Symptom Profile of Patients With Post-COVID-19 Conditions and Influencing Factors for Recovery.

Background: The aim of the study was to examine the factors that influence the improvement of post-coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) symptoms. Methods: We investigated the biomarkers and post-COVID-19 symptoms status of 120 post-COVID-19 symptomatic outpatients (44 males and 76 females) visiting our hospital. This study was a retrospective analysis, so we analyzed the course of symptoms only for those who could follow the progress of the symptoms for 12 weeks. We analyzed the data including the intake of zinc acetate hydrate. Results: The main symptoms that remained after 12 weeks were, in descending order: taste disorder, olfactory disorder, hair loss, and fatigue. Fatigue was improved in all cases treated with zinc acetate hydrate 8 weeks later, exhibiting a significant difference from the untreated group (P = 0.030). The similar trend was observed even 12 weeks later, although there was no significant difference (P = 0.060). With respect to hair loss, the group treated with zinc acetate hydrate showed significant improvements 4, 8, and 12 weeks later, compared with the untreated group (P = 0.002, P = 0.002, and P = 0.006). Conclusion: Zinc acetate hydrate may improve fatigue and hair loss as symptoms after contracting COVID-19.

Solvent effect on the photochemical properties of symmetrically substituted trans-3,3',5,5'-tetramethoxystilbene.

Photochemical properties of trans-3,3',5,5'-tetramethoxystilbene (TMST) have been studied in various polar solvents. The Stokes shift of trans-TMST was found to be increased with increasing solvent polarity. The fluorescence lifetime of trans-TMST experienced a large solvent effect changing from 2.3 ns in cyclohexane to 16.6 ns in acetonitrile. These results indicate that the excited singlet state of trans-TMST has a charge-transfer (CT) character. On the basis of the obtained results, the interior polar environment of a water-soluble TMST dendrimer is discussed.

Photoisomerization of stilbene dendrimers: the need for a volume-conserving isomerization mechanisms.

Highly branched stilbene dendrimers were synthesized and their photochemical behavior was studied. Even the stilbene dendrimer with molecular weight over 6500 underwent trans-cis isomerization in the excited singlet state within the lifetime of 10 ns. The photoisomerization of C=C double bond of stilbene dendrimers in the excited state may proceed by a volume-conserving novel mechanism such as hula-twist rather than conventional 180 degrees rotation around the C=C double bond based on fluorescence and isomerization experiments.