Essentials of Human Anatomy & Physiology

Chapter 6
The Muscular System

Slides 6.1 – 6.17

Lecture Slides in PowerPoint by Jerry

L. Cook
Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings
Learning Objectives: After the discussion the students will be able to:

● Describe similarities and differences in the structure and function of the

three types of muscle tissue, and indicate where they are found in the
body.
● Define and explain the role of the following: endomysium, perimysium,
epimysium, tendon, and aponeurosis.
● Describe the microscopic structure of skeletal muscle, and explain the
role of actin- and myosin containing myofilaments.
● Explain how an action potential is initiated in a muscle cell.
● Define origin, insertion, prime mover, antagonist, synergist, and fixator
as they relate to muscles.
● Demonstrate or identify the different types of body movements.
● List some criteria used in naming muscles.
The Muscular System

∙ Muscles are responsible for all types of

body movement
∙ Three basic muscle types are found in
the body
∙ Skeletal muscle
∙ Cardiac muscle
∙ Smooth muscle

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.1
Characteristics of Muscles
∙ Muscle cells are elongated
(muscle cell = muscle fiber)
∙ Contraction of muscles is due to the
movement of microfilaments
∙ All muscles share some terminology
∙ Prefix myo refers to muscle
∙ Prefix mys refers to muscle
∙ Prefix sarco refers to flesh
Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.2
Skeletal Muscle Characteristics

∙ Most are attached by tendons to bones

∙ Cells are multinucleate
∙ Striated – have visible banding
∙ Voluntary – subject to conscious control
∙ Cells are surrounded and bundled by
connective tissue

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.3
Connective Tissue Wrappings of
Skeletal Muscle

∙ Endomysium –
around single
muscle fiber
∙ Perimysium –
around a
fascicle
(bundle) of
fibers Figure 6.1

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.4a
Connective Tissue Wrappings of
Skeletal Muscle

∙ Epimysium –
covers the
entire skeletal
muscle
∙ Fascia – on the
outside of the
epimysium
Figure 6.1

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Skeletal Muscle Attachments

∙ Epimysium blends into a connective

tissue attachment
∙ Tendon – cord-like structure
∙ Aponeuroses – sheet-like structure
∙ Sites of muscle attachment
∙ Bones
∙ Cartilages
∙ Connective tissue coverings
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Smooth Muscle Characteristics

∙ Has no striations
∙ Spindle-shaped
cells
∙ Single nucleus
∙ Involuntary – no
conscious control
∙ Found mainly in
the walls of hollow
organs
Figure 6.2a

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Cardiac Muscle Characteristics
∙ Has striations
∙ Usually has a
single nucleus
∙ Joined to another
muscle cell at an
intercalated disc
∙ Involuntary
∙ Found only in the
heart Figure 6.2b

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Function of Muscles

∙ Produce movement
∙ Maintain posture
∙ Stabilize joints
∙ Generate heat

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Microscopic Anatomy of Skeletal
Muscle

∙ Cells are multinucleate

∙ Nuclei are just beneath the sarcolemma

Figure 6.3a

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Microscopic Anatomy of Skeletal
Muscle
∙ Sarcolemma – specialized plasma
membrane
∙ Sarcoplasmic reticulum – specialized
smooth endoplasmic reticulum

Figure 6.3a

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.9b
Microscopic Anatomy of Skeletal
Muscle
∙ Myofibril
∙ Bundles of myofilaments
∙ Myofibrils are aligned to give distrinct bands
∙ I band =
light band
∙ A band =
dark band
Figure 6.3b

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Microscopic Anatomy of Skeletal
Muscle

∙ Sarcomere
∙ Contractile unit of a muscle fiber

Figure 6.3b

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Microscopic Anatomy of Skeletal
Muscle
∙ Organization of the sarcomere
∙ Thick filaments = myosin filaments
∙ Composed of the protein myosin
∙ Has ATPase enzymes

Figure 6.3c

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.11a
Microscopic Anatomy of Skeletal
Muscle
∙ Organization of the sarcomere
∙ Thin filaments = actin filaments
∙ Composed of the protein actin

Figure 6.3c

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Microscopic Anatomy of Skeletal
Muscle
∙ Myosin filaments have heads
(extensions, or cross bridges)
∙ Myosin and
actin overlap
somewhat

Figure 6.3d

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.12a
Microscopic Anatomy of Skeletal
Muscle
∙ At rest, there is a bare zone that lacks
actin filaments
∙ Sarcoplasmic
reticulum
(SR) – for
storage of
calcium
Figure 6.3d

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.12b
Properties of Skeletal Muscle
Activity

∙ Irritability – ability to receive and

respond to a stimulus
∙ Contractility – ability to shorten when an
adequate stimulus is received

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Nerve Stimulus to Muscles
∙ Skeletal
muscles must
be stimulated
by a nerve to
contract
∙ Motor unit
∙ One neuron
∙ Muscle cells
stimulated by
that neuron Figure 6.4a

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Nerve Stimulus to Muscles

∙ Neuromuscular
junctions –
association site
of nerve and
muscle

Figure 6.5b

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.15a
Nerve Stimulus to Muscles
∙ Synaptic cleft –
gap between
nerve and
muscle
∙ Nerve and
muscle do not
make contact
∙ Area between
nerve and muscle
is filled with
interstitial fluid Figure 6.5b

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.15b
The Sliding Filament Theory of
Muscle Contraction
∙ Activation by nerve
causes myosin
heads
(crossbridges) to
attach to binding
sites on the thin
filament
∙ Myosin heads then
bind to the next site
of the thin filament
Figure 6.7 Slide 6.17a
Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings
The Sliding Filament Theory of
Muscle Contraction

∙ This continued
action causes a
sliding of the myosin
along the actin
∙ The result is that the
muscle is shortened
(contracted)

Figure 6.7 Slide 6.17b

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 The Sliding Filament Theory

Figure 6.8

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Contraction of a Skeletal Muscle
∙ Muscle fiber contraction is “all or none”
∙ Within a skeletal muscle, not all fibers
may be stimulated during the same
interval
∙ Different combinations of muscle fiber
contractions may give differing
responses
∙ Graded responses – different degrees
of skeletal muscle shortening
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Types of Graded Responses

∙ Twitch
∙ Single, brief contraction
∙ Not a normal muscle function

Figure 6.9a, b

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Types of Graded Responses

∙ Tetanus (summing of contractions)

∙ One contraction is immediately followed by
another
∙ The muscle does
not completely
return to a
resting state
∙ The effects
are added
Figure 6.9a, b

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.20b
Types of Graded Responses
∙ Unfused (incomplete) tetanus
∙ Some relaxation occurs between
contractions
∙ The results are summed

Figure 6.9a, b
Figure 6.9c,d
Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.21a
Types of Graded Responses
∙ Fused (complete) tetanus
∙ No evidence of relaxation before the
following contractions
∙ The result is a sustained muscle contraction

Figure 6.9a, b
Figure 6.9c,d
Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.21b
Muscle Response to Strong Stimuli

∙ Muscle force depends upon the number

of fibers stimulated
∙ More fibers contracting results in greater
muscle tension
∙ Muscles can continue to contract unless
they run out of energy

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.22
Energy for Muscle Contraction

∙ Initially, muscles used stored ATP for

energy
∙ Bonds of ATP are broken to release energy
∙ Only 4-6 seconds worth of ATP is stored by
muscles
∙ After this initial time, other pathways
must be utilized to produce ATP

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.23
Energy for Muscle Contraction
∙ Direct phosphorylation
∙ Muscle cells contain creatine
phosphate (CP)
∙ CP is a high-energy
molecule
∙ After ATP is depleted, ADP is
left
∙ CP transfers energy to ADP,
to regenerate ATP
∙ CP supplies are exhausted in
about 20 seconds
Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Figure 6.10a Slide 6.24
Energy for Muscle Contraction
∙ Aerobic Respiration
∙ Series of metabolic
pathways that occur in
the mitochondria
∙ Glucose is broken down
to carbon dioxide and
water, releasing energy
∙ This is a slower reaction
that requires continuous
oxygen
Figure 6.10c Slide 6.25
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Energy for Muscle Contraction

∙ Anaerobic glycolysis
∙ Reaction that breaks
down glucose without
oxygen
∙ Glucose is broken down
to pyruvic acid to
produce some ATP
∙ Pyruvic acid is
converted to lactic acid
Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Figure 6.10b Slide 6.26a
Energy for Muscle Contraction

∙ Anaerobic glycolysis
(continued)
∙ This reaction is not as
efficient, but is fast
∙ Huge amounts of
glucose are needed
∙ Lactic acid produces
muscle fatigue
Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Figure 6.10b Slide 6.26b
Muscle Fatigue and Oxygen Debt
∙ When a muscle is fatigued, it is unable to
contract
∙ The common reason for muscle fatigue is
oxygen debt
∙ Oxygen must be “repaid” to tissue to remove
oxygen debt
∙ Oxygen is required to get rid of accumulated
lactic acid
∙ Increasing acidity (from lactic acid) and lack
of ATP causes the muscle to contract less
Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.27
Types of Muscle Contractions

∙ Isotonic contractions
∙ Myofilaments are able to slide past each
other during contractions
∙ The muscle shortens
∙ Isometric contractions
∙ Tension in the muscles increases
∙ The muscle is unable to shorten

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.28
Muscle Tone

∙ Some fibers are contracted even in a

relaxed muscle
∙ Different fibers contract at different
times to provide muscle tone
∙ The process of stimulating various fibers
is under involuntary control

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Muscles and Body Movements

∙ Movement is
attained due to a
muscle moving
an attached
bone

Figure 6.12

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Muscles and Body Movements

∙ Muscles are
attached to at
least two points
∙ Origin –
attachment to a
moveable bone
∙ Insertion –
attachment to an
immovable bone
Figure 6.12

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.30b
Effects of Exercise on Muscle

∙ Results of increased muscle use

∙ Increase in muscle size
∙ Increase in muscle strength
∙ Increase in muscle efficiency
∙ Muscle becomes more fatigue resistant

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Types of Ordinary Body Movements

∙ Flexion
∙ Extension
∙ Rotation
∙ Abduction
∙ Circumduction

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Body Movements

Figure 6.13

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Special Movements

∙ Dorsifelxion
∙ Plantar flexion
∙ Inversion
∙ Eversion
∙ Supination
∙ Pronation
∙ Opposition
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Types of Muscles

∙ Prime mover – muscle with the major

responsibility for a certain movement
∙ Antagonist – muscle that opposes or
reverses a prime mover
∙ Synergist – muscle that aids a prime
mover in a movement and helps prevent
rotation
∙ Fixator – stabilizes the origin of a prime
mover
Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.35
Naming of Skeletal Muscles

∙ Direction of muscle fibers

∙ Example: rectus (straight)
∙ Relative size of the muscle
∙ Example: maximus (largest)

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.36a
Naming of Skeletal Muscles

∙ Location of the muscle

∙Example: many muscles are named
for bones (e.g., temporalis)
∙ Number of origins
∙Example: triceps (three heads)

Copyright © 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings Slide 6.36b
Naming of Skeletal Muscles
∙ Location of the muscles origin and
insertion
∙ Example: sterno (on the sternum)
∙ Shape of the muscle
∙ Example: deltoid (triangular)
∙ Action of the muscle
∙ Example: flexor and extensor (flexes or
extends a bone)
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Head and Neck Muscles

Figure 6.14

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Trunk Muscles

Figure 6.15
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 Deep Trunk and Arm Muscles

Figure 6.16
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Muscles of the Pelvis, Hip, and Thigh

Figure 6.18c
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Muscles of the Lower Leg

Figure 6.19
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Superficial Muscles: Anterior

Figure 6.20

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Superficial Muscles: Posterior

Figure 6.21

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