Muscle Physiology

Three Types of Muscle Tissue

Skeletal
Usually attached to bones
Under conscious control
Striated

Cardiac
Wall of heart
Not under conscious control
Striated

Smooth
Walls of most viscera, blood vessels, skin
Not under conscious control
Not striated
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Muscle Attachment & Movement

Origin
Immovable, stable end
Most muscle origins are superior, proximal, or
medial to the insertion

Insertion
Movable end, has the greatest motion when muscle
contracts
Pulled toward the origin when muscle contracts

Action
What the muscle doesevery movement
Some are flexors & decrease joint angles
Some are extensors, adductors, abductors, rotators,
etc.

Muscle Names
For their shape
Trapezius, rhomboideus
By the number of heads they have
Triceps brachii, biceps brachii
By location
Tibialis anterior, rectus abdominis
According to size
Teres major, teres minor
Superficial or deep?
Flexor digitorum superficialis, Flexor digitorum profundus
For their action
Adductors, flexors, extensor muscles, etc
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Muscle movement
Muscles do work by contracting
skeletal muscles come in
antagonistic pairs
flexor vs. extensor

contracting = shortening
move skeletal parts

tendons
connect bone to muscle

ligaments
connect bone to bone

Muscles that cross joints of the body move

those joints.
Agonist
Main muscle that causes the joint to move

Synergist
Muscle that helps the agonist

Antagonist
Opposes the agonist

A True Synergist: The Hamstring

Hamstrings are multi-articular
Produce hip extension and
knee flexion
For hip extension
A knee extensor must act with
the hamstring

For knee extension

A hip flexor must act with the
hamstring
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aNATOMY & pHYSIOLOGY

EXAMPLES OF MUSCLE
GROUPS
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Rotator Cuff (musculotendinous cuff)

Stabilizes the shoulder joint
Suprasinatus
Infraspinatus
Teres minor
Subscapularis

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12

Abdominal muscles

Rectus abdominus
External oblique
Internal oblique
Transverse abdominis

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Quadriceps femoris
Muscle group of the anterior thigh
Rectus femoris
Vastus lateralis
Vastus medialis
Vastus intermedius

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Hamstrings
Muscles on the posterior thigh
Biceps femoris
Semitendinosus
Semimembranosus

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Pick up the three sheets on the

front desk. They are in order, from
left to right.

aNATOMY & pHYSIOLOGY

MUSCLE STRUCTURE

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Structure of a Skeletal Muscle

Skeletal muscle tissue is
made of
Nervous tissue
Blood
CT

Fascia = covers surface of

muscle, may form tendon
Tendon = attach bone to
muscle, intertwine to
periosteum
Aponeuroses = attach
bone to covering of
muscle

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9-3

Structure of a Skeletal Muscle

Connective Tissue Layers
epimysium: beneath
fascia

perimysium: separates
muscle into fascicles

endomysium: separates
muscle fibers

fascicles: bundle of
muscle fibers
myofibrils
thick and thin filaments
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Skeletal Muscle Fiber

Sarcolemma - muscle
cell membrane
Sarcoplasm-cytoplasm
Sarcoplasmic reticulum
Stores Ca2+
Released through channels
Restored to SR by Ca2+
pumps (uses ATP)

Myofibril (// threadlike)

Actin filaments
Myosin filaments
Sarcomere (striation
pattern) the functional
unit of muscle 19
contraction

Closer look at muscle cell

Sarcoplasmic
reticulum

Transverse tubules
(T-tubules)

multi-nucleated

Mitochondrion

Muscle filaments & Sarcomere

Interacting proteins
thin filaments
braided strands
actin
tropomyosin
troponin

thick filaments
myosin

Thin filaments: actin

Complex of proteins
braid of actin molecules & tropomyosin fibers
tropomyosin fibers secured with troponin molecules

Thick filaments: myosin

Single protein
myosin molecule
long protein with globular head

bundle of myosin proteins:

globular heads aligned

Thick & Thin Filaments

Myosin tails aligned together & heads pointed away
from center of sarcomere

Muscle at rest
Interacting proteins
at rest, troponin molecules hold tropomyosin fibers so
that they cover the myosin-binding sites on actin
troponin has Ca2+ binding sites

Interaction of Thick & Thin Filaments

Cross bridges
connections formed between myosin heads (thick
filaments) & actin (thin filaments)

cause the muscle to shorten (contract)

sarcomere

sarcomere

Sarcomere

I band: actin only

A band: contractile
unit (sarcomere) actin
& myosin
H zone: myosin
w/tropomyosin
Z line: begin/end of
sarcomere
M line: myosin only

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ACTIN

MYOSIN

28

Myofilaments
Thin Filaments
Made of actin
Have troponin &
tropomyosin
Tropomyosin held
together by troponin
molecule = a troponin
tropomyosin complex

Thick Filaments
Made of myosin
Cross bridge
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aNATOMY & pHYSIOLOGY

MUSCLE CONTRACTION

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Neuromuscular Junction

site where axon and

muscle fiber communicate
motor neuron
motor end plate
synaptic cleft
synaptic vesicles
acetylcholine (ACh) 31

Motor Unit
single motor neuron
all muscle fibers controlled by a single motor neuron

32

Motor Neurons

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Stimulus for Contraction

acetylcholine (ACh)
nerve impulse causes release
of acetylcholine from synaptic
vesicles
acetylcholine binds to
receptors on motor end plate
generates a muscle impulse
muscle impulse eventually
reaches sarcoplasmic
reticulum

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35

Nerve trigger of muscle action

Nerve signal travels
down T-tubule
stimulates
sarcoplasmic
reticulum (SR) of
muscle cell to
release stored Ca2+
flooding muscle fibers
with Ca2+

Ca2+ triggers muscle action

At rest, tropomyosin blocks
myosin-binding sites on
actin
secured by troponin

Ca2+ binds to troponin

shape change
causes movement
of troponin
releasing tropomyosin

exposes myosin-binding
sites on actin

How Ca2+ controls muscle

Sliding filament model
exposed actin binds to
myosin
fibers slide past each
other
ratchet system

shorten muscle cell

muscle contraction

muscle doesnt relax

until Ca2+ is pumped
back into SR
requires ATP

ATP

ATP

Relaxation
Acetylcholinesterase on motor end plate
decomposes acetylcholine prevents nerve
impulse from stimulating muscle fiber
Ca2+ pump moves Ca2+ back into sarcoplasmic
reticulum, decreasing Ca2+ concentration
Cross-bridge links break
Tropomyosin rolls back into its groove and muscle
relaxes
Inhibitors in insecticides cause build up of Ach twitching
Nerve gas stimulates enzyme so muscles dont 39
contract

Put it all together

2
3
ATP

7
4

ATP

How it all works

Action potential causes Ca2+ release from SR
Ca2+ binds to troponin

Troponin moves tropomyosin uncovering myosin binding

site on actin
Myosin binds actin
ATP
uses ATP to "ratchet" each time
releases, "unratchets" & binds to next actin

Myosin pulls actin chain along

Sarcomere shortens
Z discs move closer together

Whole fiber shortens contraction!

Ca2+ pumps restore Ca2+ to SR relaxation!
pumps use ATP

ATP

Muscle limits
Muscle fatigue
lack of sugar
lack of ATP to restore Ca2+ gradient

low O2
lactic acid drops pH which
interferes with protein function

synaptic fatigue
loss of acetylcholine

Muscle cramps
build up of lactic acid
ATP depletion
ion imbalance
massage or stretching
increases circulation

Slides 42-48 Using Diagrams

from the Textbook

43

Excitation Contraction Coupling

muscle impulses cause
sarcoplasmic reticulum to
release calcium ions into
cytosol
calcium binds to troponin to
cause a shape change
position of tropomyosin is
altered
binding sites on actin
exposed
actin and myosin bind

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45

46

Cross-bridge Cycling
actin and myosin
cross-bridge bind
myosin crossbridge pulls actin
ADP and phosphate
released from myosin
new ATP binds to
myosin
linkage between actin
and myosin cross-bridge
break
ATP splits
myosin cross-bridge goes back
to original position

47

Sliding Filament Theory

When sarcromeres
shorten, thick and thin
filaments slide past one
another
H zones and I bands get
narrower
Z lines move closer
together

48

Heat Production
by-product of cellular respiration
muscle cells are major source of body heat
blood transports heat throughout body

49

Muscular Responses
Threshold Stimulus
minimal neural strength required to cause
contraction
Recording a Muscle
Contraction
twitch
latent period
period of contraction
period of relaxation
refractory period
all-or-none response
50

Summation
process by which individual twitches combine
produces sustained contractions
can lead to tetanic contractions

51

Recruitment of Motor Units

recruitment - increase in the number of motor units
activated
whole muscle composed of many motor units
as intensity of stimulation increases, recruitment of
motor units continues until all motor units are
activated

52

Sustained Contractions
smaller motor units recruited first
larger motor units recruited later
produces smooth movements
muscle tone continuous state of partial contraction

53

Types of Contractions
isotonic muscle contracts and
changes length
eccentric lengthening
contraction

concentric shortening contraction

isometric muscle contracts but
does not change length

54

Botox
Bacteria Clostridium botulinum toxin
blocks release of acetylcholine
botulism can be fatal

muscle

Rigor mortis
So why are dead people stiffs?
no life, no breathing
no breathing, no O2
no O2, no aerobic respiration
no aerobic respiration, no ATP
2+ pumps
no ATP, no Ca
2+ stays in muscle cytoplasm
Ca
muscle fibers continually
contract

tetany or rigor mortis

eventually tissues breakdown

& relax
measure of time of death

ENERGY SOURCES FOR

MUSCLE CONTRACTION
57

 ATP = Energy to drive

contractions
Muscle fiber has
enough to contract
briefly
ATP must be
regenerated in active
muscle

58

Creatine Phosphate

Can regenerate ATP from ADP

Has high E phosphate bond
4-6X more abundant in muscle fiber
Cannot directly supply E, just stores E
released from mitochondria
Enough ATP? Then creatine phospokinase
promotes synthesis of creatine phosphate as
a storage container for extra E
ATP usedthen E transfer from creatine
phosphate phosphorylates ADP to ATP
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However.
Amount of creatine &
ATP in skeletal
muscle is not enough
to support max.
activity more than 10
sec.
Somuscle cells in
active muscle us CR
of glucose to make
ATP
Muscle usually stores
glucose as glycogen
60

Oxygen Supply & CR

Glycolysis

In cytoplasm
Anaerobic
Splits sugar
Release few ATP
Continues into
Mitochondria w/citric
acid cycle & ETC to
make many ATP

Blood carries O to
support rxns of CR
RBCs bound to
hemoglobin
Contains myoglobin
Big O attraction
Can store O, reducing
requirement for
continual blood supply
Blood flow usually
decreases in high
activity
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Oxygen Debt
At rest or moderate activity cardio & resp
systems supply enough O to support CR
Buthighly [Link] enough O to
sustain rxns of CR
Anaerobic threshold = lactic acid threshold
Glucose pyruvic acid lactic acid
Lactic acid diffuses out muscles to blood to
liver
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 Liver can convert lactic acid to glucose, but

needs ATP.
O is used to make ATP for muscle
contraction rather than ATP to react
w/lactic acid
[Link] lactic acid builds up a
person builds up an oxygen debt to pay
back
Oxygen debt = amount of O that liver cells
require to convert lactic acid to glucose +
amount of muscle cells require to
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resynthesize ATP & creatine phosphate

Oxygen debt

The good news.

The more you exercise, the
more mitochondria,
capillaries & glycolytic
enzymes you create!

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aNATOMY & pHYSIOLOGY

TYPES OF MUSCLE FIBERS

65

Fast and Slow Twitch

Muscle Fibers
Slow-twitch fibers (type I)
resistant to fatigue
red fibers (myofibrils)
most myoglobin
good blood supply

Fast-twitch glycolytic fibers (type II)

white fibers (less myoglobin)
poorer blood supply
susceptible to fatigue

Fast-twitch fatigueresistant fibers (type IIb)

intermediate fibers
oxidative
intermediate
amount of
myoglobin
pink to red in color

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Different types of muscle fibers

Slow Twitch muscles Type 1
Effective at using oxygen to
generate ATP
Good for extended muscle
contraction over time
Fire slowly, long time before
fatigue
Many mitochondria
ATP production = ATP spent
Long muscles on back
Marathoners, cycling long
distances

Slow Twitch muscles

are dark meat
Myoglobin stores
oxygen very well
Helps when blood
supply decreases due
to activity
gives meat dark color

Known as red muscle

Used for sustained
activity like walking
Leg and thigh meat are
dark

Different types of muscle fibers

Fast twitch Type 2
Two types
Type lla use aerobic &
anaerobic, combo of fast & slow
Type llb - anaerobic

Produce same amount of force

per contraction as slow twitch,
but fire quicker
More SR to store Calcium

Less mitochondria = reduced

respiratory capacity
Faster rate of fatigue
Found in eyes & hands
sprinters

Fast twitch muscles

are white meat
Effective for short
bursts of activity
Short distance flights

Get no to little
exercise
Breast meat of turkey
or chicken

Muscle cells have both types

aNATOMY & pHYSIOLOGY

SMOOTH & CARDIAC

MUSCLES
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Smooth Muscle Fibers

Compared to skeletal muscle fibers
shorter
single nucleus
elongated with tapering ends
myofilaments randomly organized
no striations
lack transverse tubules
sarcoplasmic reticula not well developed

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Types of Smooth Muscle

Visceral Smooth Muscle
single-unit smooth muscle
sheets of muscle fibers
fibers held together by gap
junctions
exhibit rhythmicity
exhibit peristalsis
walls of most hollow organs

Multiunit Smooth Muscle

fibers function separately
irises of eye
walls of blood vessels

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Smooth Muscle Contraction

Resembles skeletal muscle contraction
interaction between actin and myosin
both use calcium and ATP
both depend on impulses

Different from skeletal muscle contraction

smooth muscle lacks troponin
smooth muscle depends on calmodulin
two neurotransmitters affect smooth muscle
acetlycholine and norepinephrine
hormones affect smooth muscle
stretching can trigger smooth muscle contraction
smooth muscle slower to contract and relax
smooth muscle more resistant to fatigue
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Cardiac Muscle
only in the heart
muscle fibers joined together by intercalated discs
fibers branch
network of fibers contracts as a unit
self-exciting and rhythmic
longer refractory period than skeletal muscle

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Life-Span Changes
Myoglobin, ATP, and creatine phosphate
decline.
By age 80, half the muscle mass has
atrophied.
Adipose cells and CT replace muscle tissue.
Exercise helps maintain muscle mass and
function.
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