Aernoud Fiolet

62 Chapter 2 Figure 5. Cholesterol crystal emboli cause myositis. (A) Computer tomographic images of rabbit after CCs embolism in the left femoral artery that remain patent. (B) PET scan at 48 hours demonstrates localized inflammation (arrow). (C,D) Muscle biopsy from inflamed PET site demonstrates infiltration with macrophages (brown by RAM 11 stain). Arrows point to contraction band necrosis of muscle cells. (E) Fluorescence microscopy demonstrates uptake of crystalline materials by the macrophages. Fresh samples were stained with Bodipy C-12 (invitrogen), a green fluorescent dye with affinity to cholesterol was used to highlight the crystalline materials within the macrophages. Modified with permission. 68 CCs, cholesterol crystals; PET, positron emission tomography.