Motor units, muscle spindles, golgi tendon organs and joint receptors Flashcards
What does the somatic motor system consist of?
- Skeletal muscles + elements of the nervous system controlling them.
What is the neural element of the motor system comprised of?
- Upper motor neurones within the brain.
- Lower motor neurones with soma within the brain stem and ventral horn of the spinal cord.
UMNs supply input to LMNs to modulate what?
LMN activity.
LMNs receive input from UMNs and what else?
- Proprioceptors.
- Interneurons.
LMNs command what?
Muscle contraction.
LMNs form what pathway?
The “final common pathway”.
LMNs comprise what?
- Alpha motor neurones.
- Gamma motor neurones.
What is the function of alpha motor neurones of LMNs?
Innervate most fibres that generate force within a muscle.
What is the function of gamma motor neurones of LMNs?
Innervate the muscle spindle - a sensory organ within the muscle.
Biceps brachii and brachialis may be described as?
Synergists.
Triceps brachii and anconeous may be described as?
Synergistic muscles.
Biceps brachii and brachialis work as what?
Flexors of the elbow.
Triceps brachii and anconeus work as what?
Extensors of the elbow.
Axial muscles control movement of the what?
Trunk.
What is the function of axial muscles?
To maintain posture.
Where are proximal muscles found?
- Shoulder.
- Elbow.
- Pelvis.
- knee.
What is the function of proximal muscles?
To mediate locomotion.
Distal muscles move what?
- Hands.
- Feet.
- Digits (allow fine manipulation of objects).
Axons of LMNs exit the spinal cord via?
Ventral roots or cranial nerves.
Each ventral root joins with a dorsal root to form what?
A mixed spinal nerve.
A mixed spinal nerve composed of both a dorsal and ventral root contains what fibres?
- Sensory fibres.
- Motor fibres.
Motor neurones/motoneurones belong to a what?
A spinal segment.
How are motor neurones distributed in the spinal cord?
Unequally.
Where are the greatest numbers of motor neurones found in the spinal cord?
- Cervical enlargement (C3-T1).
- Lumbar enlargement (L1-S3).
At what spinal levels is the cervical enlargement found?
C3-T1.
At what spinal levels is the lumbar enlargement found?
L1-S3.
The cervical enlargement mostly supplies what?
The arm.
The lumbar enlargement mostly supplies what?
The leg.
Motor neurones innervating distal and proximal musculature are mainly found in which segments of the spinal cord?
- Cervical.
- Lumbar-sacral.
Motor neurones innervating the axial musculature mainly occur at which segments of the spinal cord?
All levels.
What is a motor unit?
An alpha-motor neuron and all the skeletal muscle fibres it innervated.
What is the smallest functional component of the motor system?
Motor unit.
Collection of alpha-motor neurones innervating a single muscle is termed what?
A motor neurone pool.
Force of muscle contraction is graded by alpha-motor neurones by what two principle mechanisms?
- Frequency of AP discharge of a-motor neurone.
- Recruitment of additional, synergistic motor units.
Describe the “twitch” caused by AP discharge of an alpha-motor neuron.
A rapid sequence of contraction follow by relaxation.
Cell bodies of LMNs show a distinct somatotropic distribution where?
In the ventral horn.
Where are LMNs innervating axial muscles found in relation to those innervating distal muscles?
Medially.
Where are LMNs innervating flexors found in relation to those supplying extensors?
Dorsally.
What three sources of input to an alpha-motor neuron regulate its activity?
- Central terminal of dorsal root ganglion cells whose axons innervate muscle spindles.
- UMNs in the motor cortex and brain stem.
- Spinal interneurones.
Muscle strength is dependent on what?
Neuromuscular activation.
What features of neuromuscular activation impact muscle strength?
- (involved) LMN firing rate.
- Number of LMNs (motor units) innervating a muscle.
- Co-ordinated movement i.e. agonist vs antagonist, integration/control of reflex responses.
Force production by innervated muscle fibres is dependent on what?
- Fibre size (hypertrophy).
- Fibre phenotype (“fast” or “slow” contracting muscle).
A single AP in an alpha-motor neuron causes what?
A muscle fibre to twitch.
Summation of muscle fibre twitches causes what?
- Sustained contraction.
Why does summation of muscle fibre twitches cause sustained contraction?
Increasing number of incoming action potentials.
What is the function of small motor units?
Fine movements e.g. extra-ocular eye muscles.