The cholesterol crystals may be associated with macrophages, including giant cells, and eosinophils.The sensitivity of small core biopsies is modest, due to sampling error, as the process is often patchy. Affected organs show the characteristic histologic changes in 50-75% of the clinically diagnosed cases. Non-specific tissue findings suggestive of a cholesterol embolization include ischemic changes, necrosis and unstable-appearing complex atherosclerotic plaques (that are cholesterol-laden and have a thin fibrous cap). While biopsy findings may not be diagnostic, they have significant value, as they help exclude alternate diagnoses, e.g. vasculitis, that often cannot be made confidently based on clinical criteria. Treatment
Treatment of an episode of cholesterol emboli is generally symptomatic, i.e. it deals with the symptoms and complications but cannot reverse the phenomenon itself. In kidney failure resulting from cholesterol crystal emboli, statins (medication that reduces cholesterol levels) have been shown to halve the risk of requiring hemodialysis. History
The phenomenon of embolisation of cholesterol was first recognized by the Danish pathologist Dr. Peter Ludvig Panum and published in 1862. Further evidence that eroded atheroma was the source of emboli came from American pathologist Dr. Curtis M. Flory, who in 1945 reported the phenomenon in 3.4% of a large autopsy series of older individuals with severe atherosclerosis of the aorta. References
External links

Patient.info - Cholesterol Embolism Summary
MedlinePlus - atheroembolic renal disease
Recent technological advances have resulted in an increase of available genome sequences for Streptococcus species, allowing for more robust and reliable phylogenetic and comparative genomic analyses to be conducted. In 2018, the evolutionary relationships within Streptococcus was re-examined by Patel and Gupta through the analysis of comprehensive phylogenetic trees constructed based on four different datasets of proteins and the identification of 134 highly specific molecular signatures (in the form of conserved signature indels) that are exclusively shared by the entire genus or its distinct subclades.The results revealed the presence of two main clades at the highest level within Streptococcus, termed the “Mitis-Suis” and “Pyogenes-Equinus-Mutans” clades. The “Mitis-Suis” main clade comprises the Suis subclade and the Mitis clade, which encompasses the Angiosus, Pneumoniae, Gordonii and Parasanguinis subclades. The second main clade, the “Pyogenes-Equinus-Mutans”, includes the Pyogenes, Mutans, Salivarius, Equinus, Sobrinus, Halotolerans, Porci, Entericus and Orisratti subclades. In total, 14 distinct subclades have been identified within the genus Streptococcus, each supported by reliable branching patterns in phylogenetic trees and by the presence of multiple conserved signature indels in different proteins that are distinctive characteristics of the members of these 14 clades. A summary diagram showing the overall relationships among the Streptococcus based on these studies is depicted in a figure on this page. Genomics
The genomes of hundreds of species have been sequenced. Most Streptococcus genomes are 1.8 to 2.3 Mb in size and encode 1,700 to 2,300 proteins. Some important genomes are listed in the table.