The genus Campylobacter: a decade of progress.

Abstract

McNulty (103) and leading articles by Goodwin and Armstrong (51) and Rathbone et al. (137). Veterinary microbiologists have been favored with reviews on diseases produced by campylobacteria in animals. A decade apart, Clark (28) and Hoffer (67) reviewed bovine campylobacteriosis (bovine vibriosis) and the agent, Campylobacter fetus subsp. venerealis, that causes this disease. A detailed treatment of avian vibrionic hepatitis has been provided by Peckham (131). Comprehensive treatments of campylobacteria from the veterinary point of view are provided by Cottral (29) and Garcia et al. (44). For an appreciation of the taxonomic and nomenclatural changes that the genus has undergone, the reader is referred to descriptions of the campylobacteria by Smibert (157, 160). As indicated above, a sizable body of literature has accumulated on the genus Campylobacter over the last decade. The objective of this article is to review the recent advances with particular emphasis on the new developments in taxonomy and classification that are particularly relevant to the microbiologist in the clinical laboratory. GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF CAMPYLOBACTERS The genus name Campylobacter was derived from the Greek word for curved rod. It was proposed by Sebald and Veron to include microaerophilic bacteria that were different from Vibrio cholerae and other vibrios in a number of respects (150). Campylobacteria are gram-negative bacteria

Epidemiology of Bovine Venereal Campylobacteriosis: Geographic Distribution and Recent Advances in Molecular Diagnostic Techniques

“…Campylobacter sp. are not cultured and isolated easily (Penner 1988), because they are fastidious in nature and have low survival rates with delicate requirements for growth in media, this could be a significant reason why the true infection rate for animal campylobacteriosis is often under-estimated (Lander 1990;Mshelia et al 2007). The choice and availability of media is very critical to successful culture of campylobacters from animal samples.…”

“…Campylobacter fetus subsp. fetus is transmitted orally and induces abortion mostly in sheep and sporadic abortion in cattle (Penner 1988;Oyarzabal et al 1997;Campero et al 2003), whereas C. fetus subsp. venerealis is regarded as an exclusive venereal pathogen of cattle causing bovine venereal campylobacteriosis that interferes with placentation thereby inducing lowered fertility, early embryonic mortality and abortion (Hum et al 1994a;Campero et al 2005;Mshelia et al 2007).…”

A PCR assay for the detection of Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli in water

“…nating characteristics being relatively small. Species within the genus differ more in the degree to which a characteristic is demonstrable than in the number of different characters (Penner 1988). For this reason, use of DNA hybridization techniques to define species is widespread with Campylobacter spp.…”

Enhanced recovery and isolation of Campylobacter spp. from water using a novel device

“…Species and subspecies of the genus Campylobacter have been established as major food-borne pathogens throughout the world (Penner 1988;Griffiths and Park 1990;Healing et al 1992). Diagnostic techniques used in clinical laboratories were originally developed for the isolation of Campylobacter jejuni.…”