What is the Omicron XE variant and should we be worried?
India Today
The XE variant is a recombination of Omicron variants BA.1 and BA.2 with over 1,100 cases recorded worldwide. The XE variant has been identified in the United Kingdom, India, China and Thailand. But, the XE variant should be an extra cause of concern to the general public.
Every few weeks, the world hears about a new Covid variant, and it’s hard to know how concerned the general public should be. Recently, a recombinant variant has emerged, dubbed Omicron XE, which is the result of two omicron strains merging together in a single host and then going on to infect others.
So what do we know about this new hybrid, and do we need to be worried about it?
Omicron is a variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that was first discovered in Botswana on November 11, 2021. It was designated a variant of concern by the World Health Organisation (WHO) on November 26. Since this time, it has been transmitted worldwide and has replaced Delta, becoming the dominant variant.
The Omicron variant has since continued to evolve to have multiple different lineages, or genetically related sub variants. This includes the original Omicron BA.1 (B.1.1.529) and also BA.2 and BA.3.
BA.2 is more infectious than BA.1 and has now taken over or outcompeted BA.1 to become the new dominant form of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide, with the WHO officially announcing this to be the case on March 22, 2022.
The differences with Omicron relative to previous variants are explained by the relatively large number of mutations it has acquired, with 60 mutations not found in the original virus arising from Wuhan, China.
Among these mutations are 32 genetic changes in the spike protein. The spike protein is the part of the virus it uses to attach to human cells, as well as the target of the immune response against the virus, from both vaccines and prior infection.
