Physiology of skeletal muscle for

dental student

By
Dr Yaser Mohamed Ashour
Professor of physiology
Al Azhar Faculty of Medicine
(Assuit)
 Skeletal muscle
• The muscle is an excitable tissue.
• It is characterized by its ability to
contract, which allows it to shorten and
generate force following an action
potential.
• The human body contains three types
of muscles:
• (1) Skeletal
• (2) cardiac
• (3) smooth
 Skeletal Cardiac Smooth

Control voluntary involuntary involuntary

Cross striated striated plane

striations
Nerve somatic autonomic autonomic
supply
Location Attached to In the wall In the wall
skeleton of the heart of viscera

Function Movement of Movement Movements

joints of blood of contents
 Skeletal Muscle
• It constitutes about 40 per cent
of the body weight.
• Most skeletal muscles begin
and end in fibrous tendons, by
which they are attached to the
bone.
• It is made up of very individual
multinuclear muscle cells or
fibers.
 The Muscle Fiber
• Skeletal muscle is made up of
thousands of cylindrical
muscle fibers often running all
the way from origin to
insertion.
• The fibers are bound together
by connective tissue through
which run blood vessels and
nerves.
 Each muscle fibers contains:
– an array of myofibrils that are
stacked lengthwise and run the entire
length of the fiber.
– mitochondria
– an extensive endoplasmic reticulum
– many nuclei.
– Two types of tubules (longitudinal and
transverse)
 • The number of fibers is
probably fixed early in life.
• Increased strength and muscle
mass comes about through an
increase in the thickness of the
individual fibers and increase
in the amount of connective
tissue.
• Because a muscle fiber is not a single cell,
its parts are often given special names
such as
– sarcolemma for plasma membrane
– sarcoplasmic reticulum for
endoplasmic reticulum
– sarcosome for mitochondrion
– sarcoplasm for cytoplasm
 Myofibril
• Each myofibril along its length shows
alternating light (I) and dark (A) bands
• The A bands are bisected by the H zone
• The I bands are bisected by the Z line.
Each myofibril is composed of many
subunits lined up end-to-end.
The portion between the two
successive Z lines called
sarcomere.
These subunits are, of course,
composed of myofilaments.
These myofilaments are thick and
thin proteins.
Sarcomere is the functional and
structural unit of the muscle fibre.
 Sarcomere
In each sarcomere:
Thin myofilaments attached to Z
line
Thick myofilaments are found in
the middle of the sarcomere
and do not extend to the ends.
Thus, a myofibril has alternating
light and dark areas because
each consists of many
sarcomeres lined up end-to-end.
 • Each myofibril contains alternate
dark (A) and light (I) bands.
• At the center of light (I) band there is
a dark line called the Z line.
• The thin proteins is bisected by Z
line.
• At the center of dark (A) band there is
a lighter zone called the H zone.
• In the middle of the H zone there is a
dark line called M line to which
myosin is kept in its place by attaching
 Myofilaments
• Each myofibril is formed of two types
myofilaments (muscle proteins):-
–Thick protein (Myosin)
–Thin proteins:-
- Actin
- troponin
- tropomyosin
 Thick myofilaments
• Are composed of a protein called myosin.
• Each myosin molecule has a tail, which forms the core of
the thick myofilament, plus a head that projects out from the
core of the filament.
• These myosin heads are also commonly referred to as
cross- bridges
• The myosin head has several important
characteristics:
1- It has ATP-binding sites into which
fit molecules of ATP. ATP represents
potential energy.
2 - It has actin-binding sites into which fit
molecules of actin. Actin is part of
the thin myofilament.
3 - It has a "hinge" at the point where it
leaves the core of the thick
myofilament.
4 - This allows the head to swivel back
and forth, and the "swivelling" is, what
actually causes muscle contraction.
 Thin myofilaments
It composed of 3 types of protein: ACTIN,
TROPONIN, and TROPOMYOSIN.
The actin molecules are spherical and form long
chains. Each thin myofilament contains two
such chains that coil around each other.
TROPOMYOSIN molecules are thin molecules
that wrap around the chain of actin.
At the end of each tropomyosin is a troponin
molecule.
The tropomyosin and troponin molecules are
connected to each other.
Troponin molecules have binding sites for
calcium ions.
 Tubular system of skeletal muscle
• There are two types of the muscle tubules:-
1- Longitudinal tubules.
2- Transverse tubules
 Longitudinal tubules
Longitudinal tubules (well developed sarcoplasmic
reticulum):-
- They are tubules lying parallel to the myofibril
and part of sarcoplasmic reticulum.
- At their ends near the T- tubules, they enlarge
forming large chambers called cisternae.
Functions:-
- Store Ca++ in very high concentration in its
cisternae.
- It has Ca++ pump in its wall.
- It contains a protein called cal-sequestrin that
can bind 40 times as much as calcium.
 Transverse tubules
These are infolds of the sarcolemma
into the interior of the muscle fibres
that penetrate all the way from one
side of the muscle fibre to the
opposite side.
They contain extracellular fluid and are
parallel to Z line.
Function: T- tubules transmit the action
potential to the interior of the ms
fibres.
 Neuromuscular junction
• It is an area of contact between motor
nerve and muscle fibres.
 Neuromuscular junction
• When the nerve fibre reach near to the muscle it
loses its myelin sheath, and the neurilemma
continue with the sarcolemma.
• The axon breaks into several branches and each
branch divide into multiple synaptic knob.
• Neuromuscular junction = motor end plate
composed of:-
1- Synaptic knob
2- synaptic cleft and
3- synaptic gutter,
 Synaptic knob
• Its cytoplasm contain:-
- Multiple synaptic vesicles that contain
acetylcholine which is the chemical transmitter at
motor end plate.
- Multiple mitochondria that supply energy for
formation of acetylcholine.
• Its membrane (axolemma):-
– Voltage gated Ca2+ channels.
– Multiple release sites on the inner surface of the
surface of the membrane.
 Synaptic cleft
• It is the space just below the synaptic
knob.
• It contains acetylcholinesterase enzyme,
which has the ability to break down the
acetylcholine to choline and acetate.
 Excitation-Contraction Coupling
1- On arrival of an excitation wave through the axon to
M.E.P., it leads to increase the permeability of the
membrane to the Ca++.
2. The entrance of the Ca++ to end of the axon it leads to
phosphorlytion of the synapsin and release of the
vesicles and sweeps of the vesicles to adhere to the
presynaptic membrane.
3. The adherence of the vesicles to the membrane leads
to the rupture of the vesicles and release of A.Ch.
4. The released A.Ch pass through synaptic cleft and it
passes to the A.Ch. receptor on the postsynaptic
membrane.
5. This process leads to increase in Na+ influx which leads
to the depolarization of the postsynaptic membrane
(sarcolemma).
 Excitation-Contraction Coupling
• Na+ diffusion
produces end-plate
potential
(depolarization).
• + ions are attracted
to negative plasma
membrane.
• If depolarization
sufficient, threshold
occurs, producing
APs.
 Excitation-Contraction Coupling (continued)

• APs travel down

sarcolema and T
tubules.
• SR terminal
cisternae releases
Ca2+ from chemical
release channels:
– Electromechanical
release
mechanism.
• Ca2+ is also
released through a
Ca2+-induced Ca2+
release.
 Excitation-Contraction Coupling
(continued)
• Ca2+ attaches
to troponin.
• Tropomyosin-
troponin
complex
configuration
change occurs.
• Cross bridges
attach to actin.
 - Movement of tropomyosin permits the myosin
head to contact actin.
- Contact with actin causes the myosin head to
swivel.
- During the swivel, the myosin head is firmly
attached to actin. So, when the head swivels it
pulls the actin (and, therefore, the entire thin
myofilament) forward. (Obviously, one myosin
head cannot pull the entire thin myofilament.
Many myosin head are swiveling simultaneously,
or nearly so, and their collective efforts are
enough to pull the entire thin myofilament).
.
- At the end of the swivel, ATP fits into the binding
site on the cross-bridge & this breaks the bond
between the cross-bridge (myosin) and actin.
- The myosin head then swivels back.
- As it swivels back, the ATP breaks down to ADP
& P and the cross-bridge again binds to an actin
molecule
- As a result, the head is once again bound firmly to
actin. However, because the head was not
attached to actin when it swiveled back, the head
will bind to a different actin molecule (i.e., one
further back on the thin myofilament). Once the
head is attached to actin, the cross-bridge again
swivels,
 As long as calcium is present (attached to
troponin), contraction is continue. And, as they
do, the thin myofilament is being "pulled" by the
myosin heads of the thick myofilament.
Thus, the thick and thin myofilaments are actually
sliding past each other.
As this occurs, the distance between the Z-lines of
the sarcomere decreases.
As sarcomeres get shorter, the myofibril, of
course, gets shorter. And, obviously, the muscle
fibers (and entire muscle) get shorter.
Mechanism of relaxation
1. After the contraction if completed, Ca++ is reuptake from
around the muscle proteins back to the sarcoplasmic
reticulum to be stored in the cistern.
2. Ca++ concentration in the sarcoplasm falls down. The
Ca++ combined with troponin C is detached and
recollected back into the sacroplasmic reticulum.
3. Tropomyosin is replaced back to its resting position to
cover the active sites on actin .
4. The head of myosin get charged with ATP. The charging
with ATP disconnects them from the active sites on
actin.
5. The myosin head can not reconnect with the next active
sites on actin because there site are now covered with
tropomyosin.
6. The actin filaments are disengaged from the myosin
filaments with elongation of the sarcomere and
accordingly of the whole muscle fibres.
Changes associated with muscle
contraction
1- Electrical changes
Each muscle contraction is preceded by
an action potential (A.P.).
(A.P.): duration is 5 milliseconds.
Its refractory period is short.
 2- Mechanical changes
On arrival of threshold impulse (action
potential) to the muscle, the muscle response
to this action potential.
The response may be either increase in tension
or contraction (shortening).
Increase in tension: occurs when the load is too
heavy to move, and the contraction is called
isometric.
Contraction (shortening): occurs when the load
is small, and the contraction is called isotonic.
 Isotonic Isometric
Muscle length Decreased Remain Constant

Muscle tension Remain constant Increase

Energy of contraction Converted to external work Converted to waste heat

and waste heat

Sliding of myosin and Occur to a muscle extent

actin
-

Duration of contraction Long short

O2 and nutrient Great less

requirement

Heat production Less Great

simple muscle twitch
simple muscle twitch
 2- Temperature
• Warming: leads to stronger and faster
contraction this is because warming decrease
the viscosity and stimulate the chemical.
• Cooling: has the opposite effect.
 3- Fatigue.

• This is a decline in response due to

previous activity.
• Fatigue occur due to depletion of
energy stores (ATP, CP, Glycogen
and fatty acids), and due to
accumulation of metabolic waste
products in muscle fibres.
3- Effect of Fatigue.
 4- Frequency of stimulation.
• When a series of constant stimuli are applied to
skeletal muscle at high frequency to fall at the
end of relaxation phase of the preceding one.
• This produces contraction with stronger force
than the previous one up to a certain limit.
• There is stepwise increase in the force of
contractions at the beginning of multiple
successive stimulation (This phenomena called
staircase phenomena).
• This due to release of Ca++ intracellulary with
inability of reticulum to recalled the Ca++ again.
• Slow rate of stimulation: incomplete
tetanus (repetitive contractions).
• High frequency of stimulation:
complete tetanus (fusion of
contraction)
4- Frequency of stimulation.
4- Frequency of stimulation.