Immunocapture/PCR Detection of Campylobacter

Campylobacter jefjuni and Campylobacter coli are significant pathogens of humans. In the United States, the estimated annual incidence of the disease 1-2 million cases costing almost one billion dollars in health care costs and lost productivity. Currently, effective vaccines for do not exist; therefore, to reduce the impact of the disease, rapid and reliable diagnosis is essential for administration of effective treatment as well as prevention of outbreaks. Current methods for the detection of Campylobacter require isolation, cultivation, and biochemical characterization, thus making the process slow and laborious. Immunological detection methods are available; however, they lack the sensitivity that is afforded by cultivation. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) has been reported to be an extremely sensitive detection method with detection limits as low as a single organism under ideal conditions. In clinical specimens, such as feces, however, the sensitivity of the method is significantly reduced. For this reason, researchers have combined immunomagnetic separation with PCR to produce extremely sensitive detection methods for other pathogens in fecal specimens. This proposal is in response to the Navy's request for the development of such an assay for Campylobacter. The proposed methodology should be extremely sensitive, highly specific, and rapid.