Application of a group II Campylobacter bacteriophage to reduce strains of Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli colonizing broiler chickens

Ayman El-Shibiny, Andrew Scott, Andrew Timms, Yasser Metawea, Phillippa Connerton, Ian Connerton

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

101 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Members of the genus Campylobacter are frequently responsible for human enteric disease worldwide. Persistent Campylobacter contamination of poultry meat is a common problem that represents a significant food safety risk through the consumption of undercooked poultry meat or through cross-contamination of other foods during the preparation of poultry. Bacteriophage therapy is one possible means by which this colonization of poultry could be controlled, thus limiting the entry of Campylobacter into the human food chain. Previously group III phages with genome sizes of approximately 140 kb had been administered to Campylobacter jejuni-colonized poultry. The application of a group II Campylobacter phage, CP220, with a genome size of 197 kb is described here. Phage CP220 was administered to both C. jejuni- and C. coli-colonized birds. A 2-log CFU/g decline in cecal Campylobacter counts was observed after 48 h in birds colonized with C. jejuni HPC5 and administered with a single 7-log PFU dose of CP220. The incidence of phage resistance developing in Campylobacter-colonized chickens upon exposure to virulent phages was determined to be 2%, and the resistant types remained a minor component of the population. To achieve a similar reduction in Campylobacter numbers in C. coli OR12-colonized birds, a 9-log PFU dose of CP220 was required. Using phage to reduce Campylobacter colonization in poultry offers the prospect of a sustainable intervention measure that may limit the entry of these pathogens into the human food chain.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)733-40
Number of pages8
JournalJournal of Food Protection
Volume72
Issue number4
Publication statusPublished - 1 Apr 2009

Keywords

  • Animals
  • Bacteriophages/classification
  • Campylobacter Infections/microbiology
  • Campylobacter coli/virology
  • Campylobacter jejuni/virology
  • Chickens
  • Gastrointestinal Tract/microbiology
  • Male
  • Poultry Diseases/microbiology

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