A new variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus has appeared in the UK. Its unofficial name is XE. The first cases were identified in January, today there are hundreds of them. As revealed by the UK Health Safety Agency, XE’s growth rate is nearly 10 percent. faster than the currently dominant variant of the Omicron BA.2.
- The XE variant is called recombinant, which means that it was born from a combination of other strains, in this case Omikron: BA.1 and BA.2
- According to the latest data, more than 600 cases of infection with this variant have been detected in the UK. Compared to the diseases caused by the original Omikron and its sub-variant, it is not much. Scientists, however, are concerned about its infectivity, higher than previous SARS-CoV-2 variants
- XE is not the only recently detected variant of the coronavirus. A similar discovery was recently reported by the Chinese, stating that the sequenced samples included BA.1.1 related to the Omicron.
- More information can be found on the Onet homepage
XE – Hybrid Variant
XE is recombinant. It consists of the genetic material of two Omicron sub-variants: BA.1 and BA.2. Most likely, it arose in the body of a person who became infected with both variants of the Omikron variant at the same time. As the viruses replicated, their genetic materials ‘mixed up’ to form a new type of SARS-CoV-2.
The results of preliminary research on XE are disturbing: this hybrid variant, as scientists colloquially call it, it may be the fastest spreading strain of the coronavirus. At the beginning, its growth rate did not differ significantly from that of the Omikron BA.2, but according to analyzes from the end of March, this has changed significantly. Currently XE grows by 9,8 percent. faster than the world’s dominant BA.2.which has so far been considered the most infectious (infects as much as 75 percent faster and more effectively than the original Omikron).
- Why did BA.2 dominate the world? Experts point out three phenomena
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Both the British and the World Health Organization (WHO), which confirmed their British findings, reserve that the variant requires observation. They also recommend not to focus on its structure, since recombinants appear quite often in the viral world.
«Recombinant variants are not uncommon, especially when several variants are in circulation. We have already identified many such variants of the coronavirus during the pandemic, most of them die relatively quickly, ”said Susan Hopkins, an epidemiologist and adviser to the British health agency, noting that only a few recombinants have a chance to survive and spread on a larger scale.
UK health officials are also investigating two other recombinants called XD and XF. They combine the genetic material of Delta and Omicron BA.2.
According to figures as of March 23, 637 cases of XE coronavirus infection were detected in the UK.
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A new variant was also detected in China
The Chinese also recently announced that they have come across a new variant of the coronavirus. This is actually a sub-variant because it is based on Omikron BA.1.1. It does not match with other types of SARS-CoV-2 nationally sequenced and has not been found in any international database. It was first detected in a resident of Suzhou near Shanghai. It is only known that the man has been mildly affected by COVID-19.
The detection of a new sequence in a sample taken from a person infected with the coronavirus was possible, among others, by because the Chinese test their citizens en masse. In some places, such as Shanghai, the action is as large as possible: every inhabitant must undergo SARS-CoV-2 testing.
This is related to the record-breaking, for China, infections that are recorded in the city (about 9 a day) and the whole country (over 28). This is the first wave of COVID-19 cases in China since the beginning of the pandemic. Until now, the daily number of infections rarely exceeded 100.
- Read also: Another infection record in China. Citizens are fed up
By comparison, around 80 are currently detected in the UK. coronavirus infections daily. The increases are visible after the weekends during which reporting has been limited. Yesterday’s disease balance is almost 145 thousand. infections.
For 99,2 percent. of these corresponds to Omikron, which has been detected in over 2021 million samples since the end of November 1.
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