Isolation of Campylobacter subsp. jejuni from Oriental and American cockroaches caught in kitchens and poultry houses in Vom, Nigeria.

A total of 690 adult cockroaches (Periplaneta americana (L.), the American cockroach, and Blatta orientalis (L.), the oriental cockroach) were captured alive within domestic kitchens and near poultry houses in Vom. Using selective media, their external surfaces and internal (gut) contents, after adequate decontamination of the external surfaces, were culturally examined for the presence of campylobacters. 4 isolates of Campylobacter subsp jejuni were made (0.5%); 3 from the gut contents and 1 from the external surface. Nocardia asteroides was isolated from the gut contents of a batch of ten cockroaches. The low isolation rate notwithstanding, our results suggest that cockroaches may be a potential vector of campylobacters from other sources to human food. The somewhat fortuitous isolation of Nocardia asteroides and its significance are discussed.