Histomorphological Study of the Spleen in the Indian Mongoose (Herpestes javanicus)

Abstract

The present study investigated the histomorphological features of the spleen in the Indian mongoose (Herpestes javanicus). The work was conducted at the Department of Veterinary Anatomy, College of Veterinary Science, Proddatur, Sri Venkateswara Veterinary University, Andhra Pradesh, India, from January to June 2024. Spleens from six adult Indian mongooses that died from natural causes were collected. Tissue samples were washed, fixed in 10% neutral buffered formalin, processed routinely, embedded in paraffin, sectioned at 4–5 μm, and stained with Haematoxylin and Eosin, Masson’s Trichrome, Verhoeff’s, and Gridley´s and Wilders’s methods. Histologically, the spleen was enclosed by a thin connective tissue capsule, from which thick, irregularly shaped trabeculae extended into the parenchyma. The red pulp consisted of venous sinuses and narrow splenic cords containing reticular fibres, erythrocytes, plasma cells, and macrophages. Numerous elongated or rounded ellipsoids and penicillar arteries were also observed. The white pulp formed the major part of the parenchyma and consisted of abundant lymphatic nodules and periarterial lymphatic sheaths. The lymphatic nodules comprised B-cell zones and germinal centres, whereas the periarterial lymphatic sheaths contained T cells, B cells, and macrophages. A marginal zone was present between the white and red pulp and blended into the splenic cords. These observations provide a descriptive histomorphological account of splenic organisation in the Indian mongoose.