Muscles & Skin Flashcards
What are the muscular system functions?
Body movement (locomotion) Maintenance of posture Heart beat Respiration Vasoconstriction
What are skeletal muscles attached to?
Bones
What are skeletal muscles responsible for?
Locomotion, facial expression, posture, respiratory movements + body movement
What are skeletal muscles controlled by?
Somatic motor neurons
Are skeletal muscles voluntary in action?
YES
What are the cardiac muscles controlled by?
Involuntarily controlled by endocrine + autonomic nervous system
Where are smooth muscles found?
Hollow organs, blood vessels, eyes, uterus + skin
What are some functions of smooth muscles?
Propel urine, mix food in digestive tract, dilating/constricting pupils + regulating blood flow
What are smooth muscles controlled by?
Involuntarily by endocrine + autonomic nervous systems
What is a muscle?
Soft tissue which cells are rich in actin + myosin that slide past one another, producing contraction
What is a syncytium?
Multinucleated cell that can result from multiple cell functions of uninuclear cells
What is an example of a structural syncytium?
Skeletal muscle
What is an example of a functional syncytium?
Cardiac or smooth muscle
Describe the structure of myofiber
Membrane = sarcolemma T-tubules Multinucleated Myofibrils assembled into myofibers Fibres surrounded + bundled by connective tissue
Describe structure of cardiomyocyte
Single centrally located nucleus Branching structure Mitochondria Abundant reserve of myoglobin Each cell in contact with adjacent cells
Why do cardiomyocytes have a large reserve of myoglobin?
To store O2
Why do cardiomyocytes have each cell in contact with adjacent cells?
Have membrane modification to increase SA
What are electrical coupling (intercalated discs)?
Specialised intracellular attachment of cardiac muscle cells compromising gap junctions
What are gap junctions?
Intracellular channels that allow for direct chemical communication between adjacent cells through diffusion of ions + small molecules without contact with extracellular fluids
What are desmosomes?
Fasteners through plasma membrane of adjacent cells by means of intermediate filaments, compassed of keratin or desmin to form dense plaque
What is a sacromere?
Repeating functional unit of myofibrils or cardiomyocyte
What is A-band (dark) made up of?
Thick myosin filament
What is the I-band (light)?
From Z discs to end of thick filaments
What is the M line?
Protein which thick filaments attach
What is the H-zone?
Thick filaments with NO thin
What are the Z discs?
Filamentous network of protein, attaches actin filament
What are thin filaments?
Elastic chains of polypeptides
Describe myosin
Thick, fibrillar protein
Describe actin
Thin, globular protein
What colour is a slow twitch muscle?
Red
What colour is a fast twitch muscle?
White
What is the density of capillaries in slow twitch fibres?
High
What is the density of capillaries in fast twitch fibres?
Low