Unit 2 - Muscular System Flashcards
types of muscle
skeletal
cardiac
smooth
myo = muscle
sarco = muscle cells
muscle tissue makeup
made of muscle cells (AKA ‘fibers’ due to elongated shape)
cells made of microfilaments
microfilaments made of actin and myosin
muscle cells can’t divide, destroyed ones can’t be replaced
use changes volume and structure of cells
3 types of muscle tissue
skeletal: meat. voluntary
smooth: eyes, lungs, GIT, bladder, vessels, reproductive. involuntary
cardiac: heart only. involuntary
muscle classified by…
- appearance (striated/non under microscope)
- location
- method of control (voluntary/involuntary)
muscle function
motion
posture
regulate organ volume
produce heat
muscle contraction
- occurs by interaction of special protein fibers
- produces movement and heat
ONLY thing a muscle does! contract when stimualted, which then produces movement, heat, or posture
usually done in groups with certain muscles stabilizing others movement
4 muscle characteristics
- excitability (ability of cell to respond to neurotransmitters or hormones by producing electrical signals called action potentials)
- contractability (ability of cells to shorten)
- extensibility (stretch without damage)
- elasticity (return to original shape)
skeletal muscle
APPEARANCE:
cylindrical fibers (cells) with peripheral nuclei
light and dark bands under microscope (striated)
LOCATION: attached to bone, makes up ‘meat’ when paired with associated CT
FUNCTION:
motion
posture
heat
TRAITS
voluntary, controlled by somatic nervous system
each cell has its own nerve supply
can’t divide
all-or-none contraction
force of contraction depends on state before stimulation (fatigued? warmed up?)
skeletal muscle makeup
composed of:
- belly (main mass, contracting portion)
- 2+ attachments (tendon, aponeuroses, or direct)
- tendon: bundle of CT attaching muscle to bone
- aponeuroses: broad CT sheet b/w broad + flat
muscles (eg. linea alba)
- direct: muscle to bone without visible CT (eg.
intercostal)
- surrounding fibrous CT
skeletal attachments
- origin: stationary end, usually proximal end (some muscles have multiple heads (triceps brachii has 3) and therefore multiple origins)
- insertion: movable end, usually distal
eg. triceps brachii origin: humerus, scapula
insertion: olecranon
muscle actions
- agonist (prime mover)
- directly produce desired movement - antagonist
- directly opposes agonist
- ‘smooths out’ movement or prevents movement - synergist: contract at the same time as prime mover, assists
- fixator: stabilize joints
muscle naming conventions
- action (eg. flexor muscles flex)
- shape (eg. deltoid triagular)
- location (eg. biceps brachii on brachium, biceps femoris on femur)
- direction of fibers (eg. rectus = straight)
- number of heads (-cep = head. bicep = 2 heads)
- attachment sites (brachiocephalicus attached at brachium)
functional groupings of muscle
extrinsic: connect limb to axial skeleton
intrinsic: extend between bones
- flexors: side of limb joint bends towards
- extensors: opposite flexors (contraction will increase joint angle)
- adductors: towards median
- abductors: away from median
- sphincters: surround an opening
- cutaneous: superficial, attached to skin, cause twitches (‘cutaneous trunci’) eg. fly shoo on horse
skeletal microanatomy
composed of CT and muscle cells
CT:
1. endomysium: fine reticular fibers surrounding each cell
2. perimysium: tough, bind bundles of muscle cells (‘fascicles’)
3. epimysium: tough, collagen, binds groups of fascicles (covers muscle itself)
- all 3 layers continuous with tendons and aponeuroses. create strong attachment to skeleton. provide blood, nerves, adipose (‘marbling’ in muscle)
muscle cells:
- long and thin (25mm per cell)
- multinuclear (up to 100 nuclei on periphery)
- filled with myofibrils which give striation (made of packed myofilaments made of thin actin + thick myosin filaments [in groups called sarcomeres])
- many mitochondria for energy
- large network of endoplasmic reticulum (sarcoplasmic reticulum)
- system of transverse tubules extend into cell from sarcolemma to help transmit nerve impulses
how muscles move
Ca ions pumped from sarcoplasmic reticulum into sarcoplasm, initiates contraction
Ca ions from sarcoplasm into sarcoplasmic reticulum = relaxation
- both steps need ATP (from mitochondria)
neuromuscular junction
point where motor nerve links to muscle fiber
not direct, small gap (synaptic space)
NERVE IMPULSE:
impulse travels down nerve -> massive exocytosis of nerve cells vesicles (‘synaptic vesicles’, contain neurotransmitter)
acetylcholine diffuses across synaptic space and binds receptors on ‘motor end plate’ of sarcolemma to start contraction (while this happens, enzyme ‘acetylcholinesterase’ destroys acetylcholine in space)
*if nerve is destroyed, cells no longer contract and rapidly atrophy