The cinnamon-oil ingredient trans-cinnamaldehyde fails to target Campylobacter jejuni strain KC40 in the broiler chicken cecum despite marked in vitro activity

Campylobacter jejuni is the most common bacterial cause of diarrheal disease in humans worldwide, with poultry products being a major source. Therefore, strategies to decrease Campylobacter colonization during primary production might aid in reducing the number of human campylobacteriosis cases. Several plant-derived compounds have been reported to possess anti-Campylobacter properties in vitro, so they could be promising candidates to reduce Campylobacter colonization in broiler chickens. To test this hypothesis, selected plant-derived antimicrobials (caffeic, gallic, protocatechuic, and vanillic acids, epigallocatechin gallate, trans-cinnamaldehyde, and thymol) were screened for anti-Campylobacter activity by determining MICs and setting up time-kill curves for C. jejuni strain KC 40. These experiments revealed marked antibacterial activity, especially for the cinnamon oil ingredient trans-cinnamaldehyde (CIN). This compound was tested in a broiler chick seeder model; it was added to the feed in coated form at an effective concentration of 0.3 % from day-of-hatch for the entire 22-day duration of the experiment. At 14 days of age, one-third of the birds were inoculated with C. jejuni strain KC 40 and served as seeders. CIN was not able to reduce cecal Campylobacter colonization in this model, which was confirmed in a cecal loop experiment. Despite CIN concentrations much higher than the MIC, C. jejuni numbers were not reduced compared with those in nontreated ceca at 2 and 24 h after injection. In conclusion, this study shows a marked discrepancy between in vitro and in vivo activity of CIN against C. jejuni strain KC 40.