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The Muscle Trio: Do you know what's unique about skeletal muscle, smooth muscle, and cardiac muscle?
In the human body, there are three main types of muscle tissue: skeletal muscle, smooth muscle, and cardiac muscle. Each of these muscles has its own unique structure and function, and understanding these differences is of great significance not only to biologists but also to ordinary people.
Skeletal muscle
Skeletal muscle, often called "voluntary muscle," is the stripe-like muscle tissue that connects bones. This muscle moves the bones and maintains posture. The widest part of each skeletal muscle is called the "muscle belly," and this is the part that exerts force.
Skeletal muscles can move under conscious control, and their contraction directly affects our movement ability and posture.
Muscle slippage
Muscle slip refers to a variable muscle structure that may be an anatomical variation or a branching structure of the muscle. For example, the strict rib attachment as part of the serratus anterior muscle.
Smooth muscle
Smooth muscle is an involuntary muscle found in many parts of the human body and is primarily responsible for involuntary movements. This type of muscle tissue is mostly found in the digestive and urinary systems and is responsible for moving food and urine through the body.
Smooth muscles are involved in the birth process in the womb and in the eyes are responsible for regulating the size of the pupil.
Myocardium
Myocardium is the only muscle tissue specific to the heart. Unlike skeletal muscle and other muscle tissues, cardiac muscle is also an involuntary muscle that is self-exciting and can contract naturally without external stimulation.
Muscle action
For skeletal muscles, there are also specific terms used to describe the action of the muscle. For example, agonist and antagonist muscles. The agonist muscles are the muscles that cause movement, while the antagonist muscles are the muscles that produce relative movement. This interaction can help control the stability of the movement.
In a push-up, the triceps contract during the "up" phase and control the bend of the elbow during the "down" phase to maintain balance throughout the movement.
Antagonist pair
Agonist muscles and antagonist muscles often appear in pairs. When one muscle contracts, the other is usually relaxed. This mechanism is crucial in many sports, ensuring smooth and safe movements.
Muscles that work together
Synergist muscles, also known as fixator muscles, assist the movement of agonist muscles around joints. Synergist muscles can help stabilize joints, ensure accurate movement and avoid unnecessary injuries.
Neutralizing effect
Those muscles that hold a bone in place so that the agonist muscle can perform the desired action are called neutralizing muscles. This plays a key role in many daily actions.
Muscle naming
The naming of muscles has its own specific terms, which can be related to the size, shape, function, etc. of the muscle, such as: longus, brevis, adductor, etc.
Muscle morphology
The orientation of muscle fibers and the organization of the muscle define the basic form of the muscle. Different types of muscles perform differently in terms of strength and flexibility. For example, the fusiform muscles and pennate muscles are obviously different in structure, and each has its own advantages and disadvantages.
Changes in muscle status
Muscle hypertrophy and atrophy are common physiological changes during exercise. Hypertrophy usually results from exercise, which causes an increase in the size of muscle cells, while atrophy is caused by a lack of exercise or improper use.
It is not difficult to find that in daily life, almost all of our activities are inseparable from the coordinated work of these three muscles. Think about it, do you really understand the role and impact of every muscle in your body?
