Use of auxotyping for epidemiological studies of Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli infections.

A chemically defined medium developed for Neisseria gonorrhoeae was modified to support the growth of Campylobacter jejuni and Campylobacter coli. A total of 76 isolates of C. jejuni and 14 isolates of C. coli were tested on this medium, which was designated Campylobacter defined medium (CDM), over a 3-month period. Although none of the C. coli isolates appeared to require amino acids, 51% of the C. jejuni tested required one and 7% required multiple amino acids for growth. An analysis of isolates obtained from three household outbreaks of campylobacteriosis demonstrated that auxotyping identified the epidemic strain within each outbreak. Among 70 isolates of C. jejuni examined, no correlation could be drawn between a specific serotype and auxotype or between auxotype and plasmid profile.