Survival of Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli water isolates in lake and well water

Abstract

The role of water for transmission of Campylobacter jejuni and C. coli to humans might be underestimated, as factors important for bacterial viability in water are largely unknown. We have studied water survival of seven C. jejuni and eight C. coli isolates originally isolated from Swedish waters, together with selected reference strains, over eight days at 4 °C in the dark in untreated water collected from a local lake and a private well. To study seasonality, lake water samples were collected during spring and autumn. Samples for culturable bacterial counts were taken on days 2, 4, 6, and 8 and compared to the start inoculum. For C. jejuni, a significantly better survival was observed in autumn than in spring lake water. Furthermore, C. jejuni had a significantly better survival than C. coli in autumn lake and well water samples; the rate of culturability loss was almost double for C. coli in autumn lake water. These findings contribute to a better understanding on the seasonality of waterborne Campylobacter infections and the general predominance of C. jejuni.

Characterization and Phylogenetic Analysis of Campylobacter Species Isolated from Paediatric Stool and Water Samples in the Northwest Province, South Africa

“…Twenty-one percent of the water samples were contaminated with diverse Campylobacter species. Several studies have assessed the prevalence of Campylobacter spp in different water sources [1,49,50,51]. In South Africa, 13% was reported in surface and groundwater [52], and in New Zealand, 75% and 29.2% were found in groundwater and drinking water, respectively [53].…”

“…The highest Campylobacter contamination in the present study was found in water samples collected from stored containers (rainwater, well and municipal taps). Several factors have been linked to the poor microbial quality of stored household water [50]. Although treated municipal water may contain residual chlorine to ensure the safety of the water during storage, prolonged storage within the house could lead to recontamination of the water.…”

“…Although treated municipal water may contain residual chlorine to ensure the safety of the water during storage, prolonged storage within the house could lead to recontamination of the water. The type of container may also allow for recontamination of previously treated water [50,60]. For example, wide open-neck containers would allow for recontamination during extraction of the water using dirty containers.…”

Identification and differentiation of Campylobacter isolated from chicken meat using real-time polymerase chain reaction and high resolution melting analysis of hipO and glyA genes

“…Some studies have suggested that although Campylobacter spp. are extremely sensitive to various stress conditions, C. jejuni can survive in various types of environments by forming biofilms [ 23 , 24 ] and can protect itself from chemical products, physical cleaning processes, and other types of environmental stress [ 25 ].…”

Detection ofCampylobacterspp. in water by dead‐end ultrafiltration and application at farm level

“…In New Zealand, consumption of untreated water was the third most reported risk factor associated with campylobacteriosis in 2015 (ESR, ). Campylobacter can survive in water for up to several months, depending on environmental conditions and on the strain (Rollins and Colwell, ; Korhonen and Martikainen, ; Chan et al, ; Obiri‐Danso et al, ; Cools et al, ; Trigui et al, ; Nilsson et al, ). An important survival strategy for Campylobacter is to form or integrate into biofilms, which enables the micro‐organism to survive in environments where it would normally perish.…”