variant (XE) is that it is not a point of concern," Kang was quoted as saying by news agency PTI. “We were worried about BA.2 but it did not cause more serious disease than BA.1.
XE does not cause more serious disease than BA.1 or BA.2," she added. Kang said that in a vaccinated population, the XE variant is not something to be bothered about.
Other health experts have also sought to downplay apprehensions centred around XE and said despite being around since January, the strain has not propelled a surge in cases like Omicron.
Senior epidemiologist Dr Raman Gangakhedekar, former head scientist of the Epidemiology and Communicable Diseases Division at the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), said when a recombinant occurs, it tends to last for a lesser time. “Recombinant events are chance events because two different types of viruses are in the body and they tend to develop a recombinant new virus," Gangakhedekar said.