# Zoonotic Uropathogenic Escherichia coli in Northwest Ecuador: Incidence and Risk Factors

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR · 2022 · $757,467

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) strains cause most urinary tract infections (UTIs)
globally, resulting in enormous health and social costs. In the past decade, research has shown
that UPEC strains are not just transmitted person-to-person; environmental sources, such as
food-animal products, also contribute to transmission. Applying comparative genomics, we have
identified host-associated mobile genetic elements (MGEs) that can be used to identify the
vertebrate host from which a strain originates. Applying these methods in the United States, we
have found that approximately 8% of human UTIs can be linked directly to UPEC from meat and
poultry products. In low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), the intensity of human-animal
interactions is greater suggesting a different ecology for UPEC transmission. A literature review
by our team demonstrates that UPEC transmission is poorly understood in LMICs. In this study,
we will integrate comparative genomics, exposure assessment and spatiotemporal analyses to
determine the drivers of UPEC epidemiology in poor, marginalized communities of an LMIC. We
will leverage over 20 years of experience working in northwestern coastal Ecuador, a region that
has been historically neglected in the context of health infrastructure and where communities
live in proximity with livestock, poultry, and pets. We have developed a research platform
studying diarrheal and vectorborne diseases, and have fully developed survey instruments to
capture demographic, socioeconomic, and water, sanitation and hygiene data, and fully
developed assays to process blood and stool samples.
Our goals for this project are to identify the dominant zoonotic sources of UPEC, quantify the
transmission to humans and characterize the behaviors and environmental conditions
associated with risk for colonization and infection. We will carry out active surveillance at
regional hospitals over a 30-month period and follow 420 households prospectively over a 4-
year period. We hypothesize that domestic animal species will be important sources of UPEC
within LMIC settings like our study site and will be major drivers for UPEC colonization. The
study will characterize the role that domestic animals play in the transmission of UPEC in an
LMIC setting, where environmental transmission pathways are likely much more important
compared to high-income settings. By identifying specific reservoirs of UPEC and high-risk
exposures, we will define optimal mitigation strategies to decrease disease burden in resource
poor settings. Understanding how host-specific genetic markers vary in an LMIC is important for
developing targets of diagnostics and therapeutic interventions.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10417979
- **Project number:** 1R01AI167989-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN AT ANN ARBOR
- **Principal Investigator:** Joseph N. S. Eisenberg
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $757,467
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-07-06 → 2027-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10417979

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10417979, Zoonotic Uropathogenic Escherichia coli in Northwest Ecuador: Incidence and Risk Factors (1R01AI167989-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-29 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10417979. Licensed CC0.

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