Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the differential survival of turkey-derived Campylobacter in vehicles of special relevance for pre-harvest transmission.
Methods: Feces from Campylobacter-positive turkey flocks and a suspension of such feces in water were stored at 4°C and total Campylobacter populations were enumerated on CCDA at 48-hour intervals. Isolates from each time point (total, n = 548) were purified on Mueller Hinton Agar. For each isolate, species designations were determined by multiplex PCR and antibiotic susceptibility profiles were determined for five antibiotics: tetracycline (T), streptomycin (S), erythromycin (E), kanamycin (K), and ciprofloxacin (Q).
Results: C. coli survived longer than C. jejuni both in feces and in water (P = 0.0005 and P < 0.0001, respectively). At the initial enumeration (T0), TK and TKQ C. coli accounted for 19 and 21%, respectively, of total C. coli in both feces and water. These were the longest-surviving strains, accounting for 48% (TK) and 35% (TKQ) of C. coli at ≥ 4 days. C. coli resistant to all five antibiotics (TSEKQ) appeared unable to survive longer than 4 days in feces.
Significance: This study can further our understanding on relative survival of different species and strains of Campylobacter outside their avian host. Results will inform efforts to reduce transmission of this pathogen in turkeys pre-harvest.