PHY 2011

2017

END OF SEMESTER MODEL QUESTIONS

TOPIC 5

NOTE: THESE QUESTIONS ARE MEANT AS MODELS OF SOME OF THE CONTENT THAT WILL
BE ASSESSED, BUT DO NOT REPRESENT IN ANY WAY THE SUM TOTAL OF ALL THE
CONTENT THAT WILL BE ADDRESSED.

FURTHER, ALSO NOTE THAT CROSSWORD PUZZLES WILL NOT BE USED IN THE EXAM

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 Skeletal muscle questions

Question 1: Draw and correctly label the "Length-Tension curve" of a single sarcomere of skeletal muscle. In
your answer draw the degree of overlap of the contractile proteins on at least four (4) positions including the
Optimum length, a position much shorter than the optimum length, and a position much longer than the optimum
length.

Question 2: Fill in the gaps in the Excitation-contraction sequence after arrival of an action potential (AP) at the
neuromuscular junction (NMJ).

AP arrives at the NMJ

____________________ is released and attaches to receptors on the _____________________

AP generated is propagated along the ___________________ and down the _____________

AP triggers calcium ions release from __________________ of the ___________________________

Calcium ions bind to ____________, it changes shape, removing the blocking action of __________________,
and ______________ active sites are exposed

Contraction: __________ cross bridges alternately attach to _________ and detach, pulling the ______ filaments
toward the centre of the sarcomere; release of energy by _______ hydrolysis powers the cycling process

Removal of calcium by _______ transport into the SR after the AP ends

___________________ blockage is restored, blocking _______ site; contraction ends and muscle fibre ________

Question 3: Briefly explain why the body eventually becomes rigid and stiff after death and then becomes
flaccid?

Question 4: Briefly describe the three metabolic pathways by which skeletal muscle cells can generate ATP

Question 5: Briefly describe the role of ANY 3 of the following in the function of skeletal muscle:

a) Troponin
b) Z-lines
c) Cross-bridges
d) The sarcoplasmic reticulum
e) Motor units.

Question 6: Briefly describe ANY ONE (ONLY ONE) of the following in the function of skeletal muscle:
Excitation-contraction coupling in skeletal muscle. - OR - The sliding filament mechanism of contraction. - OR -
The effect of frequency of stimulation on skeletal muscle contraction.

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 PHY 2011: Exemplar Short answer questions for Topic 5

Note that these questions are meant ONLY as examples of the sorts of questions you may encounter in the end
of semester exam on Topic 5.
There is no reason to expect that this is an exhaustive list of exemplars or that the exam questions will be
identical to these.

Muscle action
1. Briefly describe the role of ANY 3 of the following in the function of skeletal muscle:
a) Troponin
b) Z-lines
c) Cross-bridges
d) The sarcoplasmic reticulum
e) Motor units.

2. Briefly describe ANY ONE (ONLY ONE) of the following in the function of skeletal muscle: Excitation-
contraction coupling in skeletal muscle. - OR - The sliding filament mechanism of contraction. - OR - The
effect of frequency of stimulation on skeletal muscle contraction. - OR - The mechanism by which
contraction is regulated (i.e., turned on and off) in SMOOTH MUSCLE.

3. After a student practical class, the results in the figure below were found lying in the bin. Answer the questions
below the figure with regard to the results.
RECRUITMENT

Muscle (a) The figure is labelled Recruitment.

twitch What does this mean with regard to
response muscle activity?
Responses
(b) Is there any order to recruitment?
to increasing
stimulus
voltage to
nerve trunk
(c) (i) What other mechanism could be
used to increase the force of muscle
contraction? (ii) Why is this mechanism
possible in muscle but not in nerve?

(d) Give typical values for (i) the latent

period between the application of the
electrical stimulus to the nerve trunk
and the muscle twitch, (ii) the time from
the onset to the peak of a muscle twitch,
Stimulus to (iii) the total duration of a muscle twitch
nerve trunk

4. Briefly describe ANY ONE of the following in the function of skeletal muscle: The cross-bridge cycle. OR
The length-tension relation of skeletal muscle. OR Adaptation of skeletal muscle to activity

5. Compare the different types of muscle fibre found in mammalian skeletal muscles. Comment on the
functional significance of having different skeletal muscle fibre types, and briefly discuss any adaptations that
these muscle fibres may undergo as result of training.

6. Draw and correctly label the "Length-Tension curve" of a single sarcomere of skeletal muscle. In your answer
draw the overlap of the contractile proteins on at least four (4) positions including the Optimum length, a
position much shorter than the optimum length, and a position much longer than the optimum length.

7. Briefly describe the metabolic pathways by which skeletal muscle cells can produce ATP

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 Movement control questions

Question 1. Briefly explain the following terms with respect to muscle contraction and movement
Alpha-gamma co-activation

Rate coding for force generation

Size principle

Motor units

Proprioception

Crossed extensor reflex

Lower Motor Neuron

Upper Motor Neuron

Question 2.
Answer the following question with regards to the figure above:
Which cortical region contains neurons that make up the lateral
cortico-spinal tract that directly controls Lower Motor Neurons?
From which cortical layer do these neurons originate?
Which cortical region directly guides M1 output to the lower
motor neurons in response to sensory input?
What type of input would you expect the Posterior Parietal Cortex
to provide to guide movement?
Which large sub-cortical structure interacts with motor cortex to
allow learning new motor skills?

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Movement control

1. Discuss the mechanisms by which the strength of contraction can be graded in skeletal muscle

2. Describe motor units in skeletal muscle and discuss their importance in skeletal muscle function

3. Discuss possible roles of muscle spindles and GTOs in the control of movements

4. What is a tendon organ? Discuss under ALL three of the following headings: (a) Structure and location; (b)
Reflex action; (c) Role in proprioception

5. Discuss the role of cerebellum on the modification of voluntary movement.

6. Discuss the role(s) of the midbrain and pons in posture and balance

7. Discuss the role of the muscle spindle in reflex action, focusing on the following aspects of this process: (i)
innervation of the muscle spindle, (ii) Alpha-gamma co-activation, and (iii) Consequences of spindle
activation on agonist and antagonist muscles during muscle loading

8. Briefly explain the following terms with respect to muscle contraction and movement
Alpha-gamma co-activation

Rate coding for force generation

Size principle

Motor units

Proprioception

Crossed extensor reflex

Lower Motor Neuron

Upper Motor Neuron

9. Answer the following question:

Which is the brain region containing neurons that make up the
lateral cortico-spinal tract that directly controls Lower Motor
Neurons?
From which cortical layer do these neurons originate?
Which cortical region directly guides M1 output to the lower
motor neurons in response to sensory input?
What type of input would you expect the Posterior Parietal
Cortex to provide to guide movement?
Which large sub-cortical structure interacts with motor cortex to
allow learning new motor skills?

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 10. Name the structures labelled 1-7 in the figure below:

1= 2= 3=
4= 5= 6=
7=

11. Discuss the roles of muscle spindles and GTOs in the control of movements. What do they monitor and how
do they carry information to the CNS, and how is information from these structures relayed back to the
exercising muscle.

12. Describe the structure and function of muscle spindles. Your answer may include appropriate diagrams and
should make reference to ALL of the following:
a) Location and structural components
b) Innervation
c) Role in generating reflexive movements

13. What is Alpha-Gamma co-activation in the context of muscle spindles and why is it needed?

14. Illustrate and discuss the neural pathways for the flexor withdrawal reflex and the crossed extensor reflex.

15. What are the mechanisms used to grade the force produced by a muscle? Discuss how each of these
mechanisms contributes to the development of force from 0 to 100% of the maximum force that the muscle can
produce.

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 ANS questions

Question 1: Compare noradrenaline and nitric oxide in terms of (a) synthesis, (b) release, (c) removal, and (d)
actions on smooth muscle. Use dot points:

Noradrenaline Nitric oxide

Synthesis

Release

Removal

Receptors &
Actions

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Question 2: The sympathetic nervous system is the flight or fight division of the autonomic nervous system.
Discuss how the sympathetic nervous system achieves this.

Question 3: Discuss the pathways, neurotransmitters and molecular mechanisms of the sympathetic and
parasympathetic nervous system effects on ONE of these organs (a) the eye, (b) the heart, (c) the bladder.

Question 4: Discuss the synthesis and use of noradrenalin and acetylcholine in the ANS

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 Endocrine questions:

Question 1: Discuss, in detail, one example of negative feedback control in endocrinology.

Question 2: Discuss, in detail, one example of negative feedback control involving the hypothalamus, the anterior
pituitary gland and a target organ.

Question 3: Name two hormones of the posterior pituitary and explain their function.
HORMONE 1: ______________________________________________________________________________
FUNCTION OF HORMONE 1:
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________

HORMONE 2: ______________________________________________________________________________
FUNCTION OF HORMONE 2:
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________

Question 4: Compare and contrast the synthesis, storage, secretion and time course of action of steroid hormones
and protein hormones. Give an examples of each type of hormone

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ANS control systems

1. Compare the synthesis, release and actions of the neurotransmitters nitric oxide and noradrenaline in the
autonomic nervous system.

2. Discuss 4 major ways in which the sympathetic nervous system can be distinguished from the
parasympathetic nervous system.

3. The sympathetic nervous system is the flight or fight division of the autonomic nervous system. Discuss
how the sympathetic nervous system achieves this.

4. Compare the neurotransmitters acetylcholine (ACh) and noradrenaline (NA) in the sympathetic and
parasympathetic divisions of the ANS.

5. Compare noradrenaline and nitric oxide in terms of (a) synthesis, (b) release, (c) removal, and (d) actions on
smooth muscle. Use dot points

6. Discuss three major ways in which the ANS maintains homeostasis within the body.

Endocrine control systems

1. Discuss the functions and control of the anterior and posterior lobes of the pituitary gland.

2. Discuss what are hypophysiotrophic hormones from the hypothalamus, giving two examples and how they
act to control body function.

3. Discuss, in detail, one example of negative feedback control in endocrinology

4. Discuss, in detail, one example of positive feedback control in endocrinology

5. Name two hormones of the posterior pituitary and explain their function

6. Describe the difference in action between protein/peptide hormones and steroid hormones

7. State which hormones are secreted by the hypothalamus & pituitary

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