Search results for "Muscle Contraction"
showing 10 items of 569 documents
The disruption of myofibre structures in rat skeletal muscle after forced lengthening contractions.
1998
Specific antibodies against structural proteins (actin, desmin, dystrophin, fibronectin) of muscle fibres were used to study the effect of forced lengthening contractions on muscle microarchitecture. Tibialis anterior (TA) muscle of male Wistar rats were subjected to 240 forced lengthening contractions. At consecutive time points (0, and 6 h, 2, 4, and 7 days) after stimulation, the TA muscle was excised for biochemical and histological assays. Beta-Glucuronidase activity, a quantitative indicator of muscle damage, showed increased values 2-7 days after the lengthening, peaking on day 4 (11.7-fold increase). A typical course of histopathological changes (myofibre swelling, necrosis and rege…
Embodiment and the origin of interval timing : kinematic and electromyographic data
2016
International audience; Recent evidence suggests that interval timing (the judgment of durations lasting from approximately 500 ms. to a few minutes) is closely coupled to the action control system. We used surface electromyography (EMG) and motion capture technology to explore the emergence of this coupling in 4-, 6-, and 8-month-olds. We engaged infants in an active and socially relevant arm-raising task with seven cycles and response period. In one condition, cycles were slow (every 4 s); in another, they were fast (every 2 s). In the slow condition, we found evidence of time-locked sub-threshold EMG activity even in the absence of any observed overt motor responses at all three ages. Th…
Effects of antidepressants in adrenergic neurotransmission of human vas deferens
2000
Objectives. To evaluate the effects of sertraline, fluoxetine, and amitriptyline on the contractile responses of the human vas deferens muscle elicited by norepinephrine, electrical field stimulation, and KCl, because the therapeutic action of antidepressants may be accompanied by sexual dysfunction related to the contractility of the vas deferens smooth muscle. Methods. Ring segments of the epididymal part of the vas deferens were taken from 32 elective vasectomies and mounted in organ baths for isometric recording of tension. We then studied the effects of sertraline, fluoxetine, and amitriptyline on the neurogenic and agonist-induced contractile responses. Results. Amitriptyline caused c…
Effect of Divalent Cations on the Contractile Response of Rat Aorta to Depolarization before and after Nifedipine Treatment
1996
The influence of the divalent cations, Ca2+, Mg2+ and Ba2+, on the contractile response of the rat aorta to KCl and on the recovery of this response after nifedipine treatment was analyzed. KCl (80 mmol/l) promoted a two-phase (phasic and tonic) contractile response in Krebs solution but, as expected, no contractile response in Ca(2+)-free medium. In Mg(2+)-free medium, the phasic response to KCl was unaffected but the tonic one decreased slowly, suggesting that a long incubation time in the absence of Mg2+ (65 min) promotes a loss of or a change in the intracellular distribution of this ion that modifies Ca2+ entry through L channels or Ca2+ handling. Ba2+ (1.8 mmol/l) contracted the rat a…
Collagen of slow twitch and fast twitch muscle fibres in different types of rat skeletal muscle
1984
The appearance of collagen around individual fast twitch (FT) and slow twitch (ST) muscle fibres was investigated in skeletal muscles with different contractile properties using endurance trained and untrained rats as experimental animals. The collagenous connective tissue was analyzed by measuring hydroxyproline biochemically and by staining collagenous material histochemically in M. soleus (MS), M. rectus femoris (MRF), and M. gastrocnemius (MG). The concentration of hydroxyproline in the ST fibres dissected from MS (2.72 +/- 0.35 micrograms X mg-1 d.w.) was significantly higher than that of the FT fibres dissected from MRF (1.52 +/- 0.33 micrograms X mg-1 d.w.). Similarly, the concentrat…
Cardiac effects of isoliquiritigenin
1997
The effects of isoliquiritigenin on force of contraction (Fc), L-type Ca2+ current (I(Ca)) and intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) were investigated in rat ventricular heart muscle. Isoliquiritigenin increased Fc and I(Ca) and, after longer exposure times, resting tension and [Ca2+]i. The effect of isoliquiritigenin (100 microM) on I(Ca) was diminished by Rp-cAMPS (30 microM). 1H-[1,2,4]oxa- diazolo[4,3-a]quinoxalin-1-one (50 microM) did not influence the effects of isoliquiritigenin on Fc and I(Ca). The positive inotropic effects of isoprenaline and forskolin, but not of 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine, were potentiated by isoliquiritigenin (100 microM). In the presence of milrinone (10…
Adaptive changes in motor control of rhythmic movement after maximal eccentric actions.
2007
Effects of an exhaustive eccentric exercise (EE) on the motor control of maximal velocity rhythmic elbow extension/flexion movement (RM) were examined in eight male students. The exhaustive EE consisted of 100 maximal eccentric actions of the elbow flexor muscles. Movement range was 40-170 degrees in EE at an angular velocity of 2rads(-1). A directive scaled RM of 60 degrees with visual feedback was performed in a sitting position, with the right forearm fixed to the lever arm in horizontal plane above protractor. Surface electromyographic activity (EMG) was recorded from the biceps brachii (BB) and triceps brachii (TB) muscles. Maximal isokinetic eccentric and concentric tests and RM test …
Central Contribution to Electrically Induced Fatigue depends on Stimulation Frequency
2017
International audience; PURPOSE: This study analyzed the impact of several protocols of neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES), matched with a similar total torque-time integral, on muscle activation pathways and neuromuscular fatigue.METHODS: Ten young healthy participants (age: 24.6 +/- 4.2) performed 3 randomized NMES sessions on the triceps surae muscles with 20 Hz, 60 Hz or 100 Hz stimulation frequencies (pulse duration: 1 ms), with pulse amplitude (IES) set at 20 % of isometric maximal voluntary contraction (MVC). Muscle activity during NMES was assessed by means of the twitch, the soleus H-reflex and M wave responses evoked by single muscle stimulation at IES. Neuromuscular fati…
Ultrasound imaging of the quadriceps muscle in elderly athletes and untrained men.
1991
Ultrasound (US) technique was applied to measure the thickness, cross-sectional area (CSA), and internal structure of the quadriceps muscle in 70- to 80-year-old endurance and power athletes and untrained men. Isometric knee extension strength was higher in the power athletes than in the other groups. The mean values for thickness and CSA did not differ between the athletes and the untrained men. The intensity of the intramuscular echo was, however, lower and the echo reflected from the connective tissue septa and bone was higher in the athletes than in the untrained men. Both the CSA and internal structure of the muscle group correlated significantly with muscle strength and number of trai…
Thigh muscle function in stroke patients revealed by velocity-encoded cine phase-contrast magnetic resonance imaging.
2008
Current methods of clinical assessment of muscle coordination and function after stroke do not provide information on deep muscles. The objective of this study was to examine how stroke affects both superficial and deep muscles' coordination and whether muscle function improves after rehabilitation. Muscle function, coordination, and activity of quadriceps femoris (QF) and hamstrings were evaluated in 10 stroke patients with mild hemiparesis and in 6 controls using velocity-encoded cine phase-contrast magnetic resonance imaging (VE-PC MRI), surface electromyography (sEMG), and maximal voluntary isometric contraction torque (MVC). At baseline, the peak muscle velocity of the rectus femoris (…