Dr Sam Sheppard (pictured centre, with Dr Guillaume Méric (left) and Dr Ben Pascoe (right)

The publication of the book entitled Campylobacter Ecology and Evolution follows a renewed strategy by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) to reduce the number of people getting ill from Campylobacter.

Campylobacter is by far the most common cause of bacterial food poisoning in the UK. It is considered to be responsible for about 460,000 cases of food poisoning, 22,000 hospitalisations and 110 deaths each year and a significant proportion of these cases come from poultry. An FSA survey of chicken on sale in the UK (2007/8) indicated that 65% of chicken on sale in shops was contaminated with campylobacter. Reducing cases of Campylobacter is the FSA’s top food safety priority but monitoring carried out by the FSA shows there is no evidence of change in the proportion of the most highly contaminated chickens since 2008.

Dr Sheppard said: “Members of the genus Campylobacter are commonly found in the gastrointestinal tract of mammals and birds, and can be commensal or pathogenic in nature. For example, Campylobacter jejuni can be a harmless commensal organism in poultry and other avian and animal hosts but in humans, it is pathogenic and the most common cause of bacterial gastroenteritis worldwide.”

“In recent years, the application of DNA sequencing and 'omics' technologies to large numbers of isolates has allowed Campylobacter research to advance rapidly, revealing fascinating new insights into the cellular biology and evolution of this highly variable group of bacteria.”

“In Campylobacter Ecology and Evolution, internationally recognised experts critically review and provide novel insights into important aspects of Campylobacter covering the mechanisms of evolution, host adaptation, epidemiology, and ecology in poultry.”

Two additional members of Swansea University, Dr. Ben Pascoe from the College of Medicine, and Prof. Hilary Lappin-Scott, current Pro-Vice-Chancellor at Swansea University, co-authored a chapter in this book about biofilm formation in Campylobacter.

Professor Tom Humphrey, an internationally renowned expert on food safety and poultry production, and recently appointed Honorary Professor at Swansea University, said: “it is hoped that the timely publication of this textbook will contribute greatly to the effort of tackling this persistent and serious problem, in the UK and worldwide.”

*Campylobacter Ecology and Evolution is available in downloadable format from March 2014 and will be published as a hardback book in April 2014.