Veterinary, Microbiology, General Health Professions, Small Animals
81
Scopus Publications
Scopus Publications
24-hour holter electrocardiography in the evaluation of French Bulldogs before and after rhinoplasty and staphylectomy procedures for correction of anatomical abnormalities of brachycephalic syndrome Francesca Lopes Zibetti, Vitória Ramos de Freitas, Andrielly Wittzorecki Zaikowski, Pamela Regina Pimenta Busato, Esther Ayomikun Oluwagbemiga-Dada, Patrícia Silva Vives, Bernardo dos Santos Vaz, Tatiana Champion, Paula Priscila Correia Costa, Marlete Brum Cleff Veterinary Research Communications, 2026 The aim of this study was to evaluate changes in 24-hour Holter electrocardiography parameters in French Bulldogs with nostril stenosis and elongated soft palate before and after corrective surgeries. Nine French Bulldogs diagnosed with brachycephalic syndrome (BOAS) were evaluated. Clinical evaluation involved a detailed anamnesis guided by literature-reported clinical signs, followed by a thorough physical examination of both general and respiratory health and a complete screening evaluation and 24-hour Holter electrocardiography. Also, dogs older than 6 years also underwent echocardiography. Assessments were conducted at two time points: initially (pre-surgery) and again between 6 and 12 months postoperatively. After evaluation, animals who were confirmed to have stenotic nares and elongated soft palates and deemed systemically healthy were approved for surgical correction. Examinations performed six months after the rhinoplasty and staphylectomy procedures indicated a persistent high parasympathetic predominance. This study reveals that, even after corrective surgeries for nostril stenosis and elongated soft palate, French Bulldogs with brachycephalic syndrome continue to exhibit a high degree of parasympathetic predominance, which is an important contribution to the limited body of research comparing pre- and post-operative 24-hour Holter electrocardiographic findings in this breed.
Molecular prevalence of Ehrlichia canis in dogs examined at the Hospital de Clínicas Veterinárias of Universidade Federal de Pelotas, Southern Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil Daniel Felipe Buitrago Linares, Kauê Rodriguez Martins, Paola Renata Joanol Dallmann, Sthéphani Alves Branco Camargo, Oluwagbemiga Ademola Dada, Éverton Fagonde da Silva, Fabio Pereira Leivas Leite, Marlete Brum Cleff, Rodrigo Casquero Cunha Parasite Epidemiology and Control, 2026 Ehrlichia canis is a pathogen that causes a multisystemic disease in dogs of all ages and sexes and belongs to a genus with zoonotic potential. This study aimed to determine the molecular prevalence of E. canis in a population of dogs with no clinical suspicion of ehrlichiosis, examined at the Hospital de Clínicas Veterinária, Universidade Federal de Pelotas (HCV, UFPel). Blood samples from 95 dogs were analyzed at the Veterinary Molecular Biology Laboratory (LabMol-Vet) using nested PCR (nPCR) targeting a 16S rDNA fragment. Amplified products were analyzed by electrophoresis on 1.5% agarose gel and visualized under UV light, revealing a molecular prevalence of 16.84% (16/95). Two PCR products were sequenced for phylogenetic analysis, providing complementary confirmation. This study represents one of the few molecular prevalence investigations conducted in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, and underscore the need for continuous monitoring and further studies to better understand the dynamics of infection. • The infection by Ehrlichia canis was confirmed by nested PCR targeting the 16S rDNA. • This is one of the few molecular studies of Ehrlichia canis conducted in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. • Contributes phylogenetic insights into Ehrlichia canis isolates from southern Brazil.
Brachycephalic Obstructive Airway Syndrome (BOAS) and Orofacial Cleft in a Dog: Treatment with Palatoplasty, Staphyloplasty, and Unilateral Rhinoplasty Andrielly Wittzorecki Zaikowski, Francesca Lopes Zibetti, Stefanie Bressan Waller, Patrícia Silva Vives, Mariana Duarte Pereira, Alessandra Goulart Teixeira, Marlete Brum Cleff, Paula Priscila Correia Costa Acta Scientiae Veterinariae, 2025 Background: Cleft lip and palate can be categorized as congenital craniofacial malformations, characterized by the failure of maxillary and palatal processes to fuse during the intrauterine period. This defect results in an opening in the palate, potentially causing communication between the nasal and oral cavities. Cleft lip and palate can present with varying degrees of severity. The treatment of choice for cleft lip and palate is surgical intervention, aimed at closing the defect to prevent oronasal communication. The following case report describes an American Bully dog with congenital malformations of cleft lip and palate and Brachycephalic Obstructive Airway Syndrome (BOAS). Case: A 1-year-and-3-month-old American Bully dog was diagnosed with BOAS, along with a unilateral cleft lip and palate. During the clinical examination, the dog showed characteristic symptoms of BOAS, including coughing, snoring, and exercise intolerance. The assessment also revealed moderate stenosis of the right nostril and food debris accumulation in the palatal cleft, which could lead to infections. Based on the diagnosis, three consecutive surgeries were performed: palatoplasty to correct the palatal cleft, unilateral rhinoplasty to treat the nasal stenosis, and staphylectomy to address the excessively long soft palate associated with BOAS. The palatoplasty involved an incision and coaptation of the cleft edges, while the staphylectomy resected the excess soft palate tissue. The rhinoplasty involved removing a fragment of tissue from the right nasal meatus through a wedge-shaped incision. The surgery was successful, and the patient showed improvement in respiratory symptoms during the postoperative period, although the owner did not attend follow-up appointments. Postoperative management included pain and anti-inflammatory medications, as well as recommendations for soft food and the use of an Elizabethan collar to prevent injury to the surgical site. The successful procedure highlights the importance of surgical correction in brachycephalic dogs with BOAS, improving their quality of life by alleviating respiratory difficulties and the risks associated with palatal clefts. Discussion: This case underscores the critical role of surgical intervention in managing congenital malformations in brachycephalic dogs. The patient underwent palatoplasty to correct a pre-existing palatal cleft, unilateral rhinoplasty of the right nostril due to moderate stenosis, and staphylectomy following a prior diagnosis of Brachycephalic Obstructive Airway Syndrome (BOAS). These procedures were essential for improving the animal's respiratory function and reducing the risks associated with the cleft palate, such as aspiration and bacterial infections. The rhinoplasty and staphylectomy successfully addressed the anatomical deformities caused by BOAS, alleviating respiratory symptoms and improving airflow. The palatoplasty, while primarily aimed at preventing complications from the cleft, also played a significant role in enhancing the patient's overall health by mitigating the risks of infections due to food debris accumulation in the cleft. While the cleft lip itself did not severely impact the animal's quality of life, it was important to consider the full spectrum of congenital malformations in this breed, as coexisting clefts are often present. Timely and comprehensive surgical intervention, as demonstrated in this case, is essential for improving the quality of life in brachycephalic dogs with congenital anomalies. This approach not only addresses immediate health concerns but also contributes to long-term well-being by enhancing both respiratory function and reducing the risk of secondary complications. Keywords: brachycephalic dog, cleft lip and palate, congenital defect, corrective surgery, craniofacial malformations, nasal stenosis.
Detection and quantification of Dioctophyme renale eggs in dog urine after nephrectomy Soliane Carra Perera, Maria Antonieta Machado Pereira da Silva, Gabriela de Almeida Capella, Natália Berne Pinheiro, Maria Elisabeth Aires Berne, Josaine Cristina da Silva Rappeti, Fabrício de Vargas Arigony Braga, Marlete Brum Cleff Revista Brasileira De Parasitologia Veterinaria, 2024 Dioctophyme renale is a zoonotic nematode that parasitizes mainly right kidney of domestic and wild canines, and can affect humans, and its eggs are eliminated in urine. The duration of egg dissemination after surgical treatment is unknown. Therefore, the objective of this study was to identify, quantify, and verify the duration of the elimination of D. renale eggs in dog urine after the surgical removal of nematodes. The study involved 15 dogs in which female specimens of D. renale were detected in kidneys. Urine samples, preferably first-morning urine samples, were collected before and for the first ten days after nephrectomy. For egg quantification, 40 µL samples of urinary sediment were analyzed in triplicate. In laboratory analyses, between 900 and > 6,000 eggs/urine sample were detected in 86.7% of the dogs prior to surgery, and in 40% of the dogs on postoperative day 1. Of the 15 dogs evaluated, 14 (93.3%) eliminated D. renale eggs on each of the first ten postoperative days. Egg elimination peaked on postoperative day 1. Our results indicate that dogs can continue to be sources of D. renale infection even after the helminths have been removed from a parasitized kidney, underscoring the novelty of these findings and their importance for the One Health approach.
Extraskeletal Chondrosarcoma in a Cat Taina dos Santos Alberti, Luciana Aquini Fernandes Gil, Andressa Nogueira Trindade, Rosimeri Zamboni, Marcela Brandão Costa, Ana Raquel Mano Meinerz, Marlete Brum Cleff, Eliza Simone Viégas Sallis Acta Scientiae Veterinariae, 2024 Background: Extraskeletal chondrosarcoma (CSE) is a malignant mesenchymal neoplasm, originating from soft tissues and characterized by cartilaginous formations, without primary bone involvement, being a rare variant of chondrosarcoma. This study aims to describe the clinicopathological aspects of CSE with humeroscapular location in a feline.Case: An eight-year-old male feline, of no defined breed, was treated at the Ceval Veterinary Outpatient of the Departamento of Clínicas, Faculdade of Veterinária, Universidade Federal of Pelotas (DCV/FV/UFPel) with a history of lameness and enlargement in the right forelimb. On physical examination, a firm mass was observed involving the scapula and humerus of the right forelimb. The mass extended to the axillary region and the feline did not show pain on palpation. Additional exams were carried out. In the imaging examination (radiography), a mineralized mass, with an undefined shape, was observed in the proximal and middle third of the humerus. There were also discrete areas of bone lysis in the cortical bone of the humerus. Fine needle aspiration cytology was inconclusive. After evaluating the patient, high amputation of the limb was recommended, but the owner did not authorize the procedure, and analgesia was recommended. Three months after the first treatment, the animal returned with a marked increase in the lesion, hyporexia, oligodipsia and signs of chronic pain. The feline underwent new examinations and no distant metastases were observed. Due to the animal's clinical condition and severe pain, the owner opted for euthanasia. The feline's necropsy was carried out at the Laboratório Regional of Diagnóstico (LRD) at the FV/UFPel. On external examination, an increase in volume was observed in the right thoracic limb, measuring 17 cm in the longest axis involving the scapula and humerus. In sections, the tumor was firm, yellowish-white, fasciculated and multilobulated. The mass infiltrated the adjacent muscle tissue without compromising bone structures. In the histopathological evaluation, a proliferation of undifferentiated spindle cells was observed, with vesicular, pleomorphic, ovoid to elongated nuclei, evident nucleoli and eosinophilic, poorly defined cytoplasm. There were two mitotic figures per high-power field (Obj. 40x). A large amount of chondroid matrix was also observed among the neoplastic cells. The definitive diagnosis of extraskeletal chondrosarcoma was based on radiographic examination, macroscopic and histopathological findings.Discussion: The diagnosis of chondrosarcoma in the present case was based on histopathological findings of the neoplasm. The classification as extraskeletal was determined by imaging and anatomopathological examination, which made it possible to exclude primary bone involvement. The origin of extraskeletal chondrosarcomas is unknown, however, as with other soft tissue sarcomas, they are commonly associated with previous lesions at the site. In the case followed, the feline had no history of previous injury to the affected region. However, as in the present case, the occurrence of extraskeletal osteosarcoma in unusual sites, unrelated to previous lesions, has been described, and in these cases the origin of the neoplasm is associated with totipotent cells. The diagnosis of well-differentiated chondrosarcomas in felines can be determined by the histopathological characteristics of the tumor, requiring the exclusion of primary bone involvement through necropsy and/or imaging to classify the neoplasm as extraskeletal. Radiographic examination, necropsy and histopathology were essential to establish the diagnosis of extraskeletal chondrosarcoma.
An evaluation of techniques to diagnose Dioctophyme renale in dogs Gabriela de Almeida Capella, Josaine Cristina da Silva Rappeti, Natalia Berne Pinheiro, Soliane Carra Perera, Micaele Quintana de Moura, Marlete Brum Cleff, Caroline Maciel da Costa, Adriane Leites Strothmann, Guilherme Borges Weege, Carolina Silveira Mascarenhas, Maria Elisabeth Aires Berne Revista Brasileira De Medicina Veterinaria, 2024 <i>Dioctophyme renale</i> is a nematode with zoonotic potential that affects the kidneys of carnivorous, wild, and domestic mammals. In this study, we sought to evaluate the indirect ELISA method against routine methods used to diagnose dioctophimosis. Hence, 38 dogs parasitized by <i>D. renale</i>, as confirmed by surgery, were selected. The dogs were evaluated by abdominal ultrasound and urinalysis, and their sera were tested by indirect ELISA using <i>D. renale</i> adult secretion and excretion antigen (DES). Five dogs were followed up with serum collections on day 0 (day of surgery) and 30, 60, and 90 days after surgery to evaluate antibody kinetics. Abdominal ultrasound and indirect ELISA successfully diagnosed 37 dogs parasitized by <i>D. renale</i>, while urinalysis diagnosed 29 animals. The positive animals were parasitized with 1-7 parasites; 17 dogs were infected by male and female parasites, 15 only by female parasites, and six were parasitized only by male parasites. When assessing specificity and sensitivity, all techniques showed 100% specificity and 81.6%, 97.4%, and 97.4% sensitivity for urinalysis, ultrasound, and ELISA, respectively (<i>p</i> < 0.001). The five positive dogs that were followed up after surgery showed a progressive decrease in mean absorbances in indirect ELISA (0.644, 0.516, 0.511, and 0.440, respectively). This study demonstrated that the indirect ELISA using the DE antigen could diagnose dioctophimosis regardless of the number, sex, and location of the parasites, with the potential to be used in epidemiological research and implementing immunological and molecular studies, opening new lines of research on <i>D. renale.</i>
Nephrectomy in 52 dogs for the treatment of Dioctophyme renale infection – Knowing the enemy to win Pâmela Caye, Josaine Cristina da Silva Rappeti, Soliane Carra Perera, Hecson Jesser Segat, Patrícia Silva Vives, Fabrício de Vargas Arigony Braga, Marlete Brum Cleff, Ana Raquel Mano Meinerz, Guilherme Albuquerque de Oliveira Cavalcanti, Vanessa Milech, Bernardo Nascimento Antunes, Daniel Curvello de Mendonça Müller, Maurício Veloso Brun Topics in Companion Animal Medicine, 2024
In Vitro Activity of the Lamiaceae Family Species on Ancylostoma spp. Eggs Rosaria Helena Machado Azambuja, Maria Elizabeth Aires Berne, Rogério Antonio Freitag, Marco Aurélio Ziemann dos Santos, Roger Vasques Marques, Natália Berne Pinheiro, Marlete Brum Cleff Brazilian Archives of Biology and Technology, 2023
Cryptococcosis by Cryptococcus sp. Causing Lymphadenomegaly as a Single Sign in a Cat Paula Priscila Correia Costa, Stefanie Bressan Waller, Camila Conte, Gabriela Ladeira Sanzo, Luiz Fernando Jantzen Gaspar, Guilherme Albuquerque de Oliveira Cavalcanti, Alana Moraes de Borba, Angelita dos Reis Gomes, Renata Osório de Faria, Marlete Brum Cleff Mycopathologia, 2022
Hypospadias in a mongrel male (78,XY; SRY-positive) dog S. B. Waller, L. H. S. B. Neto, P. P. C. Costa, C. H. A. Teles, M. P. De Alencar, L. A. Freitas, M. B. Cleff, A. A. De Araújo Journal of Small Animal Practice, 2021
Ovicidal and larvicidal potential of rosmarinus officinalis to control gastrointestinal nematodes of sheep Natália Berne Pinto, Leonardo Mortagua de Castro, Rosária Helena Machado Azambuja, Gabriela de Almeida Capella, Micaele Quintana de Moura, Wesley Douglas Terto, Rogério Antonio Freitag, Sabrina Taiza Jeske, Marcos Marreiro Villela, Marlete Brum Cleff, Fábio Pereira Leivas Leite Revista Brasileira De Parasitologia Veterinaria, 2019
Bilateral and disseminated renal dioctophimatosis in dog Carolina F. Sapin, Luisa C. Silva-Mariano, Luisa Grecco-Corrêa, Josaine C.S. Rappeti, Luana H. Durante, Soliane C. Perera, Marlete B. Cleff, Fabiane B. Grecco Pesquisa Veterinaria Brasileira, 2017
Dioctophyme renale (Nematoda: Enoplida) in domestic dogs and cats in the extreme south of Brazil Josaine Cristina da Silva Rappeti, Carolina Siqueira Mascarenhas, Soliane Carra Perera, Gertrud Müller, Fabiane Borelli Grecco, Luísa Mariano Cerqueira da Silva, Carolina da Fonseca Sapin, Stella Falkenberg Rausch, Marlete Brum Cleff Revista Brasileira De Parasitologia Veterinaria, 2017
In vitro susceptibility of the Sporothrix brasiliensis TO aqueous extracts of the green tea (Camellia sinensis L. Kuntze) Acta Veterinaria Brasilica, 2015
Clinical and pathological characterization of feline triad syndrome: Case report Acta Veterinaria Brasilica, 2013
Clinical and mycological analysis of dog's oral cavity Rosema Santin, Antonella Souza Mattei, Stefanie Bressan Waller, Isabel Martins Madrid, Marlete Brum Cleff, Melissa Orzechowski Xavier, Márcia de Oliveira Nobre, Patrícia da Silva Nascente, João Roberto Braga de Mello, Mário Carlos Araújo Meireles Brazilian Journal of Microbiology, 2013
Canine transmissible venereal tumor with encephalic metastasis Ciciane Pereira Marten Fernandes, Luiz Fernando Jantzen Gaspar, Ana Raquel Mano Meinerz, Fabiane Borelli Grecco, Márcia Oliveira Nobre, Marlete Brum Cleff Semina Ciencias Agrarias, 2013
Multifactorial dermatitis in a dog C.B. Matos, I.M. Madrid, R. Santin, R.H. Azambuja, I. Schuch, M.C.A. Meireles, M.B. Cleff Arquivo Brasileiro De Medicina Veterinaria E Zootecnia, 2012
In vitro susceptibility of isolates of Sporothrix schenckii to terbinafine and itraconazole Ana Raquel Mano Meinerz, Patrícia da Silva Nascente, Luiz Filipe Damé Schuch, Marlete Brum Cleff, Rosema Santin, Cristiane da Silva Brum, Márcia de Oliveira Nobre, Mario Carlos Araújo Meireles, João Roberto de Braga Mello Revista Da Sociedade Brasileira De Medicina Tropical, 2007
Effects of high doses of terbinafine and itraconazole in Wistar rats Ana Raquel Mano Meinerz, Marlete Brum Cleff, Patrícia da Silva Nascente, Márcia de Oliveira Nobre, Luiz Filipe Damé Schuch, Tatiana de Ávila Antunes, Melissa O. Xavier, Mário Carlos Araújo Meireles, João Roberto de Braga Mello Revista Brasileira De Ciencias Farmaceuticas Brazilian Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences, 2007
Differences in virulence between isolates of feline Sporotrichosis Márcia de Oliveira Nobre, Tatiana de Ávila Antunes, Renata Osório de Faria, Marlete Brum Cleff, Cristina Gevehr Fernandes, Adriana Cunha Muschner, Mário Carlos Araújo Meireles, Laerte Ferreiro Mycopathologia, 2005
