Postsplenectomy blood values, marrow cytology, erythrocyte life-span, and sequestration in mice.

Studies in mice indicated that splenectomy influenced neither the erythrocyte and leukocyte total and differential values nor the erythrocyte survival. The right femoral marrow erythrocyte and nucleated cell counts were also not altered by splenectomy, and compensation for the important splenic contribution to erythropoiesis was in the form of marrow erythroid hyperplasia with a drop in the myeloid:erythroid ratio from 2.79:1.00 in intact mice to 1.44:1.00 in splenectomized mice. The spleen was the most important site for the sequestration of erythrocytes as monitored by tissue localization of 51Cr-labeled erythrocytes, and this function was assumed by the liver in splenectomized mice by almost doubling its activity. The total residual body count was, however, significantly decreased (P less than 0.01) by splenectomy.