culture-negative prosthetic valve endocarditis presenting as a cystic mass.

A 58-year-old immunocompetent patient with previous prosthetic valve presented with chest pain, constitutional symptoms and septic shock. Blood cultures and transthoracic echocardiogram were negative, but the patient was initiated on broad spectrum antibiotics due to high clinical suspicions of infective endocarditis. The patient received a transoesophageal echocardiogram revealing a cystic bioprosthetic valve lesion.

Cambial injury in lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta): mountain pine beetle vs fire.

Both mountain pine beetle (MPB) Dendroctonus ponderosae Hopkins and fire leave scars with similar appearance on lodgepole pine Pinus contorta Dougl. ex Loud. var.