Spleen

[Jokkon]

both the spleen and the kidney filters blood, but what are the main differences between the 2?
because the spleen only filters out foreign substances, while the kidneys filters out the wastes in our blood? i don't see the difference

[mith]

I don't think the main function of hte spleen is to filter waste, it works mainly with the red blood cells, destroying the old and as a reserve when needed.

[Jokkon]

ah? my teacher told me that spleen's got these pulp tissues kind of things that work exactly like the lymph nodes througout our body, lined with B-lymphocytes and macrophages. only tha lymph nodes fulters lymph (duh) and the spleen filters blood

[Dr.Stein]

Yep, I already told about it in my previous post

Spleen is equipped with two main areas, red pulp and white pulp, to serve its two major functions:
1. It is responsible for the destruction of senescent RBCs and reservoir function (minor role)
2. It is a major site for mounting the immune response

Red Pulp: Clusters of macrophages and RBCs.
White Pulp: Lymphocytes suspended on reticular fibers



The spleen behaves similar to a lymph node but instead of filtering the lymphatic fluid it filters the blood. Blood entering the spleen travels through progressively smaller arterioles until it is deposited in an area known as the red pulp. This is where the RBCs are processed.

Surrounding each of the arterioles is a sheath of lymphoid cells which make up the periarteriolar lymphoid sheath (PALS). The interface between the PALS and the blood is a region of intense phagocytic activity and sets the stage for an immune response.

The immune reactivity of the spleen is especially effective for dealing with blood-borne antigens such as bacteria that reach the blood.