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What you need to know
Omicron XE variant
A new Covid variant called Omicron XE has arrived in Australia.
And there are fears a further relaxing of rules for international arrivals will see more and potentially deadlier variants enter the country.
The new strain has been found in the UK, Japan, India and the US. Last week, it was detected in a returned traveller in NSW.
Its presence around the world suggests it has been spread by open borders and travel.
WHAT IS THEXE VARIANT?
Omicron XE is a recombinant virus, which is when two separate virus strains merge to form a new, single and hybrid strain.
 Omicron XE is a combination of  Omicron variants BA.1 and BA.2.
IS IT MORE CONTAGIOUS?
 Dr Maria Van Kerkhove of the  World Health Organisation said the XE variant could be up to 10 per cent more transmissible than BA. 2. BA.2 is the most dominant Covid strain in Australia.
IS IT MORE SEVERE?
Experts are closely monitoring the new variant.So far, there is no scientific evidence that recombinant variants are more threatening to public health than other Covid-19 variants.
UK Health Security Agency Professor Susan Hopkins said there was not enough data to draw conclusions about transmissibility or severity.
“This particular recombinant, XE, has shown a variable growth rate and we cannot yet confirm whether it has a true growth advantage.”
WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF XE?
The most commonly reported symptoms include a scratchy or sore throat, runny or blocked nose and sneezing, as opposed to  symptoms belonging to the original strain of Covid-19 which included fever, headache, fatigue and loss of taste or smell.
Infectious Diseases expert Professor Peter Collignon said there had been no suggestion so far that the vaccines were less effective on the XE variant.
DO VACCINES WORK AGAINST THE VARIANT?
WHAT COMES AFTER XE?
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said there are a number of Omicron sub-lineages being followed closely, including BA. 2, BA. 4 and BA. 5 and another recombinant detected, made up of BA. 1 and BA. 2.
Words: Adella BeainiProducer: Bianca Mastroianni

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