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Thermophilic Campylobacter spp. are one of the primary causes of bacterial human diarrhoea. The consumption of poultry meat is suspected to be a major cause of human campylobacteriosis. The major purpose of this study was isolation, identification and characterization of thermophilic Campylobacter spp. in fresh poultry samples by conventional culture methods and to confirm Campylobacter jejuniand Campylobacter coli isolates by using the multiplex PCR assay. 100 broiler intestines were collected from meat shops (n=6). The samples were analyzed based on morphological and cultural characteristics in accordance with the international standard ISO 10272:1995 for Campylobacter spp. Concurrently, a multiplex PCR was used for the identification of C. jejuniand C. coli. of the 100 samples of intestines, i.e., caecal contents, 15% were contaminated with Campylobacter spp. of the 15 thermophilic Campylobacter isolates, 8 possessed the cdtB gene and thus were confirmed as Campylobacter jejuni (53.3%), and Seven (46.7%) were identified as Campylobacter coli. The study concluded that there was a high proportion of contamination of poultry meat marketed in and around Kolkata by Campylobacter spp. Therefore, we need to implement effective control measures to address these public health issues. Furthermore, poultry meat must be properly cooked before consuming to ensure food safety.

Keywords: Campylobacter jejuni, Campylobacter coli, Poultry, Isolation, Multiplex PCR.