Foodborne Campylobacter species: Taxonomy, Isolation, Virulence Attributes and Antimicrobial Resistance

Abstract

Campylobacter is widely regarded as the main cause of foodborne diarrheal diseases worldwide. It is a curved Gram-negative rod displaying corkscrew motility via a polar non-sheathed flagellum. Campylobacter grows microaerophilically at a broad range of temperature (30–45°C), and it is considered biochemically inert. Campylobacter did not use carbohydrates to obtain energy because of lacking the 6-phosphofructokinase enzyme. Campylobacter has a positive reaction for oxidase test and a negative reaction for indole test. Laboratory isolation and detection of Campylobacter species is tricky as they are fastidious and necessitate special atmospheric requirements to grow. Relatively little information is known about the virulence attributes in campylobacters or how a seemingly fragile bacteria can survive with increased pathogenicity. Moreover, the growing antimicrobial resistance of campylobacters to the clinically crucial antibiotics becomes insurmountable. Thereby, this review elucidates and discusses the taxonomy, isolation, identification, virulence attributes and the antimicrobials resistance of this particular bacterium.