778 



SPLEEN. 



cur in these sheaths in many animals, are 

 altogether absent from the membrane of the 

 Malpighian corpuscle ; and the latter must 

 especially be noticed as being much more de- 

 licate than the sheaths of the arteries on 

 which the corpuscles sit. The white fibrous 

 tissue, which Ecker regarded as a continuous 

 membrane, in consequence of having seen it 

 when changed by the action of potash, is in 

 precisely the same condition as in the par- 

 titions and sheaths of the vessels, and forms 

 by far the greatest part of the coat of the cor- 

 puscles ; while the elastic tissue (the stripes 

 of a doubtful nature which Ecker saw) ap- 

 pears to constitute only a more or less ex- 

 tensive network of pale, so-called nuclear 

 fibres (kernfasern) (fig. 528. b). So that the 

 membrane of the Malpighian corpuscles would 

 thus appear to be only a modified portion of 

 the vascular sheath, a view which most ap- 

 proximates to that enunciated by J. Miiller. 

 An outer coat, of which Giesker speaks, has 

 never been plainly verified by me as a special 

 membrane connected with the preceding ; but 

 it seems to me more probable, that the cor- 

 puscles are always immediately surrounded by 

 the cells and vessels of the pulp. Certainly 

 these vessels are often connected together by 

 an indistinct fibrous or membranous sub- 

 stance, but this is especially present in the 

 pulp, and is nothing else than the termination 

 of the sheath of the vessels. The preceding 

 remarks especially apply to the Malpighian 

 corpuscles of the higher brute mammalia. As 

 to those of man, although they are much more 

 difficult to examine, yet I have satisfied my- 

 self in the most positive manner that they 

 correspond with those of the brute mammalia 

 in all essential points. This is easiest and best 

 seen in the spleens of children. The struc- 

 ture of these is exactly that seen in animals, 

 only the coat is more delicate, so that it is 

 extremely difficult to isolate a single cor- 

 puscle entire, and the contents are expelled 

 by the slightest pressure. In the wall is seen 

 the same network of elastic fibres as in ani- 

 mals, and this renders it possible even to re- 

 cognise those which are burst. Extremely fine 

 capillaries of 3-1000ths of a line in diameter 

 may frequently be seen around the corpus- 

 cles ; but the latter are just as little enve- 

 loped in a second membrane as in animals. 



The Malpighian corpuscles do not possess 

 in their interior an epithelium and separated 

 contents like the glands, but they are densely 

 filled with a semifluid, greyish white, cohesive 

 mass (fg. 527. 6). This contains, together 

 with a small quantity of a clear fluid, a large 

 quantity of morphous particles, which have 

 been very differently described by different 

 observers. According to J. Miiller they very 

 much resemble the corpuscles of the spleen- 

 pulp, and have a general likeness to the blood 

 discs, but are irregularly spherical. Bischoff 

 regards them as altogether corresponding 

 with those of the chyle, both in appearance, 

 size, and behaviour with water and acetic 

 acid. According to Henle, they resemble 

 those of the spleen-pulp and those of the 



thymus and thyroid body ; and he so de- 

 scribes them, that it would appear he recog- 

 nised nuclei and a small proportion of cells. 

 Oesterlen describes them as nuclei resembling 

 the elements of the pulp. Hessling, Huschke, 

 and Nasse* agree with Bischoff respecting 

 the similarity of the elements in question to 

 the lymph and chyle corpuscles. The latter 

 of these authorities finds those of the rabbit 

 to be 2 3-1000ths of a line in diameter, 

 while Hessling certifies to their size in men 

 as from 2 5i-1000ths, and describes their 

 surfaces as possessing a mulberry-like ap- 

 pearance, and their contents as partly minute 

 granules, partly separate nuclei. J. Simon 

 found that the corpuscles in question never 

 attained a development into cells. Remakf 

 describes them as consisting partly of large 

 transparent cells, with an interior containing 

 a single lateral, or double and clear nucleus 

 partly of small, dark-bordered vesicles, closely 

 surrounded by a delicate pale membrane, and 

 occupied by a dark central nucleus. The 

 first, according to him, resemble the larger, 

 the last the smaller lymph corpuscles. Fi- 

 nally, Gerlach finds in the Malpighian cor- 

 puscles the nuclei of cells, and, in equal quan- 

 tity, cells of different sizes, with one, two, or 

 three nuclei, as well as blood corpuscles, with 

 all those forms of granule-cells which I shall 

 hereafter describe as developed in the spleen- 

 pulp from the effused blood. 



These are the most important accounts 

 given by others. As the result of my own 

 researches, I must, firstly, corroborate J. Miil- 

 ler, who explains the elements of the contents 

 of the Malpighian corpuscles and spleen-pulp 

 as similar structures. Also, I can add with 

 Bischoff, that they often resemble the chyle 

 corpuscles ; yet I am not disposed to lay any 

 weight upon this correspondence. Further- 

 more, T consider it fully made out that Ger- 

 lach's view, according to which blood cor- 

 puscles, and cells which include blood cor- 

 puscles, are a constant constituent of the Mal- 

 pighian corpuscles, is altogether erroneous. 

 They are not even frequent occurrences, for in 

 many animals I have not found them at all ; 

 and when they occurred as, for instance, in 

 oxen they were mostly found in scattered 

 vesicles, and, further, were in such small 

 quantity, that they had no influence on their 

 colour. And very often blood corpuscles 

 and their metamorphoses appeared to occupy 

 the vesicles, where a more careful examin- 

 ation showed that they were only in con- 

 tact with their outer surface. The degree of 

 accuracy to which Gerlach's assertion may 

 lay claim is best shown by the fact, that he al- 

 together denies the existence of these granule- 

 cells (which are produced from the effused 

 blood) in the spleen-pulp ; while it is here, 

 as well in these as in animals which possess 

 no proper spleen vesicles, that they occur in 



* Handworterbuch der Physiologie, von R. Wag- 

 ner, ii. S. 387. 



f Dia^nostische und Pathogenetische Untersuch- 

 ungen : Berlin, 1845. 



