Spleen transplantation is the transfer of spleen

Spleen

The spleen is an organ found in virtually all vertebrate animals with important roles in regard to red blood cells and the immune system. In humans, it is located in the left upper quadrant of the abdomen. It removes old red blood cells and holds a reserve of blood in case of hemorrhagic shock...

 or spleen fragments from one individual to another. It is under research for induction of immunological tolerance for other transplanted organs

Organ transplant

Organ transplantation is the moving of an organ from one body to another or from a donor site on the patient's own body, for the purpose of replacing the recipient's damaged or absent organ. The emerging field of regenerative medicine is allowing scientists and engineers to create organs to be...

. Success has been achieved in rodent

Rodent

Rodentia is an order of mammals also known as rodents, characterised by two continuously growing incisors in the upper and lower jaws which must be kept short by gnawing....

 models. Recently, evidence has been obtained for a tolerogenic effect of a spleen transplant in miniature swine
(Frank JMF Dor, PhD thesis). Also, the spleen harbors primitive hematopoietic progenitor cells.