The ability of Campylobacter jejuni cells to attach to stainless steel does not change as they become nonculturable.

The ability of Campylobacter jejuni strains to attach to stainless steel as they became nonculturable during storage in distilled water at 4 degrees C for 30 days was investigated. From an initial count of approximately 7 log colony-forming units/mL all strains completely lost culturability by day 20, but the numbers of cells attaching to stainless steel remained constant at approximately 3.5 log cells/cm(2). These findings suggest that viable but nonculturable Campylobacter in a liquid matrix can still attach to stainless steel.