PhysioEx Exercise 2 Activity 2 13/12/22 10:34

PhysioEx Lab Report

Exercise 2: Skeletal Muscle Physiology
Activity 2: The Effect of Stimulus Voltage on Skeletal Muscle Contraction
Name: Marta Esojo Serrano
Date: 13 December 2022
Session ID: session-f067ecee-7ce4-7c85-e117-7ae03fde7186

Pre-lab Quiz Results

You scored 100% by answering 4 out of 4 questions correctly.

1 Skeletal muscle fibers are innervated (stimulated) by

You correctly answered: motor neurons.

2 A single action potential propagating down a motor axon results in

You correctly answered: a single action potential and a single contractile event in the
muscle fibers it innervates.

3 In resting skeletal muscle, calcium is stored in

You correctly answered: the sarcoplasmic reticulum.

4 During the latent period for an isometric contraction

You correctly answered: the cellular events involved in excitation-contraction coupling

occur.

Experiment Results
Predict Question
1 Predict Question: As the stimulus voltage is increased from 1.0 volt up to 10 volts, what
will happen to the amount of active force generated with each stimulus?

Your answer: The active force will first increase and then plateau at some maximal
value as the stimulus voltage increases.

Stop & Think Questions

1 What do you observe in the active force display when the stimulus voltage is set to 0.0,
and why does this observation make sense? i

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You correctly answered: 0.00; there was no activation of skeletal muscle fibers by this
stimulus.

2 What is the lowest stimulus voltage that induces active force in the skeletal muscle?

You correctly answered: threshold voltage.

3 Enter the threshold voltage for this experiment.

You answered: 0.8 volts.

4 Enter the maximal voltage for this experiment.

You answered: 8.5 volts.

Experiment Data

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Voltage (v) Length (mm) Active Force Passive Force Total Force
0.0 75 0.00 0.00 0.00
0.2 75 0.00 0.00 0.00
0.3 75 0.00 0.00 0.00
0.4 75 0.00 0.00 0.00
0.5 75 0.00 0.00 0.00
0.6 75 0.00 0.00 0.00
0.7 75 0.00 0.00 0.00
0.8 75 0.02 0.00 0.02
1.0 75 0.15 0.00 0.15
1.5 75 0.43 0.00 0.43
2.0 75 0.66 0.00 0.66
2.5 75 0.87 0.00 0.87
3.0 75 1.04 0.00 1.04
3.5 75 1.19 0.00 1.19
4.0 75 1.32 0.00 1.32
4.5 75 1.42 0.00 1.42
5.0 75 1.51 0.00 1.51
5.5 75 1.59 0.00 1.59
6.0 75 1.65 0.00 1.65
6.5 75 1.70 0.00 1.70
7.0 75 1.74 0.00 1.74
7.5 75 1.78 0.00 1.78
8.0 75 1.81 0.00 1.81
8.5 75 1.82 0.00 1.82
9.0 75 1.82 0.00 1.82
9.5 75 1.82 0.00 1.82
10.0 75 1.82 0.00 1.82

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Voltage = 0.0 V

Voltage = 0.2 V

Voltage = 0.3 V

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Voltage = 0.4 V

Voltage = 0.5 V

Voltage = 0.6 V

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Voltage = 0.7 V

Voltage = 0.8 V

Voltage = 1.0 V

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Voltage = 1.5 V

Voltage = 2.0 V

Voltage = 2.5 V

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Voltage = 3.0 V

Voltage = 3.5 V

Voltage = 4.0 V

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Voltage = 4.5 V

Voltage = 5.0 V

Voltage = 5.5 V

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Voltage = 6.0 V

Voltage = 6.5 V

Voltage = 7.0 V

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Voltage = 7.5 V

Voltage = 8.0 V

Voltage = 8.5 V

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Voltage = 9.0 V

Voltage = 9.5 V

Voltage = 10.0 V

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Post-lab Quiz Results

You scored 100% by answering 6 out of 6 questions correctly.

1 Motor unit recruitment refers to

You correctly answered: an increase in the number of active muscle fibers to increase
the force developed in a muscle.

2 Active tension (or force) in a skeletal muscle fiber results from

You correctly answered: activation of cross bridge cycling via increased intracellular
calcium levels.

3 The is the minimal stimulus needed to cause a depolarization of the muscle

plasma membrane (sarcolemma).

You correctly answered: threshold voltage.

4 By definition, the is the amount of stimulus required to successfully recruit all

the muscle fibers into developing active force.

You correctly answered: maximal voltage.

5 Why was a maximal voltage observed in this experiment?

You correctly answered: At the maximal voltage, all the muscle fibers contained in this
muscle are depolarized and they all develop active force (that is, they were all
successfully recruited).

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6 A sufficiently strong electrical stimulus applied to an isolated, mounted skeletal muscle

induces the development of muscle force, or muscle tension. Which of the following
statements concerning this observation is true?

You correctly answered: The electrical stimulus mimics acetylcholine release at a

neuromuscular junction.

Review Sheet Results

1 Describe the effect of increasing stimulus voltage on isolated skeletal muscle.
Specifically, what happened to the muscle force generated with stronger electrical
stimulations and why did this change occur? How well did the results compare with
your prediction?

Your answer:

La fuerza generada fue aumentando hasta alcanzar su máximo a 8.5 V, luego ahí se
estabilizó en 1.82.

2 How is this change in whole-muscle force achieved in vivo?

Your answer:

Este cambio ocurre gracias a las motoneuronas que reclutan todas las unidades
motoras.

3 What happened in the isolated skeletal muscle when the maximal voltage was applied?

Your answer:

Al llegar al voltaje máximo (8.5V), la fuerza activa se estabilizó en 1.82. Esta fuerza
activa será la máxima y aunque aumentemos el voltaje no cambiará.

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