Just days after the BA.2 strain of coronavirus achieved world dominance, international health officials are already turning their attention to a new, mutant variant believed to be even more transmissible â XE.
XE is a combination of the first form of omicron to spread across the globe, BA.1, and so-called âstealth omicron,â the subvariant BA.2, that is now dominant.
The highly transmissible XE strain was first detected in the United Kingdom on Jan. 19, according to the WHO document, and there have been more than 600 documented cases in the UK since. Preliminary findings suggest that XE may be about 10% more transmissible than BA.2, which is considered 50-60% more transmissible than its omicron predecessor, according to Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nationâs top infectious disease expert. How deadly XE turns out to be is still a question mark when it comes to XE as health experts continue to monitor the subvariantâs spread.
