Muscles Flashcards
How many muscles are there in the body
Approx 640 muscles
What is the strongest muscle?
The masseter (i.e. jaw)
What is the largest muscle?
The gluteus maximus
What is the smallest muscle
Stapedius muscle
What are the main roles of muscles
Allow for movement of the body, bones, food, blood and fluids
Responsible for energy metabolism and storage (glycolysis)
Thermoregulation (creates body heat)
What are the four basic properties of muscle
Contractility
Excitability
Extensibility
Elasticity
What is contractility
Ability of muscle to shorten with a force. It requires energy and relaxes passively
What is excitability
Capacity of muscle to respond to stimulation (nerves) - electrical stimulation
What is extensibility
Muscle can be stretched to its normal resting rate and beyond to a limited degree
What is elasticity
Muscles return or recoil to resting position when relaxed
What % of body mass is skeletal muscle for men compared to women
men = 40%
women = 30%
Does muscle mass decrease with agr
Yes it decreases, leading to sacropenia (involuntary loss of skeletal muscle) and ultimately loss of physical capacity
How do muscles function (basic)
They function by performing opposing actions (agonist and antagonist)
What does the agonist do
Agonist causes movement
What does the antagonist do
Antagonist provides opposite movement to agonist
What are the 3 different types of muscles
Skeletal
Cardiac (myocardium)
Smooth
What is skeletal muscle
Muscle attached to skeleton - its responsible for voluntary movement
What is cardiac muscle?
Forms the heart, which is also responsible for pumping blood, and it is ultimately an involuntary movement
What is smooth muscle?
Located in tissues and is responsible for controlling diameter of structures and peristalsis (involuntary constriction and relaxation of muscles, causing wave like movement that pushes contents forward in the gut)
Explain the structure of muscle fibers (in terms of ascending size)
Sarcomeres –> myofibril –> muscle fibre –> muscle bundle –> muscle
What are sarcomeres made up of?
Made up of actin and myosin filaments
What are actin filaments
These are the thin contractile filaments compared to myosin