A new and potentially more transmissible coronavirus variant (SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.529 variant), which was first identified in South Africa in a specimen collected on November 9, has raised serious concerns across the world and casted a dark shadow over the approaching holiday season. So far, around 40 countries and regions across continents have reported confirmed cases caused by the SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.529 variant (Figure 1). Based on the advice from The Technical Advisory Group on SARS-CoV-2 Virus Evolution (TAG-VE), an independent group of experts responsible for monitoring and assessing the evolution of SARS-CoV-2, The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated the SARS-CoV-2 B.1.1.529 variant as a variant of concern (VOC) on November 25 with the name -- Omicron. An VOC is likely to be associated with...