The relationship between intestinalCampylobacterspecies isolated from animals and humans as determined by BRENDA

Abstract

SummaryIntestinal thermophilicCampylobacterspecies produce stable patterns when subjected to bacterial restriction endonuclease DNA analysis (BRENDA); this technique is therefore of considerable value in epidemiological studies. BRENDA was used to examine thermophilicCampylobacterspecies from humans, wild and domestic animals. One hundred and ninety-four (61%) of 316 isolates ofCampylobacter jejunifrom humans had BRENDA patterns which could be matched to those of animal isolates. Poultry appear to be a major source of nfection forC. jejuniin humans with nearly half (49·7%) of the human isolates giving patterns which were indistinguishable from those isolated from poultry. A total of GO BRENDA types were identified from 316 human isolates and 11 of these had the same pattern as those isolated from poultry. One of the threeCampylobacter coliBRENDA types recovered from poultry was indistinguishable from a human isolate type. Pigs appear to be only a minor source ofC. coliinfection for humans in New Zealand. Rats were found to be infected with strains ofC. jejuniwith BRENDA patterns indistinguishable from those infecting numans, poultry and a horse. None of the 102 isolates ofCampylobacterspecies from wild birds gave BRENDA patterns similar to those of isolates from humans.