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A muscle cell, also known as a myocyte, is a mature contractile cell in the muscle of an animal. [1] In humans and other vertebrates there are three types: skeletal, smooth, and cardiac (cardiomyocytes). [2] A skeletal muscle cell is long and threadlike with many nuclei and is called a muscle fiber. [3]
2. (Cross section of Spinal cord) Corticospinal tract: Mediator of message from brain to skeletal muscles. 3. Axon: the efferent nerve fiber that carries the command to contract muscles. 4. Neuromuscular junction: muscle cells are stimulated to contract at this intersection
Many nuclei are needed by the skeletal muscle cell for the large amounts of proteins and enzymes needed to be produced for the cell's normal functioning. A single muscle fiber can contain from hundreds to thousands of nuclei. [25] A muscle fiber for example in the human biceps with a length of 10 cm can have as many as 3,000 nuclei. [25]
Skeletal muscle, is a type of striated muscle, composed of muscle cells, called muscle fibers, which are in turn composed of myofibrils. Myofibrils are composed of sarcomeres, the basic building blocks of striated muscle tissue. Upon stimulation by an action potential, skeletal muscles perform a coordinated contraction by shortening each sarcomere.
The fibres of striated muscle have a cylindrical shape with blunt ends, whereas those in smooth muscle are spindle-like with tapered ends. Striated muscle tissue has more mitochondria than smooth muscle. Both smooth muscle cells and cardiac muscle cells have a single nucleus, and skeletal muscle cells have many nuclei. [6]
T-tubules (transverse tubules) are extensions of the cell membrane that penetrate into the center of skeletal and cardiac muscle cells.With membranes that contain large concentrations of ion channels, transporters, and pumps, T-tubules permit rapid transmission of the action potential into the cell, and also play an important role in regulating cellular calcium concentration.
In that study, an increase in muscle fiber conduction velocity was observed when there was a higher level of voluntary muscle contraction, which agrees with the gradual recruitment of higher-force muscle types. [16] In Wistar rats, it was found that cell size is the crucial property in determining neuronal recruitment. [17]
The space between the nerve terminal and the muscle cell is called the neuromuscular junction. These neurotransmitters diffuse across the synapse and bind to specific receptor sites on the cell membrane of the muscle fiber. When enough receptors are stimulated, an action potential is generated and the permeability of the sarcolemma is altered ...