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Erythrophagocytosis in the Rat Bone Marrow Following Splenectomy
Author(s) -
Marton Per F.
Publication year - 1973
Publication title -
scandinavian journal of haematology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.904
H-Index - 84
eISSN - 1600-0609
pISSN - 0036-553X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0609.1973.tb00044.x
Subject(s) - bone marrow , spleen , splenectomy , pathology , mononuclear phagocyte system , phagocytosis , biology , chemistry , medicine , immunology
Recent experimental studies have demonstrated erythrophagocytosis in the rat bone marrow after transfusion of heat‐denatured erythrocytes. The present investigation deals with bone marrow erythrophagocytosis following removal of the spleen, which is the main erythroclastic organ in the rat. By light microscopy of the bone marrow 8 weeks after splenectomy erythrophagic activity has been demonstrated in the nursing cells of the erythroblastic islands. As no significantly increased red cell destruction could be found in other parts of the reticuloendothelial system, the bone marrow is regarded as the main erythroclastic site in the splenectomized rat. A minor bone marrow erythrophagic activity can also be demonstrated in the normal rat. The increased activity demonstrated in the bone marrow of the splenectomized rat is therefore an intensification of a normal function going on at a lower rate in the intact animal.