Anatomy and Physiology Chapter 6 Muscular System Terms

1. Contractile cell

a cell with a specialized membrane and cytoskeleton that permits it to change shape

2. Contraction

muscle cell shortening

3. Body Mass Index (BMI)

an indirect measure of body density

4. Contractile proteins

the cytoskeleton proteins involved in muscle contraction

5. Myogenesis

the process by which embryonic mesoderm cells become muscle tissue

6. Myoblasts

stems cells that form muscle tissue

7. Growth factors

chemicals that act as signals to initiate cell division and differentiation

8. Intrinsic beat

a natural contraction cycle of cardiac muscles

9. Peristalsis

wave-like muscle contractions that move food and waste through the digestive system

10. Muscle fiber

a muscle tissue cell

11. Motor nerve cells

nerves that control the movement of skeletal muscle fibers

12. Sarcolemma

the membrane of muscle cells

13. Excitable membrane

a membrane that responds to signals from other cells and the environment

14. Myofilaments

bands of proteins that compose the cytoskeleton of muscle cell s

15. Titin filaments

a protein filament that supports the myofilaments

16. Myosin

a protein of the thick myofilaments of the muscle cells

17. Actin

one of the 3 proteins that form the thin myofilaments of muscle fibers; it forms the core of the fiber

18. Tropomyosin

one of the 3 proteins that form the thin myofilaments of muscle fibers; it reinforces the actin core

19. Troponin

one of the 3 proteins that form the thin myofilaments of muscle fibers

20. Sarcomere

the contractile unit of a muscle cell

21. Myofibril

long cords of myofilaments that form parallel bundles that comprise most of a muscle cell's interior

22. Z-line

a line across striated muscle fibers that marks the boundaries between each sarcomere

23. Sarcoplasmic reticulum

a system of tubes that stores and transports the calcium needed for muscle contraction

24. Neural stimulation stage

the first stage of muscle cell contraction

25. Neuromuscular junction

the space between a nerve cell and a sarcolemma

26. Neurotransmitter

a chemical used for cell communication

27. Acetylcholine

a neurotransmitter that communicates with muscle cells

28. Acetylcholine receptors

proteins located on the sarcolemma

29. Sodium/Potassium Pumps or ion channels

membrane protein channels that control the ionic distribution of sodium and potassium inside and outside of the cell

30. Muscle cell contraction stage

the second stage of muscle cell contraction

31. Muscle cell relaxation stage

the final stage of muscle cell contraction

32. Rigor mortis

muscle stiffness due to calcium leakage after death

33. Creatine phosphate

a molecule that stores energy in muscle cells

34. Myoglobin

a red colored chemical that stores oxygen for muscle cells

35. Muscle morphology

the shape of the muscle

36. Origin

the immovable attachment point of a muscle to a bone

37. Insertion

the moveable attachment point of a muscle to a bone

38. Parallel muscles

muscle cells that run in the same direction

39. Pinnate muscles

muscle cells that run in various direction

40. Deltoid

refers to the muscles with a broad origin that focuses to a narrow insertion point (triangular in shape)

41. Deltoid muscle

a deltoid-shaped muscle in the shoulder

42. Trapezoid

refers to a trapezoid-shaped muscle

43. Trapezius muscle

a large, trapezoid-shaped muscle found in the upper back

44. Rhomboideus muscles

diamond-shaped muscles

45. Rectus muscles

muscles that are straight in shape and support the pressure of the internal organs

46. Serratus muscles

muscles involved in short movements of the arms, rib cage, and shoulders; sawtooth in shape

47. Biceps muscle

a muscle with two origins

48. Triceps muscle

a muscle with three origins

49. Quadriceps muscle

a muscle with four origins

50. Maximus muscle

the largest muscle of a muscle group

51. Minimus muscle

the smallest muscle of a muscle group

52. Longus muscle

the longest muscle of a muscle group

53. Brevis muscle

the shortest muscle of a muscle group

54. Endomysium

the connective tissue covering each muscle fiber

55. Fascicle

a bundle of muscle cells, or fibers

56. Perimysium

the thin connective tissue covering each fascicle

57. Epimysium

the fibrous connective tissue covering gross muscle

58. Muscle atrophy

the wasting, or shrinking of muscle tissue

59. Muscle threshold

the level of stimulation needed to induce a muscle cell to contract

60. Graded effect

different pulling forces

61. Synergistic

refers to muscles contracting together to produce a common effect

62. Abductor muscle

muscles that move a bone away from the body's midline

63. Adductor muscles

muscles that move a bone closer to the body's midline

64. Depressor muscle

muscles that produce a downward movement

65. Extensor muscles

muscles that increase the angle of a joint

66. Flexor muscles

muscles that decrease the angle of a joint

67. Levator muscles

muscles that produce an upward movement

68. Pronator muscles

muscles the turn the palm upward movement

69. Rotator muscles

muscles that move a bone around its longitudinal axis in a circular direction

70. Sphincter muscles

muscles that decrease the size of an opening

71. Supinator muscles

muscles that turn the palms upward

72. Tensor muscles

muscles that make a body part more rigid or tense

73. Isotonic action

refers to a muscle that is actively shortening or lengthening

74. Isometric action

refers to a muscle that is not lengthening or shortening

75. Strain

an injury due to overworking the muscle's force on joints

76. Sprain

an injury resulting from sudden or violent stress on a joint or muscle

77. Contusion

an injury caused by a direct hit or repeated battering of a muscle

78. Spasms

an involuntary, abnormal muscle contraction

79. Cramp

the painful contraction of a muscle

80. Muscle sensitivity

continuous muscle pain due to tissue damage or disease

81. Rigid paralysis

loss muscle function due to excessive muscle stiffness

82. Flaccid paralysis

loss of muscle function due to a lack of muscle contraction

83. Tetanus

a disease caused by the bacterium tentanus; prevents the muscles from relaxing after contracting (rigid paralysis)

84. Myopathies or Neuromuscular disorders

diseases characterized by the nervous system's inability to communicate with the muscular system

85. Dermatomyositis

inflammation of muscle and skin

86. Familial periodic paralysis

periodic weakness in the arms and legs; a genetic disorder

87. Glycogen storage diseases

diseases that cause muscle weakness due to a diminished ability to use glucose

88. Mitochondrial myopathies

genetic mitochondrial abnormalities that prevent muscles from producing energy

89. Muscular dystrophies

diseases characterized by progressive weakness of voluntary muscles

90. Myoglobinurias

disorders that affect how myoglobin provides oxygen to muscles

91. Myositis ossificans bone growing within the muscle tissue

92. Myotonia

the slow relaxation of muscles after contraction

93. Neuromyotonia

a nerve disorder characterized by bouts of muscle twitching and stiffness

94. Stiff-man syndrome

characterized by rigidity and spasms of the spine and lower-extremity muscles

95. Tetany

periods of arm and leg muscle spasms caused by calcium imbalances

96. Cachexia

muscle loss protein turnover- the rate at which a cell replaces damaged proteins

97. Insulin-like Growth Factors-1 (IGF-1)

a chemical needed for muscle cell growth, maintenance, and repair