Survival of Helicobacter pylori in ready-to-eat foods at 4 degrees C

The survival of Helicobacter pylori (NCTC 11638) in various semiprocessed a nd fresh, ready-to-eat foods, and one raw chicken was studied at 4 degreesC and under aerobic conditions by experimentally inoculating these with 10(4 ) CFU. Cells were concentrated by two centrifugation cycles followed by pla ting onto selective blood agar medium made from Wilkins-Chalgren agar suppl emented with 5% whole horse blood, and 30 mg/l colistin methanesulfonate, 1 00 mg/l cycloheximide, 30 mg/l nalidixic acid, 30 mg/l trimethoprim, and 10 mg/l vancomycin. H. pylori was recovered from spiked pasteurized milk and tofu samples up to 5 days and from spiked leaf lettuce and raw chicken up t o 2 days. H. pylori could not be recovered from yogurt after any length of storage time. H. pylori is unlikely to grow in foods; however, it may survi ve in low acid-high moisture environments under refrigeration and pose a po ssible risk for transmission of infection via foods. (C) 2001 Elsevier Scie nce B.V. All rights reserved.