Muscle Contraction

I. Skeletal Muscle
A. Muscle fiber
1. Sarcolemma
2. Sarcoplasm
3. Myofibrils – contractile elements
a. Actin myofilament
• F actin strands
• tropomyosin
• troponin (T, I, C)
b. Myosin myofilament
4. Sarcomere
• arrangement of myofibrils
a. Z disk – attaches actin
b. I band – actin myofilament
c. A band – both actin and myosin
H zone – only myosin
5. T Tubules
• invagination of sarcolemma
6. Sarcoplasmic Reticulum
• high conc. of calcium
B. Signal transmission
1. Motor neuron
2. Presynaptic terminal
3. Endplate
• region of skeletal fiber where synapse occurs
4. Nicotinic receptor
C. Muscle Contraction
1. Action Potential -> sarcolemma ->T tubules
2. T tubules -> Sarcoplasmic Retic
3. Voltage gated Ca++ channels open
4. Ca++ -> sarcoplasm
5. Calcium binds to troponin (C)
6. Tropomyosin is deflected
7. Active sites of actin exposed
8. ATP attaches to myosin head
9. ATP is hydrolyzed (ADP & P)
10. Myosin head is phosphorylated & cocks
11. Myosin head binds to actin (cross bridge)
12. Myosin head dephosphorylates (head moves) & ADP
released (power stroke)
D. Muscle relaxation
• Calcium pumped into Sarco Retic
E. Phases of muscle movement
1. Lag Phase
• AP in motor neuron to exposure of active sites
2. Contraction Phase
• crossbridge -> power stroke
3. Relaxation Phase
• calcium pumped into S. R.
4. Mechanical signal
• measured as tension
F. Stimulus vs contraction
• all or none response
• subthreshold stimulus -> no
• Threshold -> AP -> contraction
• increase Ca++ = increase force
G. Stimulus frequency
• no refractory period
• freq of AP = freq of contractions
• tetanus
calcium not pumped back
II. Cardiac Muscle
A. Contractions like skeletal
• striated (sarcomeres)
B. Intercalated disks
1. attachment
2. Z disks
3. Gap junction
III. Smooth Muscle
A. Structure
• elongated spindle shaped
• no striations (no sarcomeres)
 • actin & myosin – loose bundles
• intermediate filaments noncontractile
B. Contraction
1. ANS – via 2nd messenger
2. Opens Na+ and Ca++ channel
3. Depolarization
4. Muscarinic receptor ->IP3
5. IP3 -> Sarcoplasmic Retic. (Ca++ released)
6. Calcium activates calmodulin
7. Ca++/Calmod activates myosin kinase
 8. Myosin kinase hydrolyzes ATP
• phosphorylate myosin head
9. Myosin binds to actin -> contraction
10. Relaxation – dephosphorylation (Myosin Phosphatase)