Confirmation of XE variant only in one patient in India, know what scientists say

After two unconfirmed cases were reported from Maharashtra and Gujarat, the country's first case of Omicron sub-variant XE has been confirmed by the Indian SARS-CoV2 Genomics Sequencing Consortium (INSACOG), a network of national testing laboratories set up by the government.

Experts say that there is no evidence so far that the infection of the XE sub-variant is different from the infection caused by other Omicron sub-variants. According to a report published in a leading daily, the XE sub-variant has been found to be 10% more transmissible than the currently dominant BA.2 variant of Omicron, which triggered the third wave in the country in January.

So far, many recombinant forms of Covid virus have been detected in the country. All of them are from geographically different regions. No cluster formation is observed. There was no official confirmation from where the sample of the XE variant was obtained.

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But out of the two unconfirmed cases of XE variant infection reported from Maharashtra and Gujarat, the official said the sample from Maharashtra was not of the new sub-variant. The confirmation of the XE variant in the weekly bulletin of INSACOG comes at a time when there has been an increase in the cases of Covid in 12 states, making masks mandatory.

According to the government data, till April 25, there has been a decline in the cases of Covid infection in 19 other states. The INSACOG Bulletin states that Omicron BA.2 is by far the most prominent form of Covid-19 in India.

The XE variant is a recombinant. This means that it includes mutations found in BA.1 as well as in the BA.2 variant of Omicron and was first detected in the UK in January. Genetic mutations are a common occurrence in viruses and other organisms. But only a small fraction of these genetic mutations significantly alters the virus's ability to infect or cause serious diseases.

Experts say there is nothing to worry about this new variant of the virus if we do not see it spreading rapidly, affecting a different population, or causing serious illness. They also say that unlike the situation arising due to Delta or Omicron variants, now the pace of infection is much slower and less dangerous.