2.3 Pathological Changes in the Spleen

2.3 Pathological Changes in the Spleen

2.3.1 Specimen Preparation

After 40 days of gavage, the mice were euthanized by cervical dislocation, and their spleens were aseptically removed. The spleens were fixed in 10% formaldehyde solution, then gradually dehydrated using decreasing concentrations of anhydrous ethanol, followed by xylene clearing and paraffin embedding. Each specimen was made into 4 μm thick tissue sections, with three consecutive sections prepared for each specimen. After dewaxing, HE staining was performed, and the morphological features of the spleen were observed under the optical microscope.

Research on Pei Zhengxue's Series of Formulas and Medications

2.3.2 Model Group

The spleen volume of the mice decreased, the weight reduced, the color became pale red, the splenic capsule thickened, no extramedullary hematopoiesis was seen in the sections, the splenic corpuscles atrophied, their number decreased, the splenic tissue structure became loose, the splenic sinus expanded but did not become congested, appearing anemic, and in some areas, thickening and hyalinization of the splenic arterioles were visible. In the medium-dose group of Pei's Blood-Elevating Granules, the white pulp area could account for 50%–70%, the germinal centers recovered well, and the dilated sinuses basically returned to normal, showing a state of congestion. In the low-dose group and the Zhenqi Fuzheng Granules group, the white pulp area, the number of splenic corpuscles, the germinal centers, the capsule, and the sinuses all recovered to varying degrees. The high-dose group, however, recovered more slowly, only slightly better than the model group [38].

2.4 T-Lymphocyte Subpopulation Determination [39]