Topic 7 Flashcards
What attaches skeletal muscle to bones?
Tendons
What attaches bones to other bones?
Ligaments
What is an antagonistic pair?
Muscles that work together to move a bone
How does an arm bend?
Biceps contracts, triceps relax.
This pulls the bone so arm flexes (bends)
What is a flexor?
A muscle that bends a joint when contracts
How does an arm straighten?
Triceps contract, biceps relax.
This pulls the bone so arm extends (straightens)
What is an extensor?
A muscle that straightens a joint when contracts
What is skeletal muscle made up of?
Large bundles of long cells called muscle fibres
What is the cell membrane of muscle fibre cells called?
Sarcolemma
What are Transverse (T) tubules?
Parts of the Sarcolemma fold inwards across muscle fibre and stick into the sarcoplasm.
They help spread electrical impulses throughout the sarcoplasm so they reach all parts of the muscle fibre.
What is the sarcoplasmic reticulum?
A network of internal membranes that runs through the sarcoplasm.
It stores and releases calcium ions for muscle contraction.
What does multinucleate mean?
Contains many nuclei
What are myofibrils?
Long, cylindrical organelles.
Made up of proteins and are highly specialised for contraction.
What do myofibrils contain?
Thick myosin filaments and thin actin filaments
What are sarcomeres?
Short units in a myofibril
What is an A-band?
Dark bands that show up on an electron microscope as a result of the thick myosin filaments and some overlapping the thin actin filaments
What is an I-band?
Light bands that show up on an electron microscope as a result of the thin actin filaments
What is a Z-band?
The ends of each sarcomere are marked with Z-lines
What is the M-line?
The middle of each sarcomere, in the middle of the myosin filaments
What is the H-zone?
Around the M-line, contains only myosin filaments
How does a muscle contract?
Myosin and actin filaments slide over each other to make sarcomeres contract.
Myofilaments themselves don’t contract .
Myosin and actin molecules stay the same length.
Simultaneous contraction of lots of sarcomeres means myofibrils and muscle fibres contract.
Describe myosin filaments.
- Globular heads that are hinged so can move back and forth
- Each head has a binding site for actin and a binding site for ATP
Describe actin filaments.
- Binding sites for myosin heads called actin-myosin binding sites.
- Two other proteins called tropomyosin and troponin are found between filaments.
- These proteins are attached to each other and they help myofilaments move past each other
Describe the binding sites on myofilaments in a resting muscle.
- Actin-myosin binding site is blocked by tropomyosin, which is held in place by troponin
- Myofilaments can’t slide past each other because myosin heads can’t bind
Describe muscle contraction.
1) An action potential from a motor neurone stimulates a muscle cell and depolarises the sarcolemma.
2) Depolarisation spreads down the T-tubules to the sarcoplasmic reticulum
3) This causes sarcoplasmic reticulum to release stored calcium ions into the sarcoplasm.
4) Calcium ions bind to troponin, causing it to change shape which pulls the attached tropomyosin out of the actin-myosin binding site on the actin filament.
5) Binding site is now exposed so myosin head binds.
6) Bond formed when myosin head binds to actin filament called actin-myosin cross bridge.
7) Calcium ions also activate the enzyme ATPase which breaks down ATP into ADP and Pi to provide energy needed for muscle contraction.
8) Energy released from ATP moves myosin head which pulls the actin filament along in a rowing action.
9) ATP also provides energy to break the actin-myosin cross bridge so myosin head detaches from the actin after its moved.
10) Myosin head reattaches to different binding site further along the actin - new actin-myosin cross bridge is formed and cycle is repeated.
11) Many cross bridges form and break very rapidly pulling the actin filament along which shorten the sarcomere causing muscle contraction.
12) Cycle will continue as long as calcium ions are present and bound to troponin.
What causes muscle contraction to stop?
When excitation stops and the muscle stops being stimulated, calcium ions leave their binding sites on troponin molecules.
Calcium ions are moved by active transport back into the sarcoplasmic reticulum using ATP.
Troponin molecules return to their original shape, pulling the attached tropomyosin molecules with them so binding site is blocked.
Actin filaments slide back to their relaxed position which lengths the sarcomere.
Describe slow twitch muscle fibres.
1) Contract slowly
2) Good for endurance activities
3) Many mitochondria
4) Little sarcoplasmic reticulum
5) Low glycogen content
6) Numerous capillaries
7) Doesn’t fatigue quickly
8) Red (lots of myoglobin)
9) Aerobic respiration
Describe fast twitch muscle fibres.
1) White (little myoglobin)
2) Few mitochondria
3) Extensive sarcoplasmic reticulum
4) High glycogen content
5) Few capillaries
6) Fatigue quickly
7) Contract quickly
8) Anaerobic respiration
What are the reactions involved in aerobic respiration called?
Glycolysis
The link reaction
the Krebs cycle
Oxidative phosphorylation
What is a metabolic pathway?
A linked series of chemical reactions occurring within a cell
What is the energy produced in aerobic respiration used for?
Phosphorylate ADP to ATP
Where does glycolysis take place?
Cytoplasm
Where does the Link reaction, Krebs cycle and oxidative phosphorylation take place?
Mitochondria
What catalyses the aerobic respiration reactions?
Specific intracellular enzymes
Coenzymes
What is the enzyme with the slowest activity called?
Rate limiting - determines the overall rate of repsiration
What are the coenzymes used in respiration called?
NAD and FAD - transfer hydrogen form one molecule to another so they reduce or oxidise a molecule.
Coenzyme A - transfers acetate between molecules.
Describe Glycolysis (5)
1) Glucose (6C) is phosphorylated by adding 2 phosphates from 2 molecules of ATP, increasing reactivity of glucose
2) This creates 2 molecules of triose phosphate (3C)and 2 molecules of ADP
3) Triose phosphate is oxidised, forming 2 molecules of pyruvate (3C)
4) NAD removes hydrogen ions, forming 2 reduced NAD
5) 4 ATP are produced, but 2 were used up in stage 1, so net gain = 2 ATP
Why is glycolysis a substrate-level phosphorylation?
Energy for the formation of ATP comes from the substrates as glucose is at a higher energy level than pyruvates so energy is available to create ATP.
Where do the 2 molecules of reduced NAD and 2 pyruvate molecules produced in glycolysis go?
2 reduced NAD - used for oxidative phosphorylation
2 pyruvate molecules - matrix of mitochondria for link reaction
Describe the Link Reaction (5)
1) Pyruvate is decarboxylated - one carbon atom is removed from pyruvate in the form of CO2
2) NAD is reduced - collects 2 hydrogen from pyruvate changing it into acetate
3) Acetate is combined with coenzyme A to form acetyl coenzyme A
4) No ATP is produced
5) This repeats twice for every 1 glucose molecule
Describe the Krebs Cycle (9)
1) Acetyl CoA (2C) from link reaction combines with oxaloacetate (4C) to form citrate (6C)
2) CoA goes back to link reaction
3) Citrate (6C) is converted to 5C molecule - decarboxylation occurs, hydrogen is removed
4) Hydrogen converts NAD to reduced NAD
5) 5C molecule is converted to 4C molecule
6) Decarboxylation and dehydrogenation occur, producing 1 molecule of reduced FAD and 2 reduced NAD
7) ATP is produced by direct transfer of phosphate group from intermediate compound to ADP. When phosphate is directly transferred form one molecule to another, its called substrate-level phosphorylation
8) Citrate has been converted into oxaloacetate
9) This repeats twice for 1 glucose molecule
What are the products of the Krebs cycle and where are they reused?
1 CoA - next link reaction
Oxaloacetate - regenerated for next Krebs cycle
2 CO2 - waste product
1 ATP - energy
3 Reduced NAD - oxidative phosphorylation
1 Reduced FAD - oxidative phosphorylation
Describe Oxidative Phosphorylation (10)
1) Process where energy carried by electrons, from reduced coenzymes (reduced NAD and reduced FAD) is used to make ATP
2) Involves 2 processes - the electron transport chain and chemiosmosis
3) Hydrogen atoms are released from reduced NAD and reduced FAD as they’re oxidised to NAD and FAD
4) H atoms split into protons and electrons
5) Electrons move down electron transport chain losing energy at each carrier
6) Energy is used by electron carriers to pump protons from mitochondrial matrix into intermembrane space
7) Concentration of protons is higher in the intermembrane space than in mitochondrial matrix - forms an electrochemical gradient
8) Protons move down electrochemical gradient back into mitochondrial matrix via enzyme ATP synthase
9) This movement drives synthesis of ATP from ADP and inorganic phosphate - called chemiosmosis
10) In mitochondrial matrix, at end of transport chain, the protons, electrons and O2 combine to form water. Oxygen is the final electron acceptor
How many ATP molecule are made form 1 glucose molecule?
38
How can you measure the rate of respiration?
A respirometer measures the volume of oxygen being taken up in a given time - more oxygen taken up = faster rate of reaction.
1) Set up respirometer
2) Each tube contains potassium hydroxide solution (soda lime) which absorbs carbon dioxide
3) Control tube is set up in exactly the same way as the set tube but without small invertebrates (e.g. woodlice) to make sure results are only due to organisms respiring (it contains bead the same mass as organisms)
4) The syringe is used to set the fluid in the manometer to a known level
5) Apparatus is left for set period of time
6) There will be a decrease in the volume of air in the test tube due to oxygen consumption, CO2 is absorbed by soda lime
7) Decrease in volume of air will reduce pressure in the tube and cause the coloured liquid in the manometer to move towards the test tube
8) Distance moved by the liquid in a given time is measured -this value can be used to calculate volume of oxygen taken in per min
9) Any variables that could affect results are controlled (e.g. temperature, volume of soda lime)