Aerobic growth and survival of Campylobacter jejuni in food and stream water

When 40 Campylobacter jejuni isolates from human clinical cases, raw chicke n and water were tested, 29 (72.5%) could be adapted to grow on nutrient ag ar under aerobic conditions. Once adapted, these isolates could grow on rep eated aerobic subculture. An aerobically-grown Camp. jejuni isolate survive d almost as well as the same isolate grown microaerophilically in sterile c hicken mince at 5 degrees C, and survival of a cocktail of Camp. jejuni iso lates under both atmospheres was comparable at 25 degrees C. However, at 37 degrees C, the decline in Plumbers of the aerobically-grown cells was grea ter. Survival of cells on chicken nuggets was poorer than in chicken mince. In filter-sterilized stream water incubated aerobically at 5 degrees C, su rvival of inocula grown under different atmospheres was again similar, but slightly better with the microaerophilically-grown cells. Adaptation to aer obic growth was not found to enhance survival under aerobic conditions.