Muscular System Notes

I. Introduction to the Muscular System

1. Muscles are responsible for…

· Movement of the body

· maintaining posture and body position

· communicating with facial expressions

· & a variety of involuntary functions

2. Tendons attach muscles to bones.

3. Muscles contract, or shorten, pulling on tendons which pull on bones to accomplish

movement at joints.

4. Humans have somewhere between 650 and 700 skeletal muscles.

5. List the 3 types of muscle tissue: Cardiac, Skeletal, and Smooth.

II. Anatomy of the Muscular System

6. Complete these statements about smooth muscle:

· Mostly in walls of hollow, visceral organs

· Involuntary, no striations

· Spindle-shaped cells in sheets or layers

· Very slow, sustained contractions move substances through an organ or along a

tract

7. Smooth muscle is usually arranged in two layers: circular and longitudinal.

8. Complete these statements about cardiac muscle:

 · Found only in the heart

· Involuntary - not under conscious control

· Striations

· Branching chains of cells

· Intercalated discs

· Slow, steady, rhythmic contractions

9. The heart is a muscular organ that pumps or squeezes blood throughout the body. Heart
muscle tissue is called myocardium.

10. Complete these statements about skeletal muscle:

· Attached to bones

· Voluntary - under conscious control

· Striated - appears striped under a microscope

· Single, long, cylindrical, multinucleate cells

· Strong contractions

· May be slow or fast

· Not rhythmic

11. A muscle cell is a muscle fiber.

12. Skeletal muscle fibers are packaged into bundles called fascicles. The organs of the skeletal
system are the skeletal muscles.

13. List the connective tissue wrapping on each of the following structures:

· Muscle fiber – Endomysium

· Bundle of muscle fibers or fascicle – Perimysium

 · Bundle of fascicles or a muscle - Epimysium

14. Epimysia blend into strong, cord-like tendons that attach muscle to bone.

15. List some examples of fascicle arrangements. Circular, Convergent, Unipennate, Parallel,
Bipennate, Parallel fusiform, multipennate.

16. The muscle origin is the attachment to the immovable (or less movable) bone and the
insertion is the attachment to the movable bone. When a muscle contracts, the insertion moves
towards the origin.

17. List some factors that determine the names of skeletal muscles. Direction of the Muscle
Fibers

18. Relative Size

19. Location of the Muscle or its Origin & Insertion

20. Number of Origins

21. Shape

22. Function or Action

23. The biceps brachii muscle is named for two features: "biceps" refers to the fact that it has
two origins and "brachii" refers to the muscle being in the brachial area

24. Most body movements are the result of two or more muscles acting together or against each
other. The prime mover or agonist is the muscle that produces a particular movement and the
antagonist produces the opposite effect on the same bones.
25. For example, the biceps muscle is the prime mover or agonist when flexing the arm and the
triceps is the antagonist.

26. Synergists are muscles that help stabilize a movement by either producing the same
movement or reducing undesirable movements.

27. Fixator muscles stabilize the origin of a prime mover.

28. Complete these statements about the microscopic anatomy of skeletal muscles.

· Each muscle fiber is a cell

· Sarcolemma is the cell membrane

· Fibers are made of myofibrils

· Mitochondria supply energy for contraction

29. Muscle cells are stimulated by electrochemical signals that travel along the sarcolemma.
T-Tubules carry the signal into the fiber and the sarcoplasmic reticulum stores calcium ions
needed for contraction.

30. Myofibrils are long, ribbon-like fibers of a muscle cell composed of threadlike proteins called
myofilaments. The two myofilaments are actin, the thin filament, and myosin, the thick filament.

31. The sarcomere is the functional unit of muscle fibers and it is composed of actin & myosin,
which will bind together during muscle contraction.

32. Myosin molecules have a club-shaped head that will extend toward and bind to actin
molecules. Myosin binding sites on actin are covered by regulatory proteins until calcium ions
are present.

III. Physiology of the Muscular System

33. Irritability is the property of muscle tissue that enables it to receive and respond to a
stimulus. Contractability is the ability to shorten.
34. List the 4 functions of muscle tissue:

· Producing Movement

· Maintaining Posture

· Generating heat

· Moving Substances

35. List 3 examples of skeletal muscle movement. Locomotion and manipulation

36. Skeletal muscles help to maintain posture by holding the body upright against gravity
stabilizes joints, and maintaining balance.

37. Heat is a byproduct of muscle activity which helps to maintain body temperature.

38. Cardiac and smooth muscles are responsible for transporting substances like blood or food
from one part of the body to another.

39. Complete these statements about muscle actions.

· Muscles cross at least one joint

· The bulk of the muscle is usually proximal to the joint crossed.

· All muscles have at least two attachments: the origin and the insertion.

· Muscles can only pull; they never push.

· During contraction, the muscle insertion moves towards the origin.

40. Single muscle fibers must be stimulated by nerve impulses to contract. Once stimulated to
contract, a muscle fiber will contract completely.

41. Whole muscles are composed of thousands of muscle cells which react to stimuli with grade
responses or different degrees of shortening.
42. A motor unit is one motor neuron and all the skeletal muscle cells it stimulates.

43. The neuromuscular is the synapse or space where the neuron & muscle cell meet.

44. Complete these statements about acetylcholine.

· Acetylcholine or ACh, is the neurotransmitter responsible for muscle contraction

· It is released into the synaptic cleft of the neuromuscular junction

· Stored in vesicles in the axon terminal

· Released when a nerve impulse reaches the axon terminal.

· Diffuses across the synaptic cleft to bind with receptors on the sarcolemma

45. The excitability of muscle and nerve cells is due to the resting potential or charge difference
on the membrane. The net charge is positive outside the cell relative to the inside due to
concentrations of Na+ and K+ ions.

46. If enough ACh is released, the sarcolemma temporarily becomes more permeable to Na+
and K+. Sodium ions rush into the cell as potassium ions diffuse out. However, more Na+ enters
the cell than K+ leaves, so the charge on the membrane is “upset” or reversed.

47. The electrical current generated by the “upset” or change in charge across the muscle cell
membrane is called an action potential. Once generated, the action potential continues over the
entire surface of the sarcolemma and the result is contraction of the muscle cell.

48. The action potential stimulates the sarcoplasmic reticulum to release Ca2+ into cytoplasm.
Ca2+ ions trigger the binding of myosin to actin by interacting with regulatory proteins.

49. Crossbridges are formed when myosin heads attach to binding sites on actin. Energized by
ATP each crossbridge attaches and detaches many times during a contraction.

50. Complete these statements about events in the sarcomere during muscle contraction.

· As myosin heads attach and detach, the actin filaments are pulled towards the
center of the sarcomere.
 · As this occurs in sarcomeres throughout the cell, the thin and thick filaments slide
past each other.

· ATP provides the energy to release and reset each myosin head so it's ready to
attach to the next site.

· The Sliding Filament theory states that the sarcomere shortens when thin and
thick myofilaments slide past each other.

51. Fill in the blanks in these steps to muscle contraction.

· Nerve impulse reaches the axon terminal

· Acetylcholine (Ach) is released into synapse

· ACh crosses synapse & binds to receptors on sarcolemma

· ACh causes change in membrane permeability; Action potential is generated

· Calcium ions are released from sarcoplasmic reticulum.

· Ca2+ binds to regulatory proteins on actin, exposing binding sites for myosin

· Myosin heads bind to actin forming crossbridges.

· Actin filaments are pulled toward center of the sarcomere

· The sarcomere shortens and the muscle contract

52. A single nerve impulse produces only one contraction because ACh is broken down by the
enzyme acetylcholinesterase to prevent further contraction of the muscle cell.

53. In Fused Tetanus, the muscle does not have time to relax completely between stimuli so
successive contractions are added together to produce a smooth, sustained contraction.

54. Complete these statements about events that occur after muscle contraction.

· Calcium ions are reabsorbed into sarcoplasmic reticulum

 · Regulatory proteins cover binding sites on actin; myosin can no longer attach to
form crossbridges

· Muscle relaxes

· Resting potential is restored

55. Na+ and K+ ions move back to their initial positions through the active transport mechanism
of the sodium-potassium pump which restores the resting state.

56. The All Or None law states that when stimulated adequately, the muscle cell will contract to
its fullest extent; it never partially contracts.

57. Graded responses involve different degrees of shortening or contraction and can be
produced in two ways:

· By changing the frequency of muscle stimulation

· By changing the number of muscle cells being stimulated

58. How forcefully a muscle contracts depends on how MANY cells are stimulated. Fewer cells
are stimulated when you move a pen than when you swing a baseball bat.

59. ATP provides energy for muscle contraction and is generated in 3 ways:

· breakdown of creatine phosphate

· aerobic respiration

· Anaerobic glycolysis

60. Muscle fatigue is caused by the oxygen debt that occurs during prolonged muscle activity.
The muscle becomes unable to contract even when stimulated. How long a muscle can work
depends largely on blood supply.

61. Isotonic contractions occur when the muscle shortens, and movement occurs.

62. Isometric contractions occur when the muscles do not shorten, and no movement occurs.
63. Muscle tone is a state of continuous partial contractions that produces firm, healthy, muscles
that are constantly ready for action. Regular exercise increases muscle size, strength, and
endurance.

64. Aerobic exercise causes muscles to become stronger, more flexible and have a greater
resistance to fatigue, but there is not much increase in size of the muscles.

65. Resistance training increases muscle size and strength. Enlargement of individual muscle
cells occurs as new contractile filaments are made.

IV. Developmental Aspects of the Muscular System

66. Only gross reflex movements are seen in infants but as the nervous system matures, babies
gain more control of fine muscle movements.

67. Skeletal muscle control continues to develop throughout childhood and reaches its peak by
mid adolescence.

68. Complete the following statements about muscular system changes in the elderly.

· Muscles become more stringy as we age because the amount of connective

tissue increases and the amount of muscle tissue decreases.

· Muscle mass and strength also decrease with age.

· According to the CDC, lifting weights can reverse the loss of muscle mass that
occurs with aging.

V. Diseases and Conditions of the Muscular System

69. A muscle cramp is a sudden, involuntary contraction of one or more muscles that may be
caused by:

· Overuse of a muscle
 · Dehydration Muscle strain

· Holding a position for a prolonged period

70. A muscle pull, strain, or tear refers damage to a muscle or its attaching tendons. Damage is
in the form of tearing (part or all) of the muscle fibers and attached tendons.

71. Paralysis is loss of voluntary muscle movement that occurs when the nerve supply to a
muscle is destroyed. The muscle is no longer stimulated and becomes paralyzed. The muscle
will soon become flaccid (soft and flabby) and eventually atrophy.

72. Muscular Dystrophy is a group of genetic diseases in which muscle fibers are unusually
susceptible to damage and they become progressively weaker.

73. The most common and serious type of muscular dystrophy is Duchenne MD which is
inherited as an x-linked recessive disorder.

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