In notes: striated muscle (striped muscle, skeletal muscle, voluntary muscle) Muscle that is composed of large, elongated cells

s (muscle fibres), each with many nuclei, in which the cytoplasm is marked by fine lines (striations) at right angles to the long axis. The striations occur because the cytoplasm contains many myofibrils, each of which is made from alternating bands of different material, and the myofibrils lie side by side with the bands aligned. Striated muscles are capable of rapid contraction and are particularly associated with voluntary movements of the skeleton. Although skeletal muscles come in different shapes and sizes the main structure of a skeletal muscle remains the same. If you were to take one whole muscle and cut through it, you would find the muscle is covered in a layer of connective tissue known as the Epimysium. The Epimysium protects the muscle from friction against other muscles and bones. It also continues at the end of the muscle to form (along with other connective tissues) the muscles tendon. Looking at the cross section of the muscle you can see bundles of fibres, known as Fasciculi, which are surrounded by another connective tissue, called the Perimysium. Each Fasciculi contains anywhere between 10 and 100 muscle fibres, depending on the muscle in question. Looking at each muscle fibre in detail, you can see they too are covered in a fibrous connective tissue, known as Endomysium which insulates each muscle fibre. Muscle fibres can range from 10 to 80 micrometers in diameter and may be up to 35cm long.

Beneath the Endomysium and surrounding the muscle fibre is the Sarcolemma which is the fibres cell membrane and beneath this is the Sarcoplasm, which is the cells cytoplasm, a gelatinous fluid which fills most cells. This contains Glycogen and Fats for energy and also Mitochondria which are the cells powerhouses, inside which the cells energy is produced. Each muscle fibre itself contains cylindrical organelles known as Myofibrils. Each muscle fibre contains hundreds to thousands of Myofibrils. These are bundles of Actin and Myosin proteins which run the length of the muscle fibre and are important in muscle contraction. Surrounding the Myofibril there is a network of tubules and channels called the Sarcoplasmic Reticulum in which Calcium is stored which is important in muscle contraction. Transverse tubules pass inwards from the Sacrolemma throughout the Myofibril, through which nerve impulses travel. Each Myofibril can then be broken down into functional repeating segments called Sarcomeres. For more information on sacomeres and how muscles contract take a look at sliding filament theory.
The endomysium, meaning within the muscle, is a layer of connective tissue that ensheaths a muscle fiber and is composed mostly from reticular fibers. It also contains capillaries, nerves, and lymphatics. It overlies the muscle fiber's cell membrane: the Sarcolemma. Sheath an enveloping structure or covering enclosing an animal or plant organ or part

Skeletal muscle fibers are not all the same. Traditionally, they were categorized depending on their varying color.

Red Fibers: Those containing high levels of myoglobin and oxygen storing proteins had a red appearance. Red muscle fibers tend to have more mitochondria and blood vessels than the white ones. White Fibers: Those with a low content had a white appearance. Thick Filaments Thick filaments are formed from a protein called myosin which has important properties of elasticity and contractibility. The shape of the myosin molecules has the apperance of two "hockey sticks" or "golf clubs" twisted together. This is illustrated in the diagram above - indicating the two parts of the myosin molecule referred to in Advanced Textbooks about Muscles These are the myosin tail, and the myosin heads, or "crossbridges" . Thin Filaments The main component of the thin filaments is a protein called actin. Actin molecules join together forming chains twisted into a helix configuration. These molecules are very important to the contraction mechanism of muscles because each actin molecule has a single "myosin-binding site" (not illustrated above). The other two protein molecules that form the thin filaments are called troponin and tropomyosin. The molecules of tropomyosin cover the myosin-binding sites on the actin molecules when the muscle fibres are relaxed. Myosin and actin form the main contractile elements of muscles. This is because it is the binding of the thick filaments to the thin filaments - and in particular the positions of these points of attachment - that controls the state of contraction/relaxation of the muscle of which they are apart. Recall (from the previous page) that the thick filaments and the thin filaments together form units called sacromeres. The diagram of a sacromere is repeated below:

Muscle type and innervation of the diaphragm Type musculaire et innervation du diaphragme
[Re: Involuntary Diaphragm???]

John Messmer 1998

There are three types of muscle in the body: skeletal, smooth and cardiac. Skeletal contracts in response to a nerve impulse at the individual muscle cell's neural plate. It is not propogated to other muscles. Smooth muscle also uses a stimulus to contract, though its type of contraction is less forceful than skeletal muscle and can propogate to other smooth muscle cells. Smooth muscle is in intestines, for example. Cardiac muscle contracts spontaneously, but that's a separate topic. The diaphragm has ONLY skeletal muscle, not smooth muscle - none. It will not contract spontaneously as cardiac muscle. It MUST have an impulse delivered to contract. That impulse

can originate in the higher brain centers as when we voluntarily inhale and exhale or in the lower brain as when low oxygen levels or high levels of acid or carbon dioxide are present in the cerebrospinal fluid or blood. There are MANY sites of modulation of breathing in the brain too complicated for this forum. I will repeat what I have said before: the diaphragm muscle is skeletal and *not considered voluntary or involuntary* - it is the NERVOUS SYSTEM which is either voluntary or involuntary depending on whether we are consciously or unconsciously breathing. The phrenic nerve carries motor fibers that originate in the upper brain - the cortex which serves voluntary actions, and lower brain - brainstem which serves involuntary actions. There are NO SYMPATHETIC OR PARASYMPATHETIC nerves to the diaphragm. (Lungs, yes; diaphragm, no.) We determine whether our diaphragms are at rest, contracted or forced up into our thoraces by the proprioceptive (position) sensation in our abdominal and chest walls and the nociceptive (bad feeling) fibers in our intestines and lungs. When it is contracted, our abdominal organs are pushed down and our abdominal walls are pushed out. When relaxed, this reverses. To exhale fully, it requires us to contract the abdominal wall muscles and the intercostal muscles (between the ribs) since our diaphragms can not move any higher than fully relaxed. I hope this clears it up. John John Messmer, MD, Medical Director Penn State Geisinger Health Group, Palmyra, PA
The lungs do not have muscles, the work of breathing is done by the DIAPHRAGM The orbicularis oculi is a muscle in the face that closes the eyelids. The levator palpebrae superioris (latin for: elevating muscle of upper eyelid) is the muscle in the orbit that elevates the superior (upper) eyelid. The superior tarsal muscle (also known as Mller's muscle) is a smooth muscle adjoining the levator palpebrae superioris muscle that helps to raise the upper eyelid. Flexor the muscle that bends a joint Extensor the muscle that straightens a joint

Muscles of the tongue

The muscles of the tongue fall into two groups. The extrinsic muscles are those which extend out of the tongue and are attached to nearby structures such as the hyoid bone and the mandible. These move the tongue bodily in the mouth. The intrinsic muscles are wholly within the tongue. Their function is to alert the shape of the tongue. The fibers of the intrinsic muscles are arranged to run both across and along the tongue.