Even as the world was letting down its guard and preparing for a life possibly free from Covid-19, the World Health Organisation (WHO) last week notified of the second recombinant virus XE, which is a combination strain of two sub-variants of the Omicron strain, i.e. the BA.1 and the BA.2. Though the severity of the infections caused by the strain is yet to be understood, the WHO has already notified that it is 10 times more transmissible than BA.2 and hence, now is not the time to take things easy.
What is XE recombinant virus?
XE is a recombinant virus notified by the World Health Organisation. It is a combination virus of Omicron BA.1 and Omicron BA.2. Recently, a UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) study recently revealed that currently as many are 3 hybrid COVID variants are circulating. The two different combinations of Delta and BA.1 are XD and XF. The third is XE.
Symptoms to be aware of
Symptoms and severity of the Covid-19 virus change from person to person, depending on vaccination status and immunity from previous infections. Some of the symptoms to watch out for include โ fever, sore throat, scratchy throat, cough and cold, skin irritation and discoloration, gastrointestinal distress etc. Some of the symptoms of severe diseases are heart ailment, palpitation, and sometimes the virus can also cause severe nerve diseases.
What has WHO said?
The World Health Organization (WHO) said in its latest update that the XE recombinant was first detected in the UK on January 19 and more than 600 sequences have been reported and confirmed since then. โEarly-day estimates indicate a community growth rate advantage of 10% as compared to BA.2. However, this finding requires further confirmation,โ it said.
The Geneva-based UN health agency said that XE belongs to the Omicron variant until significant differences in transmission and disease characteristics, including severity, may be reported.
@nabob @Pinkaholic79 ๐๐ฆ๐บ @Janet ๐๐ฐ๐๐น @Flossy ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฐ @harryflatters @roz and anyone interested
I did think with the latest changes in what people are experiencing with catching Covid that some where along the line that maybe a new variant had reared its head, and it looks like this is an off shoot of the the first Omicron and the 2nd stealth 2 Omicron ones put together to make a 3rd.