Development of a selective enrichment broth supplemented with bacteriological charcoal and a high concentration of polymyxin B for the detection of Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli in chicken carcass rinses.

A new Campylobacter-selective enrichment broth supplemented with bacteriological charcoal and a high concentration of polymyxin B was developed (charcoal-cefoperazone-polymyxin B-deoxycholate broth; CCPD broth). We compared the ability of CCPD broth to detect Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli in chicken carcass rinses to that of modified Bolton (mBolton) broth. Eighty whole chickens were purchased from retailers and rinsed with 400 mL buffered peptone water. The rinsed samples were enriched with 2× blood-free mBolton enrichment broth or 2× CCPD broth at 42 °C for 48 h and then streaked onto modified charcoal-cefoperazone-deoxycholate agar (mCCDA). The Campylobacter isolation rate was significantly higher in CCPD broth than in mBolton broth (CCPD broth, 61 out of 80; mBolton broth, 34 out of 80; p<0.05). Moreover, the selectivity of CCPD broth agar was also superior to that of mBolton broth when comparing the number of contaminated mCCDA plates (CCPD broth, 16 out of 80; mBolton broth, 58 out of 80; p<0.05) and the growth index of competing flora (CCPD broth, 1.4; mBolton broth, 2.9; p<0.05).