environments\u2014ranging from natural grass pitches and synthetic crumb\u2013rubber turf to indoor mats and hardwood courts\u2014are increasingly recognized as dynamic built-environment microbiomes rather than inert platforms. These surfaces are continuously exposed to human skin contact, perspiration and environmental debris, and may act as reservoirs for both beneficial commensals and opportunistic pathogens. The present study characterized and compared the taxonomic diversity of bacterial communities across four distinct sports surfaces and tested whether surface material or intensity of human use is the stronger determinant of community structure. Environmental swabs were collected from natural grass pitches, synthetic crumb\u2013rubber turf, polyvinyl chloride (PVC) karate mats and hardwood squash courts, before and after sporting activity. Bacterial communities were profiled by 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing, with taxonomic assignment against the SILVA reference database. Alpha diversity was quantified using the Shannon and Simpson indices, and community structure (beta diversity) was visualized by Principal Coordinates Analysis (PCoA) on Bray\u2013Curtis dissimilarities. Surface material was the strongest predictor of microbial composition. Natural grass exhibited high alpha diversity dominated by soil-dwelling Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria, whereas synthetic surfaces showed reduced diversity but a markedly higher prevalence of human skin-associated taxa (Staphylococcus, Corynebacterium and Streptococcus). High-contact PVC mats underwent a significant relative enrichment in these skin-associated genera following active training. PCoA revealed clear spatial segregation by material. A multivariate PERMANOVA confirmed surface material as the primary driver of microbial structure, explaining 52.2% of the total variance (p &lt; 0.001), whereas the intensity of human use (pre- vs. post-activity) explained only 2.8% of the variance (p = 0.035), with a non-significant interaction term (p = 0.178). These findings demonstrate that sports surfaces are living biological landscapes whose microbial fingerprint is strongly associated with specific surface types. This provides a molecular baseline for targeted hygiene interventions and future antimicrobial-material design tailored to specific athletic disciplines.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ijms27167372","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,18]],"date-time":"2026-08-18T09:06:41Z","timestamp":1787044001000},"page":"7372","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Microbial Communities Across Sports Surfaces: Exploring the Biology of Athletic Environments"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"27","author":[{"given":"Magdalena","family":"Dowgia\u0142\u0142o","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Chemistry, Faculty of Physical Education, Gdansk University of Physical Education and Sport, Gorskiego 1 Street, 80-336 Gdansk, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Magdalena","family":"Kropid\u0142owska","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Chemistry, Faculty of Physical Education, Gdansk University of Physical Education and Sport, Gorskiego 1 Street, 80-336 Gdansk, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0326-5560","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Patrizia","family":"Proia","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Sport and Exercise Sciences Research Unit, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, 90128 Palermo, Italy"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4088-3541","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Beata","family":"\u0141ubkowska","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Chemistry, Faculty of Physical Education, Gdansk University of Physical Education and Sport, Gorskiego 1 Street, 80-336 Gdansk, Poland"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,18]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"742","DOI":"10.1038\/s41579-024-01077-3","article-title":"The indoors microbiome and human health","volume":"22","author":"Gilbert","year":"2024","journal-title":"Nat. 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