Explore the recorded discovery and history of Campylobacter jejuni, with source links and stated limits.
C. jejuni is a common cause of diarrheal illness, called campylobacteriosis. CDC estimates that nearly 1.9 million people in the United States get ill from Campylobacter every year and notes that a single drop of juice from raw chicken can contain enough bacteria to cause infection. PHAC describes spiral, S-shaped cells that move with a corkscrew-like motion using a polar flagellum, grow best at 42 degrees Celsius and need a microaerobic atmosphere. A large number of infections are asymptomatic or mild, and most people who do become ill recover within a week.
LPSN records Vibrio jejuni Jones et al. 1931 as the basonym, placing the organism among the vibrios before the genus Campylobacter existed.
LPSN records the current name as (Jones et al. 1931) Véron and Chatelain 1973, from their taxonomic study of the genus in the International Journal of Systematic Bacteriology, on the Approved Lists of 1980, with type strain ATCC 33560 / NCTC 11351. Two subspecies are recognized: jejuni and doylei.
These references do not establish the first person ever infected. Discovery, naming and isolation milestones do not date biological origin or a patient zero.
Source check: 2026-09-19. Educational content; independent scientific review remains pending.