A & P of Skeletal Muscles Flashcards
Skeletal muscles cells are usually called what?
Fibers
Skeletal muscle cells are usually what size and shape?
small and long - up to several inches
How many nuclei can one large fiber have?
100+
Where are all nuclei located in a fiber?
on the outer edge of the cell, just under the cell membrane
- Muscle cell membrane
Sarcolemma
- Hundreds or thousands make up most of the volume of skeletal muscle fiber
- Packed together lengthwise
- Composed of thousands of even tinier protein filaments
- Mitochondria between produce energy
Myofibril
o On the myofibrils, storage organelle for calcium ions
Sarcoplasmic reticulum
o System of tubules that extend inward from the sarcolemma (muscle cell membrane)
- Transverse tubules or T-tubules
o Large light-colored bands made up of the thin actin filaments
o Extends from one end of myosin filaments in one sarcomere across the Z line to the beginning of the myosin fibers in the next sarcomere
I Bands
o In the center of the I band
o Attachment site for actin filaments
o Disc on each end of the sarcomere
Z Line or Z Disc
o Between the I bands
o Where myosin and actin overlap
A Bands
o In the middle of the A band
o Made of all myosin, no overlapping actin
o Doesn’t always cover the entire width of the myosin
H Bands
- Series of protein filaments from the myofibril that make up the contractile units of muscle cells
Sarcomere
Many sarcomeres laid end to end make up one what?
Myofibril
o Sarcomeres share ______ so there is one common _______ between adjacent sarcomeres
Z disc
o Thin protein filaments that connect to the Z lines and extend toward the center of the sarcomere, but don’t meet
Actin
o Thick protein filaments that float in the middle of the sarcomere, between parallel actin fibers
o Don’t connect to Z lines
Myosin
Twisted tail on the end of the myosin molecule that is attached to two globular heads
Interact with actin to shorten the sarcomere during muscle contraction
Cross bridges
o Sites where the ends of motor nerve fibers connect to muscle fibers
- Neuromuscular Junction
Exists between the end of the nerve fiber and the sarcolemma
o Synaptic space
Tiny sacs within the end of a nerve fiber in a neuromuscular junction
o Synaptic vesicles
Chemical neurotransmitter
Released when a nerve impulse comes down the motor nerve fiber
Quickly diffuses across the synaptic space and binds to receptors on the sarcolemma
Effect on receptor is very short
o Acetylcholine
One nerve fiber and all the muscle fibers it innervates
motor unit
Muscles for very small, delicate movements (eye muscles) have how many muscle fibers per motor unit?
only a few
Large, powerful muscles (leg muscles) have how many muscle fibers per motor unit?
hundreds or more