SPLEEN – Normal Histology Click on the Annotations box below each unlabelled picture to reveal the annotated versions. Annotations Expand Annotations Expand Annotations Expand Back to Normal Histology Haematolymphoid System Pathology

The histopathology of the human spleen can only be properly interpreted with sufficient knowledge of the structure of the normal spleen. Since postmortem specimens are often difficult to study because of autolytic changes and since the numbers of splenectomies are decreasing, most pathologists regard the spleen as an enigmatic organ.

Normal spleen from a control rat is depicted in Figures 1a–c. In Figure 1a the arrowhead indicates the PALS region of the spleen surrounding the central artery. This is the darkest region of the white pulp due to the presence of predominately small lymphocytes.

The spleen has a unique location, embryological development and histological structure that differs significantly from other lymphoid organs. Special histological features define several important functions of the spleen, such as filtering blood, maintaining immune response balance and recycling iron.