Comparative Histoarchitectural Study of Splenic Components in Sheep and Goat

Abstract

Animal husbandry practices like sheep and goat rearing offer many advantages for beginners and also experienced farmers. They are well suited and productive for the prevailing agro-climatic conditions in India. In mammals, health status is governed by the organ of lymphatic system. Though spleen is the secondary lymphatic organ, it is the largest among the lymphoid organs which plays a crucial role in immune function. For the present study, splenic tissue from adult sheep and goat (6 Nos. each) were collected from Corporation slaughter house, Chennai. Gross, microscopic and immunohistochemical observations were done. Micrometric observations of various structures were also recorded. The spleen of sheep was triangular, whereas, in goat it was roughly quadrangular in outline. In both the species, parenchyma was covered by a thick capsule, predominantly made up of collagen, elastic and smooth muscle fibres. Thickness of capsule in sheep was 150±10.33µ and in goat it was 141±11.5µ. Trabeculae originated from inner side of the capsule and extended in to parenchyma in both the species. Parenchyma was made up of white pulp and red pulp and the proportion of these were almost equal. The white pulp was composed of splenic nodule and peri-arterial lymphatic sheath. Red pulp was compost of irregular splenic cords separated by splenic sinusoids. Immunohistochemical localization of T-lymphocytes revealed the distribution of T-lymphocytes around the PALS and also scattered in the red pulp.