Characterization of two Campylobacter jejuni phages and evaluation of their antibacterial efficacy with EDTA

Campylobacter jejuni is a leading cause of foodborne illness worldwide. The application of bacteriophages offers a promising approach to specifically target and reduce C. jejuni contamination in food products. In this study, two C. jejuni phages were characterized, and their ability to inhibit bacterial growth in combination with ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) was investigated. Both phages exhibited tolerance to a wide range of temperature (4-60 °C) and pH (3-9). Phage vB_CjeM-PC10 and vB_CjeM-PC22 were found to have a latent period of 30 min and 20 min and a burst size of 7 and 35 PFU/cell, respectively. Phage vB_CjeM-PC10 has a linear double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) genome of 51,148 bp with 77 ORFs and 29% GC content. Phage vB_CjeM-PC22 has a circular dsDNA genome of 32,543 bp with 56 ORFs and 28% GC content. At 42 °C, the combination of these phages (MOI = 10) and EDTA decreased the count of viable C. jejuni by 5.2 log₁₀ and inhibited the regrowth of resistant cells for 48 h. At 4 °C, phage vB_CjeM-PC10 alone (MOI = 1000) reduced the count of viable C. jejuni by 3 log₁₀ in brain heart infusion (BHI) broth and 2 log₁₀ on chicken skin after incubation for 48 h. Although these phages were effective against C. jejuni, they cannot be utilized directly for food safety applications because they are lysogenic. Nevertheless, these findings expand the genome library of C. jejuni phages and enrich data resources by highlighting potential strategies for controlling C. jejuni infections.