• Journal of Dairy Science and Biotechnology
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.121-133
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• 2020

Campylobacter spp. are a type of microaerophilic bacteria that cause human foodborne illnesses worldwide. Among the various types of Campylobacter spp., Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli account for 90% of foodborne campylobacteriosis. Generally, poultry meats are known to be a primary cause of campylobacteriosis; however, several other types of foods have also been reported to cause campylobacteriosis. Particularly, raw milk has been directly linked to Campylobacter infections among many foodborne illnesses, and cases of campylobacteriosis caused because of the ingestion of unpasteurized raw milk have been recorded worldwide. This review reports (1) general information, history, and nomenclature of Campylobacter spp., (2) epidemiology of Campylobacter spp., (3) detection of Campylobacter spp. from foods including milk and dairy products, and (4) review of methods for controlling the growth Campylobacter spp.

• Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.346-356
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• 2021

Purpose: Campylobacter species are currently the most common cause of bacterial gastroenteritis. In Lebanon, Campylobacter infection occurrence is underdiagnosed owing to the lack of specific culture and rapid test kits, particularly among children. This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence, laboratory findings, and clinical characteristics of Campylobacter infection in hospitalized children with acute gastroenteritis in South Lebanon. Methods: We conducted a 6-month retrospective cohort study between January and June 2018, including 291 children aged between 1 month and 12 years, who were admitted to a tertiary healthcare center in South Lebanon. The medical files of the patients were reviewed to retrieve the required clinical information, including clinical and laboratory data. Results: The prevalence of campylobacteriosis agents in pediatric patients with acute gastroenteritis is 12.02%. Patients infected with Campylobacter had more severe acute gastroenteritis than Campylobacter-negative patients and often presented with high-grade fever, diarrhea episodes more than six times per day, diarrhea lasting for more than five days, and dehydration. Indeed, children with high-grade fever (≥38.5℃) were five times more likely to test positive for Campylobacter than those with low-grade fever. In addition, the results showed a higher Vesikari score for the majority of Campylobacter-positive patients with severe acute gastroenteritis compared to a moderate profile for Campylobacter-negative patients. Conclusion: The present study findings highlight that Campylobacter infection is frequent among children with acute gastroenteritis. Therefore, the detection of Campylobacter should be carried out for the diagnosis of human gastroenteritis in Lebanon, along with the detection of routine enteropathogens.

• Genomics & Informatics
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.43.1-43.12
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• 2021

Campylobacter jejuni is one of the most prevalent organisms associated with foodborne illness across the globe causing campylobacteriosis and gastritis. Many proteins of C. jejuni are still unidentified. The purpose of this study was to determine the structure and function of a non-annotated hypothetical protein (HP) from C. jejuni. A number of properties like physiochemical characteristics, 3D structure, and functional annotation of the HP (accession No. CAG2129885.1) were predicted using various bioinformatics tools followed by further validation and quality assessment. Moreover, the protein-protein interactions and active site were obtained from the STRING and CASTp server, respectively. The hypothesized protein possesses various characteristics including an acidic pH, thermal stability, water solubility, and cytoplasmic distribution. While alpha-helix and random coil structures are the most prominent structural components of this protein, most of it is formed of helices and coils. Along with expected quality, the 3D model has been found to be novel. This study has identified the potential role of the HP in 2-methylcitric acid cycle and propionate catabolism. Furthermore, protein-protein interactions revealed several significant functional partners. The in-silico characterization of this protein will assist to understand its molecular mechanism of action better. The methodology of this study would also serve as the basis for additional research into proteomic and genomic data for functional potential identification.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.14 no.6
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• pp.1227-1231
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• 2004

Campylobacter, one of the emerging foodborne pathogens, is highly adaptable to the external environments by changing its morphology. In the present study, a question of whether the whole-cell antibody would still be effective for its detection even though the morphology of C. jejuni was changed was examined. When microaerophilic C. jejuni was exposed to aerobic conditions for 48 h, its morphological change was detected by confocal laser scanning microscope: Its morphology was confirmed as a spiral-bacilli form in microaerobic condition, however, as a coccoid form with a little spiral-bacilli form, when exposed to aerobic conditions. Also, the expressions of the whole-cell proteins of C. jejuni, and the suppression or induction of newly synthesized proteins in both aerobic and microaerobic conditions were analyzed by two dimensional gel electrophoresis. Additionally, immunoblotting assay with the whole cell antibody for the proteins expressed under the two conditions was performed. It was confirmed that the commercial whole-cell antibody of C. jejuni raised in rabbit was reactive. When analyzed with MALDI- TOF MS, the expressed proteins were confirmed as flagellins. Therefore, even though the morphology changed in aerobic condition, these flagellins were expressed and worked as the eitope proteins, thus making it possible to utilize for the development of an immunosensor for real-time detection of any kind of C. jejuni cell.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.217-224
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• 2014

Chicken are considered as the most important source of human infection by Campylobacter jejuni, which primarily arises from contaminated poultry meats. However, the genes expressed in vivo of the interaction between chicken and C. jejuni have not been screened. In this regard, in vivo-induced antigen technology (IVIAT) was applied to identify expressed genes in vivo during interaction between chicken and C. jejuni, a prevalent foodborne pathogen worldwide. Chicken sera were obtained by inoculating C. jejuni NCTC 11168 into Leghorn chickens through oral and intramuscular administration. Pooled chicken sera, adsorbed against in vitro-grown cultures of C. jejuni, were used to screen the inducible expression library of genomic proteins from sequenced C. jejuni NCTC 11168. Finally, 28 unique genes expressed in vivo were successfully identified after secondary and tertiary screenings with IVIAT. The genes were implicated in metabolism, molecular biosynthesis, genetic information processing, transport, regulation and other processes, in addition to Cj0092, with unknown function. Several potential virulence-associated genes were found to be expressed in vivo, including chuA, flgS, cheA, rplA, and Cj0190c. We selected four genes with different functions to compare their expression levels in vivo and in vitro using real-time RT-PCR. The results indicated that these selected genes were significantly upregulated in vivo but not in vitro. In short, the expressed genes in vivo may act as potential virulence-associated genes, the protein encoded by which may be meaningful vaccine candidate antigens for campylobacteriosis. IVIAT provides an important and efficient strategy for understanding the interaction mechanisms between Campylobacter and hosts.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.992-1000
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• 2005

Campylobacter is one of the emerging foodborne pathogens, and its worldwide incidence rate is extremely high. This study was undertaken to isolate and identify Campylobacter strains from chicken carcasses in the local markets, and analyze their characteristics regarding oxygen tolerance. They were isolated after aerobic enrichment and identified by biochemical, physiological, and morphological characteristics, PCR, and 16S rDNA sequencing. Their oxygen tolerances were analyzed in terms of the cell surface hydrophobicity, cell fatty acid composition, and oxidoreductase. Five strains of C. jejuni were isolated and identified from 61 isolates from 50 chickens. Among them, C. jejuni IC21 grew well in Brucella broth and commercial milk under aerobic condition. However, in the aerobic exposure, the cell surface hydrophobicity of C. jejuni IC21 was almost the same as the other isolates, even though its morphology changed from the spiral-bacilli form into the coccoid form. Fatty acid analyses showed that all Campylobacter strains had a high composition of $C_{19:1}$, cyclopropane fatty acid, and that the amount of the other fatty acids were very similar between them. Interestingly, however, only oxidoreductase activities of C. jejuni IC21 increased highly under aerobic exposure even though its activities were almost the same as the other C. jejuni strains just after microaerobic culture. It had 11.8 times higher catalase activity, 4.4 times higher for SOD, and 2.0 times higher for NADH oxidase activities. Therefore, in the case of the aero-adaptive C. jejuni IC21, expression of oxidoreductase significantly increased under oxidative stressed condition, which might allow it to survive for a longer time and grow on food under aerobic exposure. Such new strain might be one of the explanations for the increase of campylobacteriosis.

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.35 no.5
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• pp.674-682
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• 2015

The objective of this study was to evaluate the risk of illness from Campylobacter spp. on ham. To identify the hazards of Campylobacter spp. on ham, the general characteristics and microbial criteria for Campylobacter spp., and campylobacteriosis outbreaks were investigated. In the exposure assessment, the prevalence of Campylobacter spp. on ham was evaluated, and the probabilistic distributions for the temperature of ham surfaces in retail markets and home refrigerators were prepared. In addition, the raw data from the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHNES) 2012 were used to estimate the consumption amount and frequency of ham. In the hazard characterization, the Beta-Poisson model for Campylobacter spp. infection was used. For risk characterization, a simulation model was developed using the collected data, and the risk of Campylobacter spp. on ham was estimated with @RISK. The Campylobacter spp. cell counts on ham samples were below the detection limit (<0.70 Log CFU/g). The daily consumption of ham was 23.93 g per person, and the consumption frequency was 11.57%. The simulated mean value of the initial contamination level of Campylobacter spp. on ham was −3.95 Log CFU/g, and the mean value of ham for probable risk per person per day was 2.20×10⁻¹². It is considered that the risk of foodborne illness for Campylobacter spp. was low. Furthermore, these results indicate that the microbial risk assessment of Campylobacter spp. in this study should be useful in providing scientific evidence to set up the criteria of Campylobacter spp..

• Food Science of Animal Resources
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.73-84
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• 2023

Campylobacteriosis is a common cause of gastrointestinal disease. In this study, we suggest a general strategy of applying gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) in colorimetric biosensors to detect Campylobacter in chicken carcass. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was utilized for the amplification of the target genes, and the thiolated PCR products were collected. Following the blending of colloid AuNPs with PCR products, the thiol bound to the surface of AuNPs, forming AuNP-PCR products. The PCR products had a sufficient negative charge, which enabled AuNPs to maintain a dispersed formation under electrostatic repulsion. This platform presented a color change as AuNPs aggregate. It did not need additional time and optimization of pH for PCR amplicons to adhere to the AuNPs. The specificity of AuNPs of modified primer pairs for mapA from Campylobacter jejuni and ceuE from Campylobacter coli was activated perfectly (C. jejuni, p-value: 0.0085; C. coli, p-value: 0.0239) when compared to Salmonella Enteritidis and Escherichia coli as non-Campylobacter species. Likewise, C. jejuni was successfully detected from artificially contaminated chicken carcass samples. According to the sensitivity test, at least 15 ng/μL of Campylobacter PCR products or 1×10³ CFU/mL of cells in the broth was needed for the detection using the optical method.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Service
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.223-241
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• 2001

From September 1996 to September 1999, 419 Korean-native calves with diseases under 6-month old collected from Kyonggi, Chungcheong, Chonlla and Kyongsang were examined by clinical, microbiological, parasitic, hematologic and histopathological mean. Among them, 124 cases were tested about the neutralization antibodies against infectious bovine rhinotracheitis virus(IBRV), Parainfluenza-3 virus(PI-3V), bovine uiral diarrhea virus(BVDV), bovine ephemeral fever virus(BEFV). In calf diseases in the survey, enteric diseases(72.8%) were most frequently involved and the following orders were taken by respiratory(17.4%) and reproductive (5.0%) disorders. In the causative pathogens associated with calf diseases and motality, 48.4% was induced by bacteria origin and also 35.6% by viral agents. Calf mortality was up to 76.3% in the cae of bacterial diseases and 55.7% in viral diseases. In bacterial diseases, frequent disorders were composed of colibacillosis(52.7%), salmonellosis(13.8%), pasteurellosis(12.8%) and campylobacteriosis(3.9%) and their mortalities showed 73.8% in colibacillosis, 73.0% in pasteurellosis, 67.9% in salmonellosis and 50.0% in campylobacteriosis (50.0%). Among the outbreaks of viral diseases, there were BVD(22.8%), bovine rotavirus infection(20.8%), bovine coronavirus infection(16.8%), bovine respiratory syncytial virus infection(15.4%), IBR(15.4%). Akabane disease(4.7%) and Chuzan diseases(3.4%). Interesting results through this studies were obtained the first isolate to Chuzan virus and Ainovirus in Korea which could be promised the development for diagnostic method and vaccines soon. Calf mortality to Akabane and Chuzan diseases was 100%. Main parasitic diseases were occupied by coccidiosis and babesiosis and their mortality of babesiosis was 20.0%. Other diseases were abomasal impaction(6.7%) and toxicosis(4.5%). The mortality of abomasal impaction was 89.3%. In some causes with malformations(1.9%) were confirmed as anasarca, derodidymus, polymelia, humerus hypoplasia, and tracheal collapse. Calf diseases had mostly been occurred in one month old grout (52.5%) and its prevalence was 25.1% in two to three month old group and 22.4% in four to six month old group. In calf mortality by age, there were 37.9% in one month old group, 18.1% in two and three month old group, and 13.8% in four to six month old group, respectively. The older the age of calf, the less the prevalence of calf enteric diseases. Respiratory diseases in calves to be tested frequently occurred in one to two month old group (41.4%). In one month old calves, the prevalence of enteric disease was 80.0%(p<0.05) and that of reproductive and respiratory disease was 9.5% and 8.2%, respectively. In two month old and four to six month old, enteric disease was 65.7% and 63.8% and respiratory disease was 28.6% and 26.6%. Seasonal prevalence and mortality of Korean-native calf diseases were not a significant difference. Prevalence of calf diseases in summer(31.5%) frequently occurred to compare that in winter(20.3%). Abortion and malformation in calves frequently occurred in spring. Hematological values in 84 calves with clinical signs showed mild to marked leukocytosis. Also, there was slight increase in hematocrit, platelet, mean corpuscular volume and mean plasma volume, but all of those were included the higher level to normal ranges. Calves with respiratory signs showed slightly erythrocytosis. One hundred seventy three calves without clinical signs were not significant different to ill cases in hematological values, but number of platelets was in higher normal range. In 125 calves, 84.8% was taken the antibody to IBRV, but 72% with the antibody had recorded the titer level lower than log$_2$5. The neutralizing antibody levels of higher than $log_{2}5$ to PI-3V and BVD virus were 60.8% and 67.2% cases, respectively. There were the cases of 57.6% had the neutralizing antibody level lower than log$_2$5 to BEFV.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.24 no.3
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• pp.363-370
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• 2014

Campylobacter jejuni is a prevalent foodborne pathogen worldwide. Human infection by C. jejuni primarily arises from contaminated poultry meats. Genes expressed in vivo may play an important role in the pathogenicity of C. jejuni. We applied an immunoscreening method, in vivo-induced antigen technology (IVIAT), to identify in vivo-induced genes during human infection by C. jejuni. An inducible expression library of genomic proteins was constructed from sequenced C. jejuni NCTC 11168 and was then screened using adsorbed, pooled human sera obtained from clinical patients. We successfully identified 24 unique genes expressed in vivo. These genes were implicated in metabolism, molecular biosynthesis, genetic information processing, transport, and other processes. We selected six genes with different functions to compare their expression levels in vivo and in vitro using real-time RT-PCR. The results showed that the selected six genes were significantly upregulated in vivo but not in vitro. In short, these identified in vivo-induced genes may contribute to human infection of C. jejuni, some of which may be meaningful vaccine candidate antigens or diagnosis serologic markers for campylobacteriosis. IVIAT may present a significant and efficient method for understanding the pathogenicity mechanism of Campylobacter and for finding targets for its prevention and control.