Survival mechanisms and culturability of Campylobacter jejuni under stress conditions

Culture-based isolation and enumeration of bacterial human pathogens from environmental and human food samples has significant limitations. Many pathogens enter a viable but non-culturable (VBNC) state in response to stress, and cannot be detected via culturing methods. Favourable growth conditions with a source of energy and an ideal stoichiometric ratio of carbon to inorganic elements can reverse this VBNC state. This review will focus on the bacterium Campylobacter jejuni which is a leading cause of food borne illness in the developed world. C. jejuni can enter a VBNC state in response to extremes in: pH, moisture content, temperature, nutrient content and salinity. Once in a VBNC state, the organism must maintain an energy balance from substrate oxidation through respiration to grow, divide and remain viable. The goal of this review is a greater understanding of how abiotic stress and thermodynamics influence the viability of C. jejuni.