Survival of Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Campylobacter jejuni that were separately inoculated into bottled purified drinking water was investigated during storage at 22, 4, and −18°C for 5, 7, and 2 days, respectively. Two inoculation levels were used, 1 and 10 CFU/ml (102 and 103 CFU/100 ml). In samples inoculated with 102 CFU/100 ml, C. jejuni was not detectable (>2-log reduction) after storage under the conditions specified above. E. coli O157:H7 was detected on nonselective and selective media at log reductions of 1.08 to 1.25 after storage at 22°C, 1.19 to 1.56 after storage at 4°C, and 1.54 to 1.98 after storage at −18°C. When the higher inoculation level of 103 CFU/100 ml was used, C. jejuni was able to survive at 22 and 4°C, with 2.25- and 2.17-log reductions, respectively, observed on nonselective media. At these higher inoculation levels, E. coli O157:H7 was detectable at 22, 4, and −18°C, with log reductions of 0.76, 0.97, and 1.21, respectively, achieved on nonselective media. Additionally, E. coli O157:H7 showed significant differences in culturability (P < 0.05) on the nonselective and selective culture media under the different storage conditions, with storage at −18°C for 2 days being the treatment most inhibiting. The percentage of sublethal injury of E. coli O157:H7 ranged from ~33 to 75%, indicating that microbial examination of bottled water must be done carefully, otherwise false-negative results or underestimation of bacterial numbers could pose a health risk when low levels of pathogens are present.
Rapid Enumeration of Physiologically Active Escherichia coli O157 in Drinking Water by Flow Cytometry