t.p.

MUSCULAR SYSTEM

MAJOR FUNCTIONS:
1. Movement of the body
Ex. Contraction of skeletal muscle
- overall movements of the body (walking,
running)
2. Maintenance of Posture
Ex. Skeletal Muscle
-maintain tone
3. Respiration
Ex. Muscles of thorax
4. Production of Body Heat
Ex. Contraction of sk. muscles
-heat =>Byproduct
5. Communication
Ex. Speaking, writing, typing
6. Constrictions of organs and vessels
Ex. Contraction of sm. muscles
7. Contraction of the heart
Ex. Cardiac Muscle
-propel blood to all parts of body

SKELETAL MUSCLE
With its associated connective tissues,
constitutes approximately 40% of body weight
Most muscles are attached to the skeletal
Also called STRIATED MUSCLE =>transverse
bands, or striations is seen

FOUR MAJOR FUNCTIONAL CHARACTERISTICS:
1. CONTRACTILITY
- Ability of skeletal muscle to SHORTEN
with force
- Either GRAVITY or CONTRACTION OF
OPPOSING MUSCLE produces a force
that pulls on the shortened muscle
causing it to lengthen
2. EXCITABILITY
- Capacity of sk. muscle to RESPOND to a
stimulus
3. EXTENSIBILITY
- Sk. muscle STRETCH
- After a contraction, sk. muscle can be
stretched to their normal resting
length
4. ELASTICITY
- Ability of sk. muscle to RECOIL to their original
resting length after being stretched.

SKELETAL MUSCLE STRUCTURES
CONNECTIVE TISSUE COVERINGS OF MUSCLE
EPIMYSIUM/ MUSCULAR FASCIA connective
tissue sheath that surrounds each sk. muscle
MUSCLE FASCICULI numerous visible bundles
that composes a muscle
PERIMYSIUM loose connective tissue w/c
surrounds muscle fasciculi
MUSLE FIBERS several muscles that composes
a fasciculus
ENDOMYSIUM loose connective tissue w/c
surrounds muscle fiber

MUSCLE FIBER STRUCTURE
MUSCLE FIBER
- A single cylindrical fiber with several nuclei
located at its periphery
- LARGEST HUMAN MUSCLE FIBERS => 30 cm
long / 0.15 mm in diameter
STRUCTURES:
SARCOLEMMA cell membrane of muscle fiber
TRANSVERSE TUBULES/ T TUBULES tubelike
invaginations along the surface of sarcolemma;
occur at regular intervals along the muscle fiber
& extend inward into it; connect sarcolemma to
sarco. reticulum
SARCOPLASMIC RETICULUM highly organize
smooth e.r.; high conc. Of Ca muscle
contraction
SARCOPLASM cytoplasm in each muscle fiber
o Myofibrils threadlike structures
that extend fr. one end to other
2 kinds of protein fibers:
Actin Myofilaments
-THIN filaments; resembles two
minute strands of pearls twisted
together, have attachment sites for
the myosin myofilaments
- 3 components:
1. Actin
2. Troponin
- attached at spec. intervals along
the actin myofilaments
-have binding sites for Ca
3. Tropomyosin
-located along the groove bet.
the twisted strands of actin
myofilaments subunits
-block the myosin myofilament
binding sites ont the actin
myofilaments
t.p.

Myosin Myofilaments
-THICK myofilaments, resemble
bundles of minute golf clubs.
o MYOSIN HEADS parts of
myosin molecule that resemble
golf club heads
3 IMPORTANT PROPERTIES:
1. Can bind to attachment
sites on actin myofilaments
2. Can bend and straighten
during contraction
3. Can break down ATP;
releasing energy

Actin and Myosin are arranged into
highly ordered, repeating units called
SARCOMERES joined end to end to
form the myofibrils.


SARCOMERES
-Basic structural and functional unit of sk. muscle
-smallest portion of sk. m. that is capable of contracting
-extends from one Z disk to another Z disk

Z Disk
-network of protein fibers forming an attachment site
for actin myofilaments

Light I Band
-consist only of actin myofilaments
-span each Z disk and ends of myosin myofilaments

A Band
-darker, central region in each sarcomere
-extends the length of the myosin myofilaments

H Zone
-second light zone, center of sarcomere
-consist only oy myosin myofilaments

M Line
-dark-staining band w/c anchors myosin myofilaments
at center of sarcomere

EXCITABILITY OF MUSCLE FIBERS

POLARIZED
-inside of most cell membranes is negatively charged
compared to the outside of cell membrane

RESTING MEMBRANE POTENTIAL
-charge difference
-occurs because there is an uneven distributions of ions
across cell membrane.
3 REASON WHY IT DEVELOPS:
1. Conc. of K+ is inside the cell membrane is higher
than that of the outside of the cell memb.
2. Concentration NA+ outside the cell memb. is
higher than that the inside cell memb.
3. Cell membrane is more permeable to K+ thn it
is to Na+

(READ p. 154)

DEPOLARIZATION
-Na+ channels are open. Na+ diffuses down its
concentration gradient through the open Na+ channels,
making the inside of the cell memb. positively charged
compared to the outside.

REPOLARIZATION
-The change back to the resting membrane potential
- Na+ channels are closed and, Na+ movement into the
cells stops. More K+ channels open. K+ movement out
of the cell increases, making the inside cell memb.
negatively charged compared to the outside

ACTION POTENTIAL
-Rapid depolarization and repolarization of the cell
membrane
-in a muscle fiber muscle contraction

NERVE SUPPLY
Motor Neurons
-specialized nerve cells that stimulate muscles to
contract
-generate action potential

Neuromuscular Junction
-junction with a muscle fiber
-near center of muscle fiber

Synapse
-cell-to-cell junction between a nerve cell and either
another nerve cell or an effector cell ( muscle,
gland)

Motor Unit
-single motor neuron & all the skeletal muscle fibers
it innervates
t.p.
-small, precisely controlled muscle
e.g.
hand -may have one or few muscle fibers per units
large thigh muscles- 1000 muscle fibers per motor
unit
** the fewer fibers in motor unit, the greater control
over that muscle.

Presynaptic Terminal
-enlarged axon terminal

Synaptic Cleft
-space between presynaptic terminal and muscle
fiber membrane

Postsynaptic Membrane
-muscle fiber membrane

Synaptic Vesicles
-small vesicles in each presynaptic terminal
-contains actylcholine (Ach) neurotransmitter

Neurotransmitter
-molecule release by presynaptic nerve cell
-stimulates or inhibits postsynaptic cell

** acetylcholine is broken down by an enzyme called
acteylcholinesterase

MUSCLE CONTRACTION
**occurs as actin and myosin slide past each other

Sliding Filament Model
-sliding of actin myofilaments past myosin myofilaments

**CONTRACTION
-neither actin nor myosin shortens
-H zones and I bands shorten
-A bands dont change in length
**RELAXATION
-sarcomeres lengthen

Muscle Twitch
-contraction of muscle fiber in response to a
stimulus
-usually involves all the muscle fibersin a motor unit
3 PHASES:
1. Lag Phase (Latent Phase)
-time between the application of a stimulus
and the beginning of contraction
-action potentials are produced in one or
more motor neurons

2. Contraction Phase
-time during w/c the muscle contracts
-results from cross-bridge movement and
cycling w/c increases the tension produced
by the muscle fibers.

3. Relaxation Phase
-time during w/c the muscle relaxes
-Ca
2+
is actively transported back to
sarcoplasmic reticulum
-cross-bridge prevented; tension decreases

Tetanus
-sustained contraction that occurs when frequency
of stimulation is so rapid that no relaxation occurs.
- occurs because Ca
2+
builds up in myofibrils

Recruitment
-number of muscle fibers contracting is increased by
increasing the number of motor units stimulated,
and the muscle contracts with more force.