New Delhi: The first case of new COVID type ‘XE’ was reported in Mumbai, India, officials confirmed on Wednesday. According to the Maharashtra Health Department, the XE variant was found in a 50-year-old woman, a South African national, who arrived in Mumbai on February 10 and was tested for Covid-19 on February 27 and tested positive. .Also read – Maharashtra eases more cowardly restrictions, withdraws vaccine requirement for college students
Meanwhile, health experts have tried to allay fears centered around the Covid variant XE, saying that despite being around since January, there has been no increase in cases like Omicron due to stress, but strict adherence to COVID-19-appropriate behavior.
New COVID variant XE: What we know so far
- The XE coronavirus variant is a recombinant of BA.1 and BA.2, a subspecies of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. In addition, there are three other mutations that were not in Omicron or BA.1 or BA.2. That is why it is called XE.
- The Kovid variant is considered more transmissible than the BA.2 sub-variant of the XE Omicron, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). According to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSCA), XE demonstrates evidence of community transmission within England.
- The South African woman who tested positive for COVID variant XE was asymptomatic and was found to have RT-PCR negative on repeated testing.
- The condition of patients infected with the new strain of the virus is not serious, the official said.
- It is unknown at this time what he will do after leaving the post. No data is available for it, ”said Rakesh Mishra, Director, Tata Institute of Genetics and Society, Bengaluru.
- According to the WHO, BA.2, a subvariant of the omicron strain, is the most influential strain of the virus, accounting for 86 percent of all sequential cases attributed to it.
- Former Chief Scientist of the Department of Epidemiology and Communicable Diseases of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Senior Epidemiologist Dr. Raman Gangakhedekar said that when recombinant, it lasts less.
- Recombinant events are an event of chance because there are two different types of viruses in the body and they tend to develop recombinant new viruses, said Gangakhedekar.
- The WHO said in its latest update that XE recombinant (BA.1-BA.2) was first found in the UK on 19 January and since then more than 600 sequences have been reported and confirmed.
- Early day estimates indicate a benefit of 10% community growth rate compared to BA.2. However, this finding needs further confirmation.
