Musculoskeletal

System

Prepared by: Ezra Maurel D. Torno

• Organs
• Structures composed of
several different tissues
grouped into large
structural and functional
units

• Organ systems
• Groups of organs that
work together to carry
out an important
function

Fig. 19.2 Levels of organization

within the vertebrate body
• The muscular system and the
skeletal system function together.
• The muscular system provides
motion.
• Muscle cells contract when
stimulated by the nervous system.
• The skeleton adds a firm
supporting structure that muscles
pull against.
A Closer Look at Bone

• New bone is formed in two stages

• 1. A matrix of collagen fibrils is secreted by cells called
osteoblasts
• 2. The fibrils are impregnated by crystals of a calcium
phosphate mineral called hydroxyapatite

• Bone is laid down in thin layers around a narrow central

channel
• This central canal (or Haversian canal) runs parallel to the length
of the bone
Fig. 19.5 The
structure of bone
• Two cell types are responsible for bone “remodeling”
during growth
Equal osteoblast Excess osteoclast
Osteoblasts and osteoclast activity
activities
Deposit bone
Osteoclasts
Secrete enzymes
that digest the
bone matrix

Osteoporosis
Excessive bone loss
Usually associated
with aging Fig. 19.6
 Muscle Tissue
Lets the Body Move
• The distinguishing characteristic of muscle cells is the abundance of
contractible protein fibers
• These microfilaments (myofilaments) are made up of actin and myosin
• Muscle contraction occurs when actin and myosin slide past each other

• The vertebrate body possesses three different kinds of muscle cells

Smooth Skeletal Cardiac

Smooth Muscle

• Cells are long and spindle-shaped

• Each contains a single nucleus
• Cellular microfilaments are loosely organized

Found in the walls of blood vessels, stomach and

intestines Table 19.4

Power rhythmic
involuntary
contractions
Sheets of
cells
Skeletal Muscle

• Produced by fusion of several cells at their ends

• This creates a very long muscle fiber that contains all the
original nuclei

Microfilaments are bunched together into myofibrils

Table 19.4
Found in voluntary
muscles
Power voluntary
contractions
Striated
Fig. 19.7 A muscle fiber, or muscle cell
Modified ER
Cardiac Muscle

• Composed of chains of single cells, each with its own

nucleus
• Chains are interconnected, forming a latticework

Each heart cell is coupled to its neighbors by

gap junctions
Allow electrical signals Table 19.4

between cells
Cause orderly
pulsation of heart
Striated
Nerve Tissue Conducts Signals Rapidly

• Nerve tissue is composed of two kinds of cells

• 1. Neurons
• Specialized for the transmission of nerve impulses

• 2. Glial cells
• Support neurons with nutrients, support and
insulation
Nerve Tissue Conducts Signals Rapidly

• Neuron plasma membranes are rich in ion-selective

channels
• These maintain a voltage difference between the cell’s interior
and exterior
• Depolarization is the temporary loss of this voltage
difference
• It results in a wave of electrical activity, or nerve
impulse
 • Each neuron consists of three parts
1. Cell body – Contains the nucleus
2. Dendrites – Bring nerve impulses to the cell
3. Axon – Carry nerve impulses away from the cell

Fig. 19.8
• Neurons are separated by tiny gaps termed synapses
• Neurons communicate by passing neurotransmitters across
these synapses

• Note:
• A nerve is made up of the axons of many neurons
TABLE 19.5
Types of Skeletons
• There are three types of skeletons in animals
• 1. Hydraulic skeleton
• Fluid-filled cavity encircled by muscle fibers

Fig. 19.9

Found in soft-bodied invertebrates like jellyfish

• 2. Exoskeleton Fig. 19.10
• Rigid hard case Exoskeleton
surrounding the body made up of
• Found in arthropods chitin

Rock crab

3. Endoskeleton
Rigid internal skeleton to which muscles attach
Found in vertebrates and echinoderms
Endoskeleton
made up of
bone

Fig. 19.11
The Human Skeleton

• Made up of 206 individual bones

• Axial skeleton
• Supports the main body axis
• Skull, backbone (spine) and rib cage
• 80 bones in all

• Appendicular skeleton
• Supports the arm and legs
• Pectoral and pelvic girdles
• 126 bones in all
Fig. 19.12 Axial and
appendicular
skeletons
Bones are the organs of the vertebrate
skeleton
• Bones are grouped into two
categories:
• The axial skeleton surrounds the
central axis of the body.
• The appendicular skeleton
consists of the appendages and
the bones that support them.
The axial skeleton shields soft body parts

• The skull protects the brain

and the sense organs.
• The ribs protect the heart
and lungs.
• The vertebrae protect the
spinal cord.
The appendicular skeleton consists of the limbs

• The pectoral girdle connects

the forelimbs to the axial
skeleton.
• The pelvic girdle attaches the
hind limbs to the axial
skeleton.
The vertebrate skeleton features a central backbone

• The vertebral column supports and protects the spinal cord.

• Ribs, which protect the heart and lungs, attach to the
vertebral column.

• The vertebral column curves to the side in

scoliosis, a disorder of the axial skeleton
Bones have several different functions
Bones connected to muscles
provide movement.
Bone minerals supply calcium and
phosphorus to the rest of the body.
Blood cells form at the marrow
inside bones.

Section 26.3 Figure 26.4

(bone): ©Ed Reschke
Bones are lightweight and strong
Bones are porous rather than solid.
They consist mostly of specialized
cells suspended in a hard,
mineralized extracellular matrix.

•Bone cells secrete a hard

extracellular matrix that consists of
collagen and minerals.
•Collagen proteins add flexibility,
while the minerals add hardness
and rigidity.

Figure 26.4
(bone): ©Ed Reschke
Bones produce new blood cells in the marrow
The marrow cavity is a space
occupying the center of the bone shaft.

•Red bone marrow is a nursery for

blood cells and platelets.
•Yellow bone marrow replaces red
marrow in adult limb bones. It does
not produce blood but can revert to
red marrow if necessary.

Figure 26.4
Bones contain nerves and blood vessels

Bones are living organs.

Canals located
throughout the bone
house veins, arteries,
and nerves.

Figure 26.4
There are two types of bone tissue
The marrow cavity is
surrounded by a layer of light,
porous spongy bone. Spongy
bone cavities contain marrow.

Compact bone, which is hard

and dense, forms the outer
coat.

Figure 26.4
Bones also contain cartilage
Besides bone, cartilage is the
other main connective tissue
in the skeleton. Covering the
ends of bones, it consists
mostly of tough, elastic
proteins.

Cartilage resists breakage and

stretching, even when bearing
great weight, and acts as an
excellent shock absorber.

Figure 26.4
The skeleton begins as cartilage
Bone tissue replaces cartilage as a fetus develops. Bone continues
to develop after birth as the bone matrix becomes mineralized.

Figure 26.6
Bone meets bone at a joint
A joint is an area where two
bones meet, allowing for
movement.

The bones are surrounded by

a fluid-filled capsule of
fibrous connective tissue that
allows bones to move against
each other without friction.

Figure 26.5
Tendons and ligaments help stabilize movable joints
Tendons are tough bands of
connective tissue that attach
bone to muscle.
Ligaments are similar
structures that attach bone to
bone.

Figure 26.5
Bones help regulate calcium homeostasis
Under the control of
hormones, the body maintains
calcium homeostasis by
constantly shuttling calcium
between blood and bone.

Calcium is vital for muscle

contraction, blood clotting, and
the activity of certain enzymes.
Osteoporosis is the loss of
calcium from bone tissue,
which weakens the bones.

Figure 26.7
Photos: (a): ©Prof. P.M. Motta/Univ. “La Sapienza,” Rome/Science Source; (b): ©Dee Breger/Science Source
19.8 Muscles and How They Work

• The major human

muscles include the
following

Fig. 19.13
19.8 Muscles and How They Work

• Skeletal muscles are attached to bones by straps of

connective tissue called tendons

• Bones pivot about flexible joints pulled back and forth

by attached muscles

• The origin of the muscle is the end attached by a tendon to a

stationary bone

• The insertion is the end attached to a bone that moves during

muscle contraction
• Muscles in movable joints are attached in opposing pairs
• Flexors retract limbs
• Extensors extend limbs

Fig. 19.14
• Limb movement is always the result of muscle contraction
• Never muscle extension

• There are two types of muscle contraction

• Isotonic
• Muscle shortens, thus moving the bones

• Isometric
• Muscle does not shorten, but it exerts a force
Muscle Contraction
• Myofilaments are made up of actin and myosin
• Actin filaments consist of two chains of actin molecules wrapped
around one another
• Mysosin filaments also consist of two chains wound around each
other
• One end consists of a very long rod
• The other consists of a double-headed globular
region or “head”

Fig. 19.15
• An ATP-powered myosin head-flex mechanism allows the
actin filament to slide past myosin
This causes myofilament contraction
Fig. 19.16
How actin
and myosin
filaments
interact
• In vertebrate skeletal muscle, contraction is initiated by a
nerve impulse

• Nerve fibers are embedded in the surface of the muscle

fiber forming a neuromuscular junction
• When a signal reaches the end of a neuron
• The neuron releases acetylcholine into the gap
between neuron and muscle
• This causes depolarization of the muscle cell
Role of Calcium Ions in Contraction

• When a muscle is relaxed, attachment sites for myosin

heads are blocked by tropomyosin

For the muscle to contract, tropomyosin must be

moved by another protein called troponin

The troponin-tropomyosin complex is regulated

by calcium ion concentrations in the muscle cell
 Absence of Ca++ Muscle is relaxed

Fig. 19.17
How calcium
controls
muscle
contraction

Presence of Ca++ Muscle contracts

Role of Calcium Ions in Contraction

• Muscle fibers store Ca++ in the sarcoplasmic reticulum

Fig. 19.18

Nerve activity
causes the release
of Ca++ and
ultimately muscle
contraction