Muscle Tissue and Gross Anatomy p5

A collection of flashcards covering key terms and definitions related to muscle tissue and its anatomy.

Muscle Tissue

Composes nearly half of the body’s mass, transforms chemical energy into mechanical energy.

Types of Muscle Tissue

The three types are skeletal, cardiac, and smooth.

Skeletal Muscle

Attached to bones, voluntary control, rapid contraction, striated appearance.

Cardiac Muscle

Found only in the heart, involuntary control, striated, branched appearance.

Smooth Muscle

Found in hollow organs, involuntary control, non-striated, used for digestive tract movements.

Excitability

Characteristic of muscle tissue; ability to respond to stimuli.

Contractility

Characteristic of muscle tissue; ability to shorten forcibly when stimulated.

Extensibility

Characteristic of muscle tissue; ability to be stretched.

Elasticity

Characteristic of muscle tissue; ability to recoil to resting length.

Function of Muscles

Produce movement, maintain posture, stabilize joints, generate heat.

Epimysium

Connective tissue surrounding the entire muscle.

Perimysium

Connective tissue surrounding fascicles (groups of muscle fibers).

Endomysium

Connective tissue surrounding each individual muscle fiber.

Direct Muscle Attachment

Epimysium fuses to periosteum of the bone or perichondrium of cartilage.

Indirect Muscle Attachment

Connective tissues extend beyond the muscle to attach to the periosteum via tendon.

Aponeurosis

A sheet of connective tissue that attaches muscle to the periosteum.

Myofibril

Contractile threads found in striated muscle cells.

Sarcomere

The basic unit of a muscle's cross-striated myofibril.