Exploratory analysis of SARS-CoV-2 omicron variant and its subvariant propagation: global predominance of BA.1*, BA.2*, BA.5*, BE.1*, and BQ.1*

Omicron and its subvariants have been ranked as the most common SARS-CoV-2 mutants throughout the United States and elsewhere around the world for more than a year. By December 2021, omicron had caused over a million global daily cases to grow massively, and it had begun to replicate subvariants. Several new subvariants emerged at the end of November 2022, including BF.5, BF.7, BQ.1 and BQ.1.1. This study conducted an exploratory investigation into the propagation rate of 33 SARS-CoV-2 omicron subvariants along with their ancestor that were prevalent in the United States and around the world in mid-December 2022. As a result, among omicron variant and 33 subvariants, out of 3,306,275 sequences in the United States as of mid-December 2022, the propagation rate of omicron variant and its subvariants, such as B.1.1.529, BA.2, BA.1, BA.1.10, BA.1.1, BA.5, BA.5.2, BA.5.2.1, BA.4, BA.5.1, BA.5.3, BA.5.3.1, BA.5.5, BE.1, BE.1.1, BE.1.1.1 and BQ.1 were found to be 29%, 17%, 13%, 11%, 7%, 7%, 4%, 2%, 1%, 1%, 1%, 1%, 1%, 1%, 1%, 1% and 1%. In the rest of the countries, out of 1,822,086 sequences, the propagation rate of omicron variant and its subvariants, including B.1.1.529, BA.2, BA.1, BA.1.10, BA.1.1, BA.5, BA.1.18, BA.4, BA.5.2, BA.5.2.1, BA.5.3, and BE.1 were found to be 35%, 23%, 14%, 10%, 6%, 4%, 1%, 1%, 1%, 1%, 1%, 1%, and 1%. The findings indicate that by 2023, omicron subvariants and their recombinants, including BA.1*, BA.2*, BA.5*, BE.1*, and BQ.1*, become prevalent worldwide.