Reduction of Campylobacter jejuni colonization of chicks by cecum-colonizing bacteria producing anti-C. jejuni metabolites

Cecum-colonizing bacteria were isolated from Campylobacter jejuni-free White Leghorn (Gallus domesticus) laying hens and screened for the ability to produce anti-C. jejuni metabolites. Nine isolates were obtained that possessed this characteristic. The peroral administration of the nine isolates as a mixture (ca. 10(9) per chick) to 1-day-old chicks was followed 1 week later by peroral inoculation of Campylobacter jejuni (ca. 10(9) per chick) to determine if the cecal isolates could protect chicks from colonization by campylobacters. The nine-strain mixture of cecal bacteria provided from 41 to 85% protection from C. jejuni colonization. The protective bacteria were reduced to a mixture of three strains on the basis of their ability to utilize mucin as a sole substrate for growth. These strains included Klebsiella pneumoniae 23, Citrobacter diversus 22, and Escherichia coli (013:H-) 25. Four feeding trials with this three-strain mixture provided from 43 to 100% (average, 78%) protection from C. jejuni colonization. The dominant cecal bacterium of chicks treated with the three-strain mixture was consistently E. coli 013:H-. Similarly, three trials with only E. coli 25 used as the protective bacterium resulted in 49 to 72% (average, 59%) protection from C. jejuni colonization, with E. coli 013:H- being the dominant cecal bacterium in all cases. Although not completely effective, E. coli 25 substantially reduced the incidence of C. jejuni colonization of chicks. For all trials, fewer C. jejuni were present in the ceca of colonized chicks receiving the protective bacteria before exposure to C. jejuni than in chicks receiving only C. jejuni. Use of these protective bacteria in poultry production should greatly reduce carriage of C. jejuni by poultry, which may lead to a reduction in the incidence of Campylobacter enteritis.