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Should we worry about the XE variant? Maybe not yet, but 'hybrids' will become more frequent as COVID evolves

  • Written by Jemma Geoghegan, Senior Lecturer and Associate Scientist at ESR, University of Otago
Should we worry about the XE variant? Maybe not yet, but 'hybrids' will become more frequent as COVID evolvesGettyImages

A new hybrid COVID-19 variant dubbed XE has sparked fresh concerns recently.

XE is a combination of the highly transmissible BA.1 and BA.2 Omicron variants and was first detected in the UK in mid-January. Its spike protein derives from BA.2, which is potentially good news for New Zealand since this is the dominant variant (more than 90%...

Read more: Should we worry about the XE variant? Maybe not yet, but 'hybrids' will become more frequent as...

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