Lecture Guide - Muscular System

THE MUSCULAR
SYSTEM
LECTURE SESSION 1: MIDTERM PERIOD
COLLEGE OF MEDICAL LABORATORY SCIENCE – VALENZUELA CAMPUS / ANTONIO C. PASCUA JR, RMT, MSMT/ JOSHUA LUIGI D. RAMEL, RMT
UNIT OUTLINE
At the end of this Unit, the student must be able to:
1. Recognize accurately the various types of muscle tissue and differentiate
correctly each of them in terms of microscopic appearance, location, function and
nervous control
2.Knowingly illustrate the steps involved in the sliding filament mechanism of
muscle contraction
3. Describe precisely the reactions by which muscle fibers metabolize ATP and
produce body movements
4. Explain extensively the relationship between bones and skeletal muscles in
producing body movements.
5. Discuss correctly the different muscles of the body and the manner of its
nomenclature
6. Describe completely the factors that contribute to muscle fatigue and other
homeostatic imbalances of the muscular system
I. INTRODUCTION TO MUSCLES
1. “Muscles” – derived from the Latin word meaning “mouse” (“mus”).
2. Study of muscles - Myology
3. Muscle cells - Mycocytes
4. Development of Muscles in the body – Myogenesis
5. Muscle originates from the embryological tissue layer called the mesoderm.
6. Cell membrane and external lamina – sarcolemma
7. Cytoplasm of muscle cells - sarcoplasm
8. Smooth Endoplasmic Reticulum of Muscle is called sarcoplasmic reticulum
Recall from your lesson
on Cells and Tissues that
muscles have 3 types:
Skeletal, Cardiac and
Smooth Muscle
Image Source: Elaine N. Marieb, Suzanne M. Keller - Essentials of Human Anatomy & Physiology-Pearson, 12th edition (2017)
Image Source: VanPutte, Cinnamon L., et al (2016), Seeley’s Essentials of Anatomy and Physiology, 12th Edition,
The 3 types of muscles
all perform the following
Major Functions:
1. Movement of the Body

2. Posture Maintenance
3. Respiration
4. Producing Body Heat
5. Communication
6. Constriction of organs
and vessels
7. Heartbeat
Major Functions of Muscles:
1. Movement of the Body - responsible for major body movements
2. Posture Maintenance - constantly maintaining tone (sitting, standing)
3. Respiration - contraction of muscles in the diaphragm when breathing
4. Producing Body Heat - heat released as by-product of muscle contraction (thermoregulation)
5. Communication - speaking, writing, body language
6. Constriction of organs and vessels - helps propel food to digestive tract, excrete waste material
7. Heartbeat - contraction of the cardiac muscle propels blood to other organs

GENERAL PROPERTIES OF MUSCLE TISSUE
1. Contractility - shortening forcefully
2. Excitability - responding to electrical stimuli called Action Potentials
Action potentials in muscles are referred to as muscle action potentials; those in nerve cells are
called nerve action potentials.
Autorhythmic electrical signals arising in the muscular tissue itself.

Chemical stimuli, such as neurotransmitters released by neurons, hormones, or changes in pH.
GENERAL PROPERTIES OF MUSCLE TISSUE
3. Extensibility - stretching beyond normal resting length but still being able to
contract
4. Elasticity - springing back to its original resting length
II. SKELETAL MUSCLES
- Attached to the skeleton; covers bone and cartilage

framework
- Also known as Striated Muscle (Visible striations or

stripes in the muscle fibers)
- Primarily Voluntary control of contractions
II. SKELETAL MUSCLES
Consists of muscle fibers, which are long,

cylindrical multinucleated cells with diameters
of 10-100 μm.
Elongated nuclei are found peripherally just

under the sarcolemma
Reserve Progenitor cells called satellite cells

remains adjacent to most fibers of differentiated
skeletal muscle.
Image Source: Mescher, Anthony L (2018) , Junqueira’s Basic Histology Text and Atlas 15th Edition
PARTS OF SKELETAL MUSCLES
Layers of Connective Tissue present in all types of
muscle; seen well in skeletal muscle:
1. Endomysium - dense irregular tissue surrounding

the external lamina of individual muscle fibers.
2. Perimysium - thin connective tissue layer that

immediately surrounds each bundle of muscle
fibers termed a fascicle
3. Epimysium - external sheath of dense irregular

connective tissue, surrounds the entire muscle
PARTS OF SKELETAL MUSCLES
Muscle fiber –elongated, multinuclear cells composed
of several myofibrils
Myofibril–long, cylindrical filament bundles in the

sarcoplasm of myocytes.
Somatic Motor Neuron - stimulates skeletal muscle

to contract.
Blood Vessels
Arteries
Veins
Capillaries - supply Oxygen to muscle fibers
MICROSCOPIC ANATOMY OF MUSCLE
Sarcoplasmic Reticulum - membranous
smooth ER in skeletal muscle fibers
Transverse or T-tubules - long fingerlike

invaginations of the cell membrane
encircling each myofibril near the aligned
A- and I-band boundaries of sarcomeres
Terminal cisternae – expanded structures

adjacent to each T-Tubule
Myofilaments or filaments –small protein structures within the myofibrils
Thick filaments - 16 nm in diameter and 1–2 m long and composed mostly of the
protein myosin.
Thin filaments - 8 nm in diameter and 1–2 m long and composed mostly of the
protein actin
Filaments inside a myofibril are arranged in compartments called sarcomeres
Sarcomeres –are the basic functional units of a myofibril
Z discs –narrow, plate-shaped regions of dense
protein material separate one sarcomere from
the next. Thus, a sarcomere extends from one
Z disc to the next Z disc.
A band –the darker middle part of the

sarcomere which extends the entire length of the
thick filaments.
I band –Is a lighter, less dense area that

contains the rest of the thin filaments but no
thick filaments and a Z disc passes through the
center of each I band.
H zone –located in the center of each A band

contains thick but not thin filaments.
M line –so named because it is at the middle of

the sarcomere; at the center of the H zone
MUSCLE PROTEINS:
1. Myosin: main component of thick

filaments and functions as a motor protein
in all three types of muscle tissue
Has a Head and Tail region:
Myosin Tail - points toward the M line in the center

of the sarcomere. forming the shaft of the thick
filament.
Myosin Heads - project outward from the shaft in a

spiraling fashion, each extending toward the six thin
filaments.
MUSCLE PROTEINS:
2. Actin - Individual actin molecules join to

form an actin filament that is twisted into a
helix.
Myosin-binding Site where a myosin head

can attach.
MUSCLE PROTEINS:
Proteins that make up the Actin Myofilament:
G-actin – globular subunit of actin

F- actin – fibrillary; chain of 200 G-actin
subunits
Tropomyosin – covers active sites of G actin
Troponin – has 3 Subunits

Trop I (TnI) > regulates actin-myosin interaction
Trop C (TnC) > binds to Calcium
Trop T (TnT) > anchors troponin to actin
STRUCTURAL PROTEINS:
Titin – Structural protein connecting Z Disc to M Line; stabilizes thick filament position
α-actinin – Structural protein of Z Disc; attaches actin to titin
Myomysein – Structural protein of M line of Sarcomere; connects adjacent thick filaments
Nebulin – wraps around the entire length of thin filament; anchors Z Disc to thin filaments
Dystrophin – links thin filaments of sarcomere to integral membrane proteins in sarcolemma
NEUROMUSCULAR JUNCTION:
- The point of contact of motor neuron axon branches with the muscle fiber.
- Also called Synapse
Remember:
Action Potentials – electrical signals carried by neurons that stimulate muscle fiber action
Components of the Neuromuscular Junction:
Presynaptic Terminal – Axon terminal

Synaptic Cleft – Space between presynaptic
terminal and the muscle fiber
Motor End Plate – muscle plasma membrane
Synaptic Vesicle - Spherical Sacs that contain the

neurotransmitter Acetylcholine
*Neurotransmitter – molecule that is released

allowing neuron to communicate with its target
III. MUSCLE CONTRACTION
THE SLIDING FILAMENT MECHANISM
Muscle contraction occurs because myosin heads attach to and “walk” along the thin
filaments at both ends of a sarcomere, progressively pulling the thin filaments toward the M
line.
Thin filaments slide inward and meet at the center of a sarcomere, moving so far inward that
their ends overlap.
Z discs come closer together, and the sarcomere shortens.
However, the lengths of the individual thick and thin filaments do not change. Shortening of the
sarcomeres causes shortening of the whole muscle fiber, which in turn leads to shortening of the
entire muscle.
Contraction occurs as
the overlapping thin
and thick filaments of
each sarcomere slide
past one another.
1. Nerve impulse triggers
release of ACh from the
synaptic knob into the
synaptic cleft.
ACh binds to ACh receptors

in the motor end plate of the
neuromuscular junction,
initiating a muscle impulse in
the sarcolemma of the
muscle fiber.
2. As the muscle impulse
spreads quickly from the
sarcolemma along T tubules,
calcium ions are released
from terminal cisternae
into the sarcoplasm
3. Calcium ions bind to
troponin.
Troponin changes shape,

moving tropomyosin on the
actin to expose active sites on
actin molecules of thin
filaments.
Myosin heads of thick

filaments attach to exposed
active sites to form crossbridges
4. Myosin heads pivot, moving thin filaments toward the sarcomere center. ATP binds myosin
heads and is broken down into ADP and P.
Myosin heads detach from thin filaments and return to their prepivot position.
The sarcomere shortens and the muscle contracts
5. When the impulse stops, calcium ions are actively transported into the sarcoplasmic
reticulum
Tropomyosin re-covers active sites, and filaments passively slide back to their relaxed state.
IV. ENERGY FOR MUSCLE CONTRACTION
ATP (Adenosine Tri-Phosphate) is the only energy source that can be used directly to power
muscle activity; ATP must be regenerated continuously if contraction is to continue.
Tropomyosin re-covers active sites, and filaments passively slide back to their relaxed state.
There are 3 pathways that working muscles use to regenerate ATP:
1. Direct phosphorylation of ADP by creatine phosphate

2. Aerobic pathway
3. Anaerobic glycolysis and lactic acid formation
IV. ENERGY FOR MUSCLE CONTRACTION
V. CARDIAC MUSCLE TISSUE
1. The principal tissue in the heart wall
2. Between the layers of cardiac muscle

fibers, the contractile cells of the heart, are
sheets of connective tissue that contain blood
vessels, nerves, and the conduction system of
the heart.
3. Cardiac muscle fibers have the same

arrangement of actin and myosin and the
same bands, zones, and Z discs as skeletal
muscle fibers.
V. CARDIAC MUSCLE TISSUE
4. Intercalated discs are unique to cardiac
muscle fibers. These are microscopic structures
that are irregular transverse thickenings of the
sarcolemma that connect the ends of cardiac
muscle fibers to one another.
5. Cardiac muscle tissue has an endomysium and

perimysium, but lacks an epimysium.
VI. SMOOTH MUSCLE TISSUE
1. Visceral (single-unit) smooth muscle tissue
(more common type).
2. Found in the skin, forms part of the walls of

small arteries and veins and of hollow organs
such as the stomach, intestines, uterus, and
urinary bladder.
3. Like cardiac muscle, visceral smooth muscle is

autorhythmic.
- Tropomyosin is present in smooth muscle,
serving to enhance actin–myosin interactions
- Calponin molecules may exist in equal number

as actin, and has been proposed to be a load-
bearing protein.
- Caldesmon has been suggested to be involved in

tethering actin, myosin and tropomyosin, and
thereby enhance the ability of smooth muscle to
maintain tension.
Functional aspects of smooth muscle
- Specialized for slow, prolonged contraction

- Nerve terminals in smooth muscles are observed
only in the connective tissue adjacent to muscle
cells
- Smooth muscles also secrete connective tissue
matrix
VII. INTERACTION OF SKELETAL MUSCLES
1. Muscles can’t push—they can only pull as they contract
2. Muscles are arranged so that whatever one muscle (or group of muscles) can do, other muscles
can reverse
3. In general, groups of muscles that produce opposite movements lie on opposite sides of a joint
VII. INTERACTION OF SKELETAL MUSCLES
1. Prime Mover - muscle that has the major
responsibility for causing a particular movement
2. Antagonists - Muscles that oppose or reverse a

Movement
3. Synergists - help prime movers by producing

the same movement or by reducing undesirable
movements
4. Fixators - specialized synergists. They hold

a bone still or stabilize the origin of a prime mover
so all the tension can be used to move the insertion
bone.
VIII. NOMENCLATURE OF SKELETAL MUSCLE
Criteria of Naming Muscles: Arrangement of Fascicles:
1. Direction of Muscle Fibers 1. Circular

2. Relative Size of Muscle - Fascicles arranged in concentric rings
3. Location of Muscle - Generalized as “Sphincters”
4. Number of Origin
5. Location of Muscle’s Origin and 2. Convergent
Insertion - Fascicles converge to toward a single tendon
6. Shape of the Muscle insertion
7. Action of the Muscle
3. Parallel
- Length of fascicles run parallel to the long axis
4. Pennate
- “Feather” pattern; fascicles attach obliquely to a
central tendon
VIII. NOMENCLATURE OF SKELETAL MUSCLE
IX. THE MUSCULAR SYSTEM
SUPERFICIAL
MUSCLES OF THE
HEAD AND NECK
MUSCLES OF THE
ANTERIOR
SHOULDER,
TRUNK AND ARM
MUSCLES OF THE POSTERIOR SHOULDER, TRUNK AND ARM
MUSCLES OF THE
POSTERIOR
THIGH, HIP AND
PELVIS
MUSCLES OF THE
ANTERIOR
THIGH, HIP AND
PELVIS
SUPERFISCIAL
MUSCLES OF THE
LEGS (Anterior and
Posterior)
SUMMARY OF ANTERIOR SUPERFICIAL MUSCLES
SUMMARY OF POSTERIOR SUPERFICIAL MUSCLES
X. HOMEOSTATIC IMBALANCES
1. Effects of Aging on Skeletal Muscle
Sarcopenia or Muscle Atrophy
- Age-related reduction in muscle mass and

regulation of muscle function
- Loss of muscle fibers begins as early as 25

years of age and, by age 80, the muscle mass
has been reduced by approximately 50%,due
primarily to the loss of muscle fibers
Image Source: https://citywidesuperslow.com/use-lose-muscles-aging/
1. Effects of Aging on Skeletal Muscle
Sarcopenia or Muscle Atrophy
- Surface area of the neuromuscular junction

decreases;
- Number of motor neurons also decreases.

Some of the muscle fibers that lose their
innervation when a neuron dies are
reinnervated by a branch of another motor
neuron
Image Source: https://citywidesuperslow.com/use-lose-muscles-aging/
2. Myasthenia Gravis
- Rare autoimmune disease that can affect

muscles during adulthood
- Characterized by drooping upper eyelids,

difficulty in swallowing and talking, and
generalized muscle weakness and fatigability.
- Shortage of acetylcholine receptors at

neuromuscular junctions caused by antibodies
specific for acetylcholine receptors
2. Myasthenia Gravis
- Death usually occurs when the respiratory

muscles can no longer function, which leads to
respiratory failure.
3. Muscular Dystrophy
- Muscular dystrophy-dystrophin and

dystrophin-associated proteins
- 2 types of dystrophy
Duchenne type
Becker type
No known cure for muscular dystrophies,

treatment is aimed at control of symptoms to
maximize the quality of life
3. Muscular Dystrophy
4. Other Imbalances
IX. REFERNCES
Mechner, A. (2018). Junqueira’s Basic Histology, 15th Ed.. New York : McGraw Hill Education
Keller, S.;Marieb, E. (2017) - Essentials of Human Anatomy & Physiology-Pearson, 12th edition
VanPutte, Cinnamon L., et al (2016), Seeley’s Essentials of Anatomy and Physiology, 12th Edition, McGraw Hill Education
Lecture Notes, Salazar, Romaenia S. RMT, MAT (2019)
Lecture Notes, Ramel, Joshua Luigi D. (2019)
Lecture Notes, Reyes, D., RMT, MPH (2012)

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THE MUSCULAR

2. Study of muscles - Myology

3. Muscle cells - Mycocytes

4. Development of Muscles in the body – Myogenesis

6. Cell membrane and external lamina – sarcolemma

7. Cytoplasm of muscle cells - sarcoplasm

8. Smooth Endoplasmic Reticulum of Muscle is called sarcoplasmic reticulum

1. Movement of the Body

2. Posture Maintenance - constantly maintaining tone (sitting, standing)

3. Respiration - contraction of muscles in the diaphragm when breathing

4. Producing Body Heat - heat released as by-product of muscle contraction (thermoregulation)

5. Communication - speaking, writing, body language

7. Heartbeat - contraction of the cardiac muscle propels blood to other organs

1. Contractility - shortening forcefully

2. Excitability - responding to electrical stimuli called Action Potentials

Autorhythmic electrical signals arising in the muscular tissue itself.

4. Elasticity - springing back to its original resting length

- Attached to the skeleton; covers bone and cartilage

- Also known as Striated Muscle (Visible striations or

- Primarily Voluntary control of contractions

Consists of muscle fibers, which are long,

Elongated nuclei are found peripherally just

Reserve Progenitor cells called satellite cells

1. Endomysium - dense irregular tissue surrounding

2. Perimysium - thin connective tissue layer that

3. Epimysium - external sheath of dense irregular

Myofibril–long, cylindrical filament bundles in the

Somatic Motor Neuron - stimulates skeletal muscle

Transverse or T-tubules - long fingerlike

Terminal cisternae – expanded structures

Filaments inside a myofibril are arranged in compartments called sarcomeres

Sarcomeres –are the basic functional units of a myofibril

A band –the darker middle part of the

I band –Is a lighter, less dense area that

H zone –located in the center of each A band

M line –so named because it is at the middle of

1. Myosin: main component of thick

Has a Head and Tail region:

Myosin Tail - points toward the M line in the center

Myosin Heads - project outward from the shaft in a

2. Actin - Individual actin molecules join to

Myosin-binding Site where a myosin head

Proteins that make up the Actin Myofilament:

G-actin – globular subunit of actin

Troponin – has 3 Subunits

α-actinin – Structural protein of Z Disc; attaches actin to titin

Myomysein – Structural protein of M line of Sarcomere; connects adjacent thick filaments

Dystrophin – links thin filaments of sarcomere to integral membrane proteins in sarcolemma

Presynaptic Terminal – Axon terminal

Motor End Plate – muscle plasma membrane

Synaptic Vesicle - Spherical Sacs that contain the

*Neurotransmitter – molecule that is released

Z discs come closer together, and the sarcomere shortens.

ACh binds to ACh receptors

Troponin changes shape,

Myosin heads of thick

The sarcomere shortens and the muscle contracts

There are 3 pathways that working muscles use to regenerate ATP:

1. Direct phosphorylation of ADP by creatine phosphate

2. Between the layers of cardiac muscle

3. Cardiac muscle fibers have the same

5. Cardiac muscle tissue has an endomysium and

2. Found in the skin, forms part of the walls of

3. Like cardiac muscle, visceral smooth muscle is