Overview of funded networking projects

Thermotolerant Campylobacter spp. are the most common bacterial causes of foodborne infections worldwide and are classified as priority antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The NICE collaborative project focuses on a cross-sectoral reassessment of water as a habitat in the environment, examining its role for the survival and transmission of thermotolerant Campylobacter spp.

Campylobacter spp. cannot multiply outside the host and are difficult to culture in the laboratory, suggesting that the role of environmental water in the persistence and spread of thermotolerant Campylobacter spp. is currently underestimated. The main cause of sporadic waterborne Campylobacteriosis outbreaks in Europe is the contamination of groundwater and drinking water with effluent from sewage treatment plants and agriculture, particularly following heavy rainfall or flooding.  Furthermore, it is unclear how and where Campylobacter can survive in the environment, and whether the presence of water in the environment contributes to the highly seasonal transmission of the bacterium into livestock populations from spring onwards. This is particularly significant given that poultry meat is a major source of human Campylobacter infection.

Therefore, the project focuses on urban water bodies (sewage, lakes, canals, ponds) and water bodies in agricultural areas where poultry is reared for meat production, particularly during heavy rainfall and flooding. A ‘dual diagnostic approach’ is employed, combining microbial and culture-independent methods with whole-genome sequencing analyses of water isolates. In particular, findings will be generated regarding the phylogeny, the introduction and spread of Campylobacter spp. strains in localised areas, virulence characteristics and the transfer of antibiotic resistance, as well as survival as ‘viable but non-culturable’ (VBNC) forms in the context of other bacteria. The significance of Campylobacter spp. in water for the (re-)colonisation of poultry and for human infection is to be reassessed. The findings can help prepare for climate-related increases in heavy rainfall events, thereby preventing the spread of Campylobacter spp., including multi-drug-resistant strains.