A person in Gujarat has been infected with Coronavirus variant XE, which is more infectious but not more severe than the Omicron strain. According to reports, one case of XM variant has also been detected in the state.
Earlier this week, a case of the XE variant was reported in Mumbai from a sample isolated in February, however, officials at the Indian Sarscov2 Genome Consortium (INSACOG) (a network of labs that tracks sequences) and the Union Health Ministry, are yet to confirm if it is an XE variant.
“Samples from Gujarat have been sent to NCDC, but from what we see this fits the definition of XE more than the Mumbai one,” an official on condition of anonymity was reported saying by media outlets.
Meanwhile, an INSACOG laboratory in Gujarat - the Gujarat Biotechnology Research Centre (GBRC), has reportedly confirmed the variant.
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Officials from the Indian Sarscov2 Genome Consortium (INSACOG), a network of labs that tracks sequences, and the Union Health Ministry have yet to determine if it is an XE variant from a sample isolated in February.
"Samples from Gujarat have been forwarded to NCDC, but based on what we've seen, this fits the description of XE better than the Mumbai definition," the source added on the condition of anonymity.
The new strain XE was detected in the UK at the start of the new year. Britain's health agency said on April 3 that XE was first detected on January 19 and 637 cases of the new coronavirus variant have been reported in the country so far.
"XE is a "recombinant" which is a mutation of BA'1 and BA.2 Omicron strains. Recombinant mutations emerge when a patient is infected by multiple variants of Covid. The variants mix up their genetic material during replication and form a new mutation," UK experts said in a paper published in British Medical Journal.
According to UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), its new analysis has examined three recombinants known as XF, XE, and XD.
"Of these, XD and XF are recombinants of Delta and Omicron BA.1, while XE is a recombinant of Omicron BA.1 and BA.2," it said in an update.
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-PTC News