Muscle Spindles Flashcards
How many spindles are in a muscle?
40 - 60.
How long are the muscle spindles?
4 - 10 mm.
What are intrafusal fibers?
- Skeletal muscle fibers innervated by gamma motor neurons within a sheet of collagen (collagen is fusal shaped)
What are the 2 general types of intrafusal fibers?
- Nuclear bag
- Nuclear chain
Which general type of intrafusal muscle fiber is larger?
- Nuclear bag is twice the length and diameter of chains
How long is each general type of intrafusal muscle fiber>
- Bag 8mm
- Chain 4mm
What are extrafusal muscle fibers?
Normal skeletal muscle
To which type of muscle fiber does more than half the innervation go to?
Intrafusal.
How are the muscle spindle fibers oriented?
In parallel to extrafusal
Which portion of the intrafusal fibers is the receptor portion of the spindle? Which is the muscular portion?
- Middle is receptor
- Outer portions are muscle
Why are nuclear bag fibers termed as such?
The collection of nuclei in the middle make the fiber bulge outwards.
What is the term for the afferent nerve fiber that wraps around the nuclear portion of the intrafusal muscle fibers?
- Anulospiral ending
What is the name of afferent nerve fiber that innervates the outer/ muscular portion of the muscle spindle?
- Flower spray fiber
What type of sensory information do the anulospiral endings collect?
- Muscle length
- Rate of muscle length change
What type of sensory information do the flower spray fibers collect?
- Tonic/ muscle length information
What are the 2 types of nuclear bag fibers?
- Dynamic bag
- Static bag
What is the difference between the dynamic and static nuclear bag fibers?
- Dynamic bag responds to rapid changes in muscle length
- Static bag and chains respond to slow stead changes in muscle length
Are chain fibers tonic or phasic?
Tonic.
What efferent innervation is there to the dynamic nuclear bag fiber?
- Dynamic beta and gamma fibers
What efferent innervation is there to the static nuclear bag fiber?
- Static gamma
What is the function of the efferent fibers to the muscle spindle?
To change the length of the muscle spindle and take up, or let loose slack in the spindle.
Do type II sensory afferents have tonic or phasic components?
Only tonic