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Muscle Contraction
Douglas Wilkin, Ph.D.
Jean Brainard, Ph.D.
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Printed: July 21, 2012
AUTHORS
Douglas Wilkin, Ph.D.
Jean Brainard, Ph.D.
www.ck12.org
C ONCEPT
1
1
Muscle Contraction
• Explain how muscles contract according to the sliding filament theory.
What makes a muscle contract?
It starts with a signal from the nervous system. So it starts with a signal from your brain. The signal goes through
your nervous system to your muscle. Your muscle contracts, and your bones move. And all this happens incredibly
fast.
Muscle Contraction
Muscle contraction occurs when muscle fibers get shorter. Literally, the muscle fibers get smaller in size. To
understand how this happens, you need to know more about the structure of muscle fibers.
Structure of Muscle Fibers
Each muscle fiber contains hundreds of organelles called myofibrils. Each myofibril is made up of two types of
protein filaments: actin filaments, which are thinner, and myosin filaments, which are thicker. Actin filaments are
anchored to structures called Z lines (see Figure 1.1). The region between two Z lines is called a sarcomere. Within
a sarcomere, myosin filaments overlap the actin filaments. The myosin filaments have tiny structures called cross
bridges that can attach to actin filaments.
Concept 1. Muscle Contraction
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FIGURE 1.1
Sarcomere. A sarcomere contains actin
and myosin filaments between two Z
lines.
Sliding Filament Theory
The most widely accepted theory explaining how muscle fibers contract is called the sliding filament theory.
According to this theory, myosin filaments use energy from ATP to “walk” along the actin filaments with their
cross bridges. This pulls the actin filaments closer together. The movement of the actin filaments also pulls the Z
lines closer together, thus shortening the sarcomere.
You can watch this occurring in a video animation at the link below. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7V-zFVnFk
Wg#38;feature=related
MEDIA
Click image to the left for more content.
When all of the sarcomeres in a muscle fiber shorten, the fiber contracts. A muscle fiber either contracts fully or it
doesn’t contract at all. The number of fibers that contract determines the strength of the muscular force. When more
fibers contract at the same time, the force is greater.
Actin, myosin and muscle contraction are discussed at http://www.youtube.com/user/khanacademy#p/c/7A9646BC
5110CF64/45/zopoN2i7ALQ(9:38).
MEDIA
Click image to the left for more content.
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3
Additional information about muscle contraction is available at http://www.youtube.com/user/khanacademy#p/c/
7A9646BC5110CF64/46/LiOfeSsjrB8 (9:22) and http://www.youtube.com/user/khanacademy#p/c/7A9646BC5110
CF64/47/SauhB2fYQkM (14:42).
MEDIA
Click image to the left for more content.
MEDIA
Click image to the left for more content.
Muscles and Nerves
Muscles cannot contract on their own. They need a stimulus from a nerve cell to “tell” them to contract. Let’s say
you decide to raise your hand in class. Your brain sends electrical messages to nerve cells, called motor neurons,
in your arm and shoulder. The motor neurons, in turn, stimulate muscle fibers in your arm and shoulder to contract,
causing your arm to rise. Involuntary contractions of cardiac and smooth muscles are also controlled by nerves.
Vocabulary
• actin: The monomeric subunit of microfilaments, one of the three major components of the cytoskeleton, and
thin filaments, part of the myofibril in muscle cells.
• cross bridge: Structure of myosin filament that attaches to actin filament.
• motor neuron: Type of neuron that carries nerve impulses from the central nervous system to muscles and
glands.
• myofibril: Organelle of muscle fiber; composed of actin and myosin filaments.
• myosin: Filamentous protein involved in muscle contraction; forms thick filaments of myofibril in muscle
cells.
• sacromere: Region of myofibril between two Z-lines.
• sliding filament theory: Theory that explains muscle contraction by the sliding of myosin filaments over
actin filaments within muscle fibers.
• Z line: Region of sarcomere where actin filaments are attached.
Summary
• According to the sliding filament theory, a muscle fiber contracts when myosin filaments pull actin filaments
closer together and thus shorten sarcomeres within a fiber.
• When all the sarcomeres in a muscle fiber shorten, the fiber contracts.
Concept 1. Muscle Contraction
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Practice
Use this resource to answer the questions that follow.
• http://www.hippocampus.org/Biology → Biology for AP* → Search: Skeletal Muscle Contraction
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Draw a sacromere.
What happens when a sarcomere contracts?
Describe the molecular events that occur during skeletal muscle contraction.
What is creatine phosphate?
Describe the role of tropomyosin.
What is the role of calcium ions?
Review
1. Explain how muscles contract according to the sliding filament theory.
2. A serious neck injury may leave a person paralyzed from the neck down. Explain why.