Which organ contains white pulp surrounding central arteries and red pulp involved in filtering blood?

Study for the CAMLPR Histology Practice Test. Study with flashcards and multiple choice questions, each question has hints and explanations. Get ready for your exam!

Multiple Choice

Which organ contains white pulp surrounding central arteries and red pulp involved in filtering blood?

This arrangement is characteristic of the spleen. The white pulp forms a sleeve around central arteries and is rich in lymphocytes, organizing immune tissue around the vessels (the periarterial lymphoid sheath and adjacent lymphoid follicles you’d see there). The surrounding red pulp, with its cords and vascular sinusoids, is specialized for filtering blood—macrophages in this area remove old or abnormal red blood cells and debris. Understanding this helps distinguish the spleen from other organs. The thymus has cortex and medulla rather than a central-artery–surrounded white pulp; lymph nodes have distinct cortex and paracortex regions with different lymphoid arrangements; and the liver’s red-pulp–like filtering isn’t arranged around central arteries in the same way.

This arrangement is characteristic of the spleen. The white pulp forms a sleeve around central arteries and is rich in lymphocytes, organizing immune tissue around the vessels (the periarterial lymphoid sheath and adjacent lymphoid follicles you’d see there). The surrounding red pulp, with its cords and vascular sinusoids, is specialized for filtering blood—macrophages in this area remove old or abnormal red blood cells and debris.

Understanding this helps distinguish the spleen from other organs. The thymus has cortex and medulla rather than a central-artery–surrounded white pulp; lymph nodes have distinct cortex and paracortex regions with different lymphoid arrangements; and the liver’s red-pulp–like filtering isn’t arranged around central arteries in the same way.

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