Electron microscopic studies on the red pulp of the rabbit spleen

Abstract Electron microscopic studies reveal that the red pulp of the rabbit spleen is composed of reticular cells, reticulum and elements of the blood circulating through it. The three types of reticular cells described follow no definite pattern as to types of spaces they line and are not always adjacent to a basement membrane. Similar or dissimilar cells may line a basement membrane on the same or opposing sides. The entire red pulp area is intercommunicating through pores and junctions of the several spaces and in that area in which no basement membrane exists, the cytoplasmic projections of the reticular cells form a meshwork of spaces. Terminal arterioles are seen to end in collapsed type channels with a change from endothelium to Type I reticular cells. These rapidly join dilated areas. The reticular network of the spleen appears as four types: homogeneous, fibrillar, a combination of these, and reticular cells only. Isolated cilia are found in the reticular cell cytoplasm and are shown to be associated with a basal body and a centriole. The investigation supported the hypothesis that the red pulp of the spleen in the adult rabbit is a functionally dynamic area constantly changing its histological structure, both regarding cells and state of the vascular channels.