Practical 1

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 Simple Muscle Twitch (SMT)
Systems for Recording Skeletal Muscle Response

 Nerve and muscle tissues are the most excitable tissues in the body :
a) The nerve responds by electrical response called nerve impulse or action
potential.
b) The muscle responds by mechanical response called muscle contraction.

Stimulus

Def :  Change that could be either internal or external environment.

 The most commonly used stimuli in laboratory experiments are

Most electrical stimuli : MCQ

common a) their onset, duration and strength are easily controlled
stimulus : b) similar to physiological process of excitation,
c) cause no or minimal tissue damage so, can be repeated.

Galvanic current Faradic current

 Long duration  Short duration
 Low amplitude  High amplitude
Types of
electrical
stimuli :

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 Grading of ms contraction: According to strength :
Subminimal (subthreshold) Minimal (threshold) Superminimal (super-
Maximal stimulus Super-maximal stimuli
stimuli stimulus threshold) stimuli
 the stimulus that produces
a maximal response.
 Increasing the intensity of the  Stimuli of greater
 When the stimulus
 The weakest stimulus gradually above intensities than the
 Stimuli of low intensity which reaches a certain value,
stimulus which threshold value leads to maximal stimulus. These
produce no response. the response becomes
produces a gradual increase in the stimuli produce the same
(even if applied for long time). maximum and fixed i.e.
response. response till it becomes response as the maximal
there is no further
maximum stimulus.
increase in the response
with greater intensities.

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 All Or None Rule

 The response either occurs maximally or it does not occur at all,

Def :
provided that all other conditions remain constant.
 All subminimal stimuli do not produce response
 Minimal (threshold) stimulus produces a maximal response. MCQ
NB :
 Further increase in the intensity of the stimuli (superminimal, maximal,
supermaximal) do not produce any further increase in the response

NB :
 Is there any contradiction between gradation of skeletal muscle contraction and all
or none role ??
 No as All or non law is applied in the single nerve fiber or single muscle fiber
while gradation is applied in the nerve trunk or the whole muscle.

Motor unit recruitment

 The degree of muscle contraction is controlled by:
1. number of motor units within the muscle.
2. frequency of motor neuron impulses in each motor unit.
 When an increased muscle contraction is necessary, the brain increases the number
of simultaneously active motor unit within the muscle. This is called “motor unit
recruitment” .

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 Simple muscle twitch (SMT)
 Definition:
 A single contraction followed by relaxation due to simulation of skeletal muscle
by single maximal stimulus .
 Phases :
latent phase: Contraction phase: Relaxation phase:
 The interval from  The muscle fibers  The muscle return to
stimulus application shorten its original length
Def
until muscle begins
to shorten.
Duration 10 m.sec = .01 sec 40 m.sec = .04 sec 50 m.sec = .05 sec

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 Factors affecting simple muscle twitch :
1. Temperature
2. Fatigue
3. Stimulus frequency
1. Temperature:

Warming Cooling
By using Warm ringer’s solution Cool ringer’s solution
 Increase amplitude of SMT  Decrease amplitude of SMT
Effect  Decrease duration of all phases  Increase duration of all
of SMT phases of SMT
 ↑ Activity of enzymes & ↑ ATP
Production
Mechanism ‫العكس‬
 ↓ Viscosity of ms leading to easy
sliding of actine over mysine

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 NB:
 Sever warming ≥42: Heat rigor
 Heat rigor :
 Definition: Stiffness of ms.
 Types:
1. Heat rigor: see above
2. Ca+2 rigor: rapid IV Ca injection → stop heart in systole
3. Rigor mortis: continuous contraction without relaxation after death due to
decreased ATP because relaxation is an active process that need ATP

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 2. Fatigue :

 Decreased muscular activity due to rapid repeated stimuli, the

Definition
muscle may not show any response to stimuli.

1. Decrease amplitude of SMT

2. Increase duration of all phases of SMT
Manifested 3. Contracture : a state of sustained weak muscle contraction followed
by
by incomplete relaxation due to depletion of ATP which occurs
when the muscle become extremely fatigued. MCQ

1. Cardiovascular system: supplies the muscles with O2 and nutrients

and removes the metabolites from the muscle.
2. CNS: regulates the muscle contraction so that not all the muscle
Causes of fibers are contracted at the same time, but instead, there is
delayed ms
alternation between contracted and relaxed muscle fibers.
fatigue
3. Hormones: e.g. adrenaline, noradrenalin, cortisol, thyroxin and
insulin. They delay onset fatigue by increasing the metabolic rate,
glycogen stores, blood pressure and excitability of nervous system

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 3. Effects of increased Stimulus Frequency

Staircase (treppe) phenomenon Clonus (incomplete tetanus) Complete tetanus

Frequency  Low frequency Maximal stimulus.
of stimulus
 After end of simple ms twitch.
Time
 there is an increase in the height of each  Clonus: Rapid repeated contractions
twitch until a constant height is reached
after several twitches.
 The 2nd stimulus finds the muscle in a
Effect
better physiological condition (more
warm and more Ca ++ ions are present
inside the muscle fibers).
 Moderate frequency Maximal  High frequency Maximal stimulus.
stimulus. (around 20-60 HZ)
 During relaxation phase of simple ms  During contraction phase of simple ms
twitch. twitch.
 Tetanus: a continuous contraction without
of the muscle with incomplete relaxation which results from fusion of
relaxation. successive contractions due to persistent
release of Ca++ ions.
 The tension developed during a complete
tetanus is about 4 times that developed by
a simple muscle twitch.

Figure

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NB:
 Factors affecting genesis of tetnus (= with low frequncy stimulus , how
can you produce tetanus) :
1. Type of ms fibers: occur in slow red fibers.
2. ↑ duration of SMT (Cooling, ↓ O2 & fatigue)
3. Anticholinestrase (Prostigmine) → prolong contraction.

 The commenst contraction in body → tetenus.

Systems for Recording Skeletal Muscle Response

 Types of apparatuses :

kymograph Biopac

 Each apparatus include:

1. Organ bath for tissue
2. Rotating drum and pen for recording
3. Electrical stimulator

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