G ROUP A streptococcal infection initiates acute rheumatic fever; rheumatic valvular heart disease is a sequela that develops during or subsequent to the acute rheumatic episode. The mechanism by which the preceding streptococcal infection produces the arthritic and constitutional symptoms and valvular heart disease is unknown. Regardless of the mechanism involved, there is little doubt that pr...

The observation that individuals who acquire rheumatic fever following a streptococcal infection usually respond with higher streptococcal antibody titres than those who have streptococcal infections uncomplicated by rheumatic fever has been reported repeatedly (1-7). There are exceptions, but, if rheumatics are considered as a group, this observation seems to hold true and it has led to an ass...

The development of autoimmunity in certain instances is related to infectious agents. In this report, cytotoxic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) that recognize epitopes on both enteroviruses and the bacterium Streptococcus pyogenes are described. Murine anti-streptococcal mAbs that were crossreactive with streptococcal M protein, human cardiac myosin, and other alpha-helical coiled-coil molecules w...

Clinical, epidemiological and microbiological studies have conclusively shown that the diagnosis of streptococcal infections based on clinical symptoms always requires microbiological verification. Beta-haemolytic streptococci are the most frequently isolated human pathogens among the representatives of the genus Streptococcus. Nearly all the beta-haemolytic streptococci possess specific carboh...

The frequency and severity of streptococcal infections and their sequelae have declined dramatically in the past century, yet the prevalence of streptococcal infections is still high. The reasons for this decline must be intimately related to host resistance, virulence of the agent, and environmental factors, especially crowding. Close examination of these fundamental influences does not reveal...

This study showed that streptococcal L forms could not be isolated from children who were either carriers of group A streptococci or had disease due to this pathogen. It was possible to induce L colony formation in 15 strains of group A. Streptococcal bacteriophages were demonstrated in 20% of group A streptococci isolated from school children who were carriers, but did not have clinical eviden...

Non-rheumatic Streptococcal Acute Myocarditis, also known as Strep Pharyngitis Acute Myocarditis (SPAM) occurs in young adults, typically within five days of the initial streptococcal pharyngitis, and is characterized by typical cardiac symptoms, abnormal electrocardiography, and elevated cardiac biomarkers in the absence of obstructive coronary artery disease. Patients may also report myalgias...

Acid-soluble collagen could be isolated from fish skin using acetic acid. In recent years, much attention has been paid to collagen from marine sources, mainly arising from the fact that there is no risk of contagious diseases. Moreover, by processing the fish, significant amounts of waste materials are produced which can be considered as a substitute for these collagen sources. Thunnus tonggol...