30 years of campylobacters: biochemical characteristics and a biotyping proposal for Campylobacter jejuni

Abstract

Several biochemical test systems were studied for their potential usefulness for the examination of strains of Campylobacter spp. Most (81%) of the C. jejuni strains hydrolyzed sodium hippurate, but strains of C. fetus, C. sputorum and C. fecalis did not. Some (46%) of the C. jejuni strains and all of the C. sputorum ssp. sputorum, C. sputorum ssp. bubulus and C. fecalis strains hydrolyzed DNA, but the C. fetus and C. sputorum ssp. mucosalis strains did not. Strains of all species of Campylobacter grew on charcoal-yeast extract agar, but 47% of the C. jejuni strains did not. Alkaline phosphatase activity was recorded for some strains of C. jejuni, but all other species were negative for this activity. Aryl sulfatase activity was detected in 7% of the C. jejuni, 15% of the C. fetus ssp. fetus and all of the C. sputorum ssp. sputorum, C. sputorum ssp. bubulus and C. fecalis strains, but it was not detected in the C. fetus ssp. venerealis and C. sputorum ssp. mucosalis strains. Most (93%) of the C. jejuni but none of the other Campylobacter strains contained lactobacillic acid when examined for cellular fatty acids. On the basis of results from 3 of these tests (hippurate hydrolysis, DNA hydrolysis and growth on charcoal-yeast extract agar), clinical strains of C. jejuni were placed in 8 biotypes.