Researchers Look At Resistance To Campylobacter In Chickens

Posted by maria on February 16th, 2021

For most of us, campylobacter is a term that sounds so unfamiliar that it doesn’t even feel like a real word. Campylobacter spp. are bacteria that are commonly known to infect livestock species, pets, and wild animals. The species that are commonly found in poultry is Campylobacter jejuni. In some countries, the transmission of this disease among poultry is heightened in the summer months. Campylobacters are the major reason for enteritis or what is commonly known as food poisoning in humans. This usually happens if we consume poultry that has been infected with Campylobacter. For a while now, researchers from all over the world had been trying to find a solution to this problem. Yes, vaccination for chicken protect the poultry from various diseases, but is there any other effective method of protecting the birds we eat from Campylobacter?

What the researchers tried to do was, improve the resistance of birds that are more susceptible to getting infected with Campylobacter by transplanting the gut microbes from the chickens that are resistant to Campylobacter. The scientists from the Roslin Institute at the University of Edinburgh analyzed the genetic makeup of the microbes to carry out this experiment. But unfortunately, even after these many efforts, the results were unfavorable. They concluded that the gut bacteria that was transplanted to the vulnerable chickens only survived for a while, in fact, the transplant made those chickens more vulnerable to getting infected by Campylobacter.

The entire purpose of this experiment was to reduce the occurrence of Campylobacter infection which is the reason for food poisoning in humans. But since it hasn’t worked as expected, what can be done to protect the chicken and along with them, us? To begin with, it is important to formulate strategies that are appropriate for biosecurity and poultry handling. Regular vaccination for chicken and commitment to antibiotics poultry will reduce the chances of the chicken falling sick in the first place. And to protect ourselves from enteritis, it is important that we cook the meat at an appropriate temperature of 70 degrees Celcius.