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Reports from China indicate BF.7 is quicker to transmit and has greater capacity to escape prior immunity than other omicron subvariants.

This mutation, which we also see in BF.7’s “parent” [variant BA.5](https://www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(22)00693-4/fulltext), has been linked with enhancing the capacity of the virus to escape neutralising antibodies generated by vaccines or previous infection. And the recent approval by the UK drugs regulator of Research has shown omicron has an [average R0 of 5.08](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8992231/). One subvariant, BF.7, has recently been identified as the main variant spreading [in Beijing](https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202211/1280588.shtml), and is contributing to a wider surge of COVID infections in China. [of 10 to 18.6](https://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202211/29/WS63855959a31057c47eba1912.html). We should, of course, be cautious about the data from China as it’s based on reports, not peer-reviewed evidence yet. Despite BF.7’s immune-evasive characteristics, and worrying signs about its growth in China, the variant seems to be remaining fairly steady elsewhere. BF.7 was resistant to neutralisation, driven partly by the R346T mutation. [technical briefing](https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1115070/Technical-Briefing-46-7October2022.pdf) published in October (it accounted for over 7% of cases at that time), the [most recent briefing](https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1120304/technical-briefing-48-25-november-2022-final.pdf) says BF.7 has been de-escalated due to reduced incidence and low growth rates in the UK. A minority of people can also experience gastrointestinal symptoms like vomiting and diarrhoea. [R346T](https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1115070/Technical-Briefing-46-7October2022.pdf), in the spike protein of SARS-CoV-2 (a protein on the surface of the virus that allows it to attach to and infect our cells). [many asymptomatic carriers](https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202211/1280588.shtml), is understood to be causing significant difficulty in controlling the epidemic in China.