Endocarditis: An Usual Presentation of an Unusual Disease.

Unlabelled: species are an emerging cause of culture-negative endocarditis with more cases being diagnosed now than 25 years ago when endocarditis was first described in a patient infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Despite the disease being increasingly reported, the exact epidemiological features are not clear, with prevalence rates ranging between 2% and 10% of all cases of culture-negative endocarditis. Moreover, the mortality rate is still high, presumably because of the subacute nature and relative rareness of the disease.

[Actinomyces empyema treated with decortications].

Actinomyces infections are rare infections, involving the head and neck, abdominal cavity, and the lung. We report a case of a 66 year old woman with shortness of breath and a pleural effusion from which Actinomyces meyeriwas cultured. The diagnosis was confirmed by the polymerase chain reaction technique.

The effect of hindlimb immobilization on acid phosphatase, metalloproteinases and nuclear factor-kappaB in muscles of young and old rats.

Age-associated muscle wasting (sarcopenia of old age) is a major problem in elderly people, however, the mechanisms of muscle proteolysis in aging remain obscure and enigmatic. Possible reasons for loss of skeletal muscle mass with aging may be attributed to multiple and complex proteolytic systems. The purpose of the present study was to explore the kinetics of activation of extracellular hydrolytic and proteolytic systems in muscles of hindlimbs immobilized by external fixation of 24-month-old female Wistar rats, in comparison with those of 6-month-old rats.