Functional Studies of the Hyperplastic Spleen of Mice Recovering From Radiation Damage

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Abstract
Granulocyte counts were substantially higher in intact than in splenectomized mice 20 days, but not 15 days, after exposure to 600 r. Intact mice had a higher resistance than splenectomized mice to Pseudomonas challenge both 15 and 20 days after exposure to 600 r. This difference was greater than could be attributed to differences in preinfection granulocyte count and, allowing for granulo-cyte differences, it was essentially the same 15 days (spleen weight 64 mg) as 20 days (spleen weight 149 mg) after irradiation. Mice exposed to 475 r failed to mobilize granulocytes in response to a Pseudomonas injection 12 days after irradiation, but showed an increasing degree of mobilization at 14 and 16 days. The beneficial effect of homogenate of hyper-plastic recovering spleens on lethally irradiated recipients was the same as that of homogenate of spleens from normal 2-week-old mice.