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Using comparative genomic analysis and a model they developed to infer the host origin of each isolate, they found that 18% of the UTIs were linked to ExPEC strains that came from the meat. Then, in a follow-up study in 2023 that used similar methods to the current study, they found that 8% of E coli isolates from human UTIs in Flagstaff, Arizona, were linked to retail meat sold in local stores and likely originated from food-producing animals. 18% of E coli came from food animals To determine the percentage of UTIs in Southern California that could be attributed to zoonotic ExPEC strains, the research team—which also included scientists from the University of Cambridge, University of Oxford, Johns Hopkins University, and Statens Serum Institut—performed whole-genome sequencing on 2,349 human clinical E coli isolates collected from KPSC regional labs from February 2017 through May 2021. In addition to comparing the core genomes of the human and foodborne E coli isolates, the researchers were looking for the presence of 17 human- and animal-associated mobile genetic elements (MGEs).