Covid XEC symptoms: New variant Covid XEC is spreading fast; symptoms to look out for |

Covid-19A new and stronger variant of the coronavirus is spreading rapidly in Europe and surrounding areas and, according to experts, will become the dominant variant next winter.
The variant first discovered in Germany in June is a hybrid of previously discovered omicron subvariants – KS.1.1 and KP.3.3.
KS.1.1 is one of the FLiRT variants which are among the strains responsible for the number of Covid cases in many parts of the world. Experts say XEC could benefit from its unusual T22N mutation in combination with the FLuQE mutations. FLuQE (KP.3) is a direct descendant of FLiRT, i.e. it has the same mutations as the FLiRT variants, with the only exception of an additional amino acid change in the spike protein, Q493E.
“At this point, the XEC variant appears to be the one to take hold next,” Eric Topol, director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute in La Jolla, said in a post on X. Experts predicted last month that the variant would gain the upper hand and spread faster in a few weeks or months.

More about the subvariants that make up the recombinant strain

KS.1.1: As part of the FliRT variant, it has mutations in the building block molecules phenylalanine (F) changed to leucine (L) and arginine (R) changed to threonine (T) on the spike protein that the virus uses to attach to human cells.
KP.3.3: This is a type of FLuQE variant in which the amino acid glutamine (Q) on the spike protein is mutated to glutamic acid (E), allowing it to bind more efficiently to human cells.

Symptoms of the Covid XEC variant

Symptoms of XEC are similar to those of earlier Omicron variants and include fever, sore throat, loss of smell, cough, loss of appetite, and body aches.
Other symptoms may include shortness of breath, muscle aches, headache, sore throat, constipation, runny nose, nausea, vomiting and diarrhea, according to health experts.
The FLirT variants, which essentially belong to the omicron lineage, produce milder symptoms compared to the original Covid variant. The symptoms associated with the FLirT variants are similar to those of JN.1 and can appear between two and 14 days after exposure.

Will vaccines help contain the spread?

The new variant belongs to the Omikron line and experts recommend taking Vaccinations and booster vaccinations to protect against serious illness and hospitalization.