Musculoskelet

al System Muscles
Year 11 Human Biology
ATAR Unit 1 & 2

Unit Objectives
The muscular system is organised to
maintain posture and produce movement;
muscle fibre contractions can be explained
using the sliding filament theory.
Movement results from the actions of
paired muscles, with others acting as
stabilisers, to produce the required
movement.

Introduction (Recap of
knowledge)
Muscle cells form long, thin fibres (ability to
contract).
Muscles allow bones to move and maintain
control (skeletal muscles).
Smooth muscles (i.e. stomach, intestines)
involuntary muscles.
Cardiac muscle (heart). Maintain contractions.
Muscles are extensible (ability to stretch) and
elastic (ability to return to normal).

Structure of skeletal
muscles
Muscle cells are held together in bundles.
Red meat is muscle and it is these bundles
that give meat its stringy appearance.
Muscle is a form of connective tissue. This
muscle allows for movement (via
contractions).
Bundles of muscles form tendons.

Structure of skeletal
muscles
Lets look at a single muscle cell
Cells are parallel to each other.
Cells are elongated cylinders with many nuclei.
Around the cell is a thin plasma membrane
(sarcolemma), containing cytoplasm
(sarcoplasm). These make up the muscle
fibres.
Inside each sarcoplasm of each fibre consists of a
thread-like myofibril, lying parallel to each other.

Myofibrils structure
The myofibrils are actually made of many
smaller myofilaments (made of protein), which
are the actual units involved in muscle
contractions.
There are two types of myofilaments:
Thick (composed of the protein myosin)
Thin (composed of the protein actin)

Myofibrils
structure
When a muscle
fibre obtains
energy and is
activated by a
nerve impulse
these thick and
thin proteins slide
past each other
(causing the
myofibrils to
shorten).

Myofibrils structure
It is these thick and thin filaments that gives a
banded effect to the muscle.
Myofibrils can be divided into units called
sarcomeres.
The striated appearance of
skeletal muscle is due
to variations in the
actin and myosin
content in different
parts of the sarcomere.

Muscle Structure Summary

Skeletal muscle is made up of
Bundles of muscle fibres each of which
contains
Myofibrils which contain
Myofilaments of two types
Actin and myosin

Sliding Filament Model

(SFM)
Sliding Filament Model is used to explain how
muscles contract.
When muscles contract, the sarcomeres
shorten.
This model suggest that this occurs because
actin and myosin filaments slide over one
another.

Sliding Filament Model

Sliding Filament Model

(SFM)
Actin filaments slide over the myosin filament
the Z lines are drawn closer and the sarcomere
is shortened.
Energy is required for
shortening of the
muscles fibres.
Energy is released
when ATP breaks
down to ADP.

 A bands contain both myosin/actin

H zone contains myosin only (M line through the centre)
I bands contain actin only
Z lines are dense, fibrous lines which cross the I bands
and are attached to actin.
Sarcomere is between two Z lines

Overview of contractions
1. Muscle fibre is stimulated (i.e. nerve impulse)
2. Calcium (Ca) ions are released
3. Thin (actin) filaments move to middle of
sarcomere
4. Muscle fibres contract (energy/ATP required)
5. Muscle tension increases
6. Muscles relaxed projections on the myosin
filaments no longer combine with actin (fibres
return to original state).

Muscles working together

Muscles only contract.
They pull bones together, but not pushing them
apart.
If muscles contract (pulling a bone in one
direction), another set of muscles must contract
to pull the bone in the opposite direction.
Hence why muscles are grouped in pairs.
These pairs are called antagonistic muscles
(moving opposite). Such as triceps/biceps.

Antagonistic Muscles

Muscles working together

Origin end of the muscle fixed to a stationary bone
Insertion attachment of the other end of the
muscle (the moveable bone)
Belly fleshy portion
between the tendons
and insertion
Agonist/prime mover
muscle that caused
a desired action

Muscles working together

Synergists are muscles that help the prime mover
(i.e. the muscle that is intended to move).
They may produce the same movement as the prime
mover (agonist) or support the joint during a
particular movement.
Example: The wrist would flex every time the fist was
clenched if it were not for a synergistic muscles,
because the muscles that curl the fingers also pass
across the wrist.
Synergistic muscles immobilise the wrist, stopping it
from flexing. Also called a fixator.

Muscle Tone
Muscle tone is not caused by constant
contractions of the same fibres, but by many
different fibres taking turns to contract.
Fibres are able to relieve one another so
smoothly that the contraction can be kept up
long periods of time.
Posture of a person depends on muscle tone.

Gastrocnem
ius

Final Link
Establishing the final
connection between
bones and muscles.
E.g. Triceps and
biceps connected
to the humerus
and radius.