Effect of Campylobacter jejuni extracts and culture supernatants on cell culture

This study reports the effect of culture supernatants and extracts of Campylobacter jejuni isolated in Bangladesh from patients with gastroenteritis, asymptomatic carriers, poultry, and animals on tissue culture system. Isolates from patients produced morphologic changes on HeLa, Vero and Y1 adrenal cell lines. Incorporation of polymyxin B in the culture medium enhanced the effect on cell lines significantly and sonicated extracts of the organisms had an even more significant effect. Almost all sonicated extracts of patients' isolates had effect on HeLa cells. Animal isolates, using identical conditions, had much less effect on cell lines whereas isolates from asymptomatic carriers produced almost no effect. This toxicity of the patients' isolates might indicate some relation to pathogenic strains.