Current methods for molecular typing of Campylobacter species

Campylobacter remains one of the most common bacterial causes of gastroenteritis worldwide. Tracking sources of this organism is challenging due to the large numbers of human cases, and the prevalence of this organism throughout the environment due to growth in a wide range of animal species. Many molecular subtyping methods have been developed to characterize Campylobacter species, but only a few are commonly used in molecular epidemiology studies. This review examines the applicability of these methods, as well as the role that emerging whole genome sequencing technologies will play in tracking sources of Campylobacter spp. infection. •Detection of clusters of campylobacteriosis continues to be a challenge.•Need better typing methods that are: deployable, portable, informative, versatile, robust•Widely adopted methods include: PFGE, MLST, flaA-SVR, and CGF.•CGF has gained acceptance in Canadian labs due to low cost and ease of use.•Whole genome sequence data will lead to next generation methods that meet all criteria.