Campylobacter is a leading course of food borne bacterial infections worldwide. It is believed that a decline in the occurrence of campylobacteriosis can be achieved by reducing the number of the bacterium in the gastrointestinal tract of poultry. Phage therapy using Campylobacter specific phages given to poultry prior to slaughter is a promising control measure. However, the reducing effect of most phages tested so far is rather limited due to the development of phage resistant Campylobacter. An increased knowledge of the molecular mechanisms of importance for development of phage resistant Campylobacter is therefore essential for implementation of this method. Recently, a collection of Campylobacter bacteriophages has been established. The phages were isolated from faeces from broilers and ducks and it was shown by transmission electron microscopy that they all belong to the family of Myoviridae. These phages could be categorised into three groups based on genome size and host range patterns against 34 Penner serotyped Campylobacter strains. Of the C. jejuni strains tested 88.9% could be eliminated by at least one of the bacteriophages. A subgroup of bacteriophages from our collection was further investigated with the aim of selecting a model phage suitable for whole genome sequencing. These studies included examining the phages ability to form visible plaques and allowing phage propagation to high numbers, looking at the protein profiles of the phages by gel electrophoresis, and determining the capacity of the phages to
integrate into C. jejuni genomes.