ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a historical perspective to the taxonomy of the genus Campylobacter, and outlines practical approaches to the identification and classification of its species and strains. Campylobacters were originally referred to as "micro-aerophilic vibrios". Campylobacters use amino acids and tricarboxylic acid cycle intermediates as their principal energy sources. They are oxidase positive and reduce nitrates; some species are catalase positive, others are catalase negative. The genus Campylobacter is classified together with the genus Spirillum in the family Spirillaceae. Nalidixic Acid-Resistant Thermophilic Campylobacters strains were first isolated by Skirrow and Benjamin from the cloacal contents of wild seagulls of the genus Larus. They have been isolated from about 25% of apparently healthy seagulls, but only infrequently from other animal species. Apart from the catalase reaction, catalase-negative Campylobacters are distinguished from catalase-positive Campylobacters as follows: catalase-negative Campylobacters have a lower optimal oxygen tension for growth than do the catalase-positive Campylobacter group; they produce hydrogen sulfide in peptone-iron media.
