Splenectomy selectively affects the distribution and mobility of the recirculating lymphocyte pool

The spleen plays a major role in immune surveillance, but the impact that splenectomy exerts on the immune competence of an individual is not fully resolved. Here we show that neonatal splenectomy in sheep does not abrogate the development of a large, nonrecirculating pool of lymphocytes and that it has no effect on the acquisition of a normal blood lymphocyte profile. Splenectomy did, however, result in a significant decrease in blood residency time of recirculating lymphocytes and in an enhanced accumulation of recirculating lymphocytes in lymph nodes. Furthermore, nonrecirculating peripheral blood lymphocytes were less likely to migrate to the lung, possibly because of saturation of the marginal pool by recirculating lymphocytes. Although splenectomy has little effect on the development or distribution of lymphocyte subsets in blood and lymph, it has marked effects on the rate of recirculation of lymphocytes, which may have significant implications for peripheral immune surveillance in patients who undergo splenectomy.