The global trend in COVID-19 is that the virus permanently turns into a seasonal disease, such as the flu.
Every year, people will face the problem of the coronavirus, which will continue to mutate. The known
and studied nature of COVID-19 mutations currently does not indicate that the virus has become more
aggressive for the human body. More and more often, COVID-19 proceeds as an acute respiratory viral
infection and evades an immune response. 

Acne is a multifactorial chronic inflammatory disease with primary damage to the pilosebaceous unit and
the polymorphic clinical manifestations associated with overproduction of sebaceous glands,
pathological desquamation of the sebaceous epithelium of the sebum follicles, activation of saprophytic,
conditionally pathogenic microorganisms, and psychoemotional disorders. This is undoubtedly one of
the most common dermatoses in clinical practice, accounting for 20-25% of dermatology consultations.
Today, especially in wartime, acne vulgaris remains a socially important problem in approximately half of
patients with psychoemotional disorders, mainly of a depressive and anxiety associated nature with a
sharp decrease in the quality of life of patients. 

Introduction In recent years, dermatologists and cosmetologists have increasingly paid attention to the
problem of the relationship between skin diseases and the organs of the gastrointestinal tract (GI).
Numerous clinical and microbiological studies confirm the connection between gastrointestinal
pathology and intestinal dysbacteriosis with inflammatory skin diseases. The purpose of our study was to
investigate the influence of the intestinal microbiocenosis on the severity of acne (AC)

UDC: 681.325.2

Liquid crystals can exhibit structural orientational order. The creation of a mixture with the addition of chiral
molecules to the nematic liquid crystal induces helical twisting, the axis of which is directed perpendicular to the
cell surfaces. When some cholesteric mixtures with a sufficiently short spiral pitch (up to 400-500 nm) are heated
to a temperature close to, but still lower than, the temperature of the main transition to the isotropic state, in some
cases the so-called blue phases can be formed.
We carried out a study on the detection of structural manifestations of the blue phase under the action of vapors
of chemical substances, in particular acetone. The main dependences of effect of acetone on the liquid crystal
mixture depending on the concentration were also revealed. The two-stage phase transformation from cholesteric
liquid crystal to the isotropic liquid via the intermediary blue phase could be clearly recorded by changes in optical
transmission. Possible applications are discussed.
Keywords: liquid crystal; E7; gas sensor; blue phase; optical sensor

УДК 616.53-002:616-008.9-092.19: (616.85+616.43/.45)-06:[616.988:578.834.1]

Acne is a multifactorial chronic inflammatory disease with primary damage to the pilosebaceous unit and the polymorphic clinical manifestations associated with overproduction of sebaceous glands, pathological desquamation of the sebaceous epithelium of the sebum follicles, activation of saprophytic, conditionally pathogenic microorganisms, and psychoemotional disorders. This is undoubtedly one of the most common dermatoses in clinical practice, accounting for 20—25 % of dermatology consultations. Today, especially in wartime, acne vulgaris remains a socially important problem in approximately half of patients with psychoemotional disorders, mainly of a depressive and anxiety associated nature with a sharp decrease in the quality of life of patients.Objective — to study a pathogenic role of certain neuroendocrine, metabolic and immunological disorders as well their consequences in the development of acne in women who had COVID-19.Materials and methods. 134 women with acne, aged 18 to 45 years old, were examined. The levels of cortisol and prolactin, C-reactive protein(C-RP), total cholesterol (TC), high-density lipoproteins (HDL), low-density lipoproteins (LDL), triglycerides (TG), concentration of cytokines, atherogenic index (AI), index HOMA (insulin resistance index) and anxiety were determined. Results and discussion. Most of the examined patients with acne have shown varying degrees of changes in some neuroendocrine and metabolic indices. The total cholesterol level in patients with acne was higher by 27.78 % (p < 0.001), and in patients with acne associated with COVID-19 by 45.37 % (p < 0.001), compared with the control group. The HDL level was lower by 27.91 and 39.53 % (p < 0.001), respectively, compared with the control group, LDL was higher by 34.35 and 58.78 % (p < 0.001), respectively, and the TG level was twice as high (p < 0.001), as the control group level in both groups of women with acne. At the same time, an increase in the atherogenic index by 28.09 % (p < 0.01) and 37.02 % (p < 0.001) respectively, was also observed compared with the control group level, but without significant changes between the levels of both groups of women with acne. An increased level of pro-inflammatory cytokines, have been observed in patients of both groups, with insufficient synthesis of anti-inflammatory interleukins in all examined women with acne, at that, more significant abnormalities in the examined immune indices have been observed in patients who have had COVID-19.Conclusions. High level of anxiety, the changes in cytokine profile, neuroendocrine and metabolic indices (C-RP, TC, HDL, LDL, TG, AI), have been observed in women with acne. At that, more significant abnormalities in the examined indices have been found in patients who have had COVID-19 that substantiates the necessity to develop new comprehensive methods of treatment, taking into account the impact of neuroendocrine and metabolic disorders and immunological changes associated with COVID-19.