Skip to main content
ARS Home » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #185346
Title: TEMPERATURE AND NUTRIENT LIMITATION EFFECTS ON CAMPYLOBACTER JEJUNI ATTACHMENT AND SURVIVAL IN MIXED BIOFILMS ON STAINLESS STEEL

Author
item Sanders, Sheriase
item Arnold, Judy
item FRANK, JOSEPH - UNIV OF GEORGIA

Submitted to: American Society for Microbiology
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/4/2005
Publication Date: 10/27/2005
Citation: Sanders, S.Q., Arnold, J.W., Frank, J. 2005. Temperature and nutrient limitation effects on campylobacter jejuni attachment and survival in mixed biofilms on stainless steel. American Society for Microbiology.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Campylobacter jejuni is a gram negative, microaerophilic bacterial pathogen that can cause gastroenteritis and is commonly found in the intestinal tract of chickens. During the poultry processing procedure, C. jejuni can contaminate stainless steel equipment. In this study, the effects of temperature and nutrient limitation on C. jejuni attachment to biofilms formed on stainless steel were observed. For both temperature and nutrient limitation studies, bacterial isolates used for biofilm formation were collected from a saline rinse of broiler chicken carcasses (WCR). In the temperature study, biofilms were formed at 13, 20, 37 and 42°C over a 16 h time period on stainless steel coupons in tryptic soy broth (TSB). After 16 h, biofilms formed at 13°C (47.6 %) yielded the highest surface area coverage and lowest at 42 °C (2.1%). C. jejuni attachment to 16 h biofilms at the four temperatures were not significantly different (P=0.05) from one another. In the nutrient limitation study, TSB was diluted ten- and fifty-fold and then inoculated with an overnight WCR culture. Stainless steel coupons were inserted into tubes of diluted broth and allowed to form biofilms at 20 and 37 °C for 48 h. Approximately 2% biofilm surface area coverage was formed on coupons in both concentrations of TSB. Following biofilm formation, C. jejuni was allowed a 48 h attachment time to coupons at the same temperatures. Numbers of attached C. jejuni differed between treatments of 1:10 TSB (20 °C) and 1:50 TSB (37 °C), and attachment at 1:10 TSB (20 °C) was higher (P= 0.05). In the temperature study, culturable cells of C. jejuni were recovered from biofilms formed at 13 and 20 °C, but in the nutrient limitation study, counts were only recovered from coupons incubated at 20 °C in both broth concentrations. These results show that C. jejuni can contaminate stainless steel equipment during poultry processing while being exposed to a variation of temperatures and nutrient levels.