scholarly journals The force-generation capacity of the tibialis anterior muscle at different muscle–tendon lengths depends on its motor unit contractile properties

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Cudicio ◽  
Eduardo Martinez-Valdes ◽  
Marta Cogliati ◽  
Claudio Orizio ◽  
Francesco Negro
Keyword(s):  
Motor Unit ◽  
Tibialis Anterior ◽  
Discharge Rate ◽  
Tibialis Anterior Muscle ◽  
Muscle Length ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Surface Emg ◽  
Contractile Properties ◽  
Force Generation ◽  
Generation Capacity

Abstract Purpose Muscle–tendon length can influence central and peripheral motor unit (MU) characteristics, but their interplay is unknown. This study aims to explain the effect of muscle length on MU firing and contractile properties by applying deconvolution of high-density surface EMG (HDEMG), and torque signals on the same MUs followed at different lengths during voluntary contractions. Methods Fourteen participants performed isometric ankle dorsiflexion at 10% and 20% of the maximal voluntary torque (MVC) at short, optimal, and long muscle lengths (90°, 110°, and 130° ankle angles, respectively). HDEMG signals were recorded from the tibialis anterior, and MUs were tracked by cross-correlation of MU action potentials across ankle angles and torques. Torque twitch profiles were estimated using model-based deconvolution of the torque signal based on composite MU spike trains. Results Mean discharge rate of matched motor units was similar across all muscle lengths (P = 0.975). Interestingly, the increase in mean discharge rate of MUs matched from 10 to 20% MVC force levels at the same ankle angle was smaller at 110° compared with the other two ankle positions (P = 0.003), and the phenomenon was explained by a greater increase in twitch torque at 110° compared to the shortened and lengthened positions (P = 0.002). This result was confirmed by the deconvolution of electrically evoked contractions at different stimulation frequencies and muscle–tendon lengths. Conclusion Higher variations in MU twitch torque at optimal muscle lengths likely explain the greater force-generation capacity of muscles in this position.

Discharge Rate of Sternohyoid Motor Units Activated With Surface EMG Feedback

2009 ◽  
Vol 101 (2) ◽  
pp. 624-632 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dario Farina ◽  
Deborah Falla
Keyword(s):  
Motor Unit ◽  
Motor Neurons ◽  
Discharge Rate ◽  
Maximum Level ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Surface Emg ◽  
Discharge Rates ◽  
Average Maximum ◽  
Motor Unit Discharge ◽  
Voluntary Contractions

We analyzed individual motor units of the sternohyoid muscle with the aim of characterizing their minimum and maximum discharge rates and their variability in discharge during voluntary contractions. Surface EMG signals were recorded with an array of eight electrodes from the sternohyoid muscle of seven healthy men (age: 30.2 ± 3.5 yr). The multichannel surface EMG signals were displayed as feedback for the subjects who identified and modulated the activity of one target motor unit in 30-s contractions during which the discharge rate was increased from minimum to maximum (ramp contraction), sustained at maximum level (sustained), or increased in brief bursts (burst). During the ramp contractions, the minimum average discharge rate over epochs of 1 s was 11.6 ± 1.5 pulses per second (pps) and the maximum 57.0 ± 5.7 pps ( P < 0.001). During the sustained contractions, the motor unit discharge rate decreased from 65.5 ± 8.4 pps at the beginning to 52.9 ± 7.6 pps at the end of the contraction ( P < 0.05). The coefficient of variation for the interspike interval during the sustained contractions was 40.2 ± 9.8% and a large percentage of discharges had instantaneous rates >50 pps (52.2 ± 12.5%) and >100 pps (8.0 ± 1.2%), with peak values >150 pps. During the burst contractions, the instantaneous discharge rate reached average maximum values of 97.6 ± 36.8 pps. The observed discharge rates and their variability are higher than those reported for limb muscles, which may be due to large synaptic input and noise received by these motor neurons.

Motor unit firing rates and contractile properties in tibialis anterior of young and old men

1999 ◽  
Vol 87 (2) ◽  
pp. 843-852 ◽  
Author(s):  
Denise M. Connelly ◽  
Charles L. Rice ◽  
Martin R. Roos ◽  
Anthony A. Vandervoort
Keyword(s):  
Motor Unit ◽  
Tibialis Anterior ◽  
Tibialis Anterior Muscle ◽  
Young Men ◽  
Contractile Properties ◽  
Firing Rates ◽  
Twitch Contraction ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Motor Unit Firing ◽  
Old Men

The effects of aging on motoneuron firing rates and muscle contractile properties were studied in tibialis anterior muscle by comparing results from six young (20.8 ± 0.8 yr) and six old men (82.0 ± 1.7 yr). For each subject, data were collected from repeated tests over a 2-wk period. Contractile tests included maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) with twitch interpolation and stimulated twitch contractions. The old men had 26% lower MVC torque ( P < 0.01) than did the young men, but percent activation was not different (99.1 and 99.3%, respectively). Twitch contraction durations were 23% longer ( P < 0.01) in the old compared with the young men. During a series of repeated brief steady-state contractions at 10, 25, 50, 75, and 100% MVC, motor unit firing rates were recorded. Results from ∼950 motor unit trains in each subject group indicated that at all relative torque levels mean firing rates were 30–35% lower ( P < 0.01) in the old subjects. Comparisons between young and old subjects’ mean firing rates at each of 10%, 50%, and MVC torques and their corresponding mean twitch contraction duration yielded a range of moderate-to-high correlations ( r = −0.67 to −0.84). That lower firing rates were matched to longer twitch contraction durations in the muscle of old men, and relatively higher firing rates were matched with shorter contraction times from the young men, indirectly supports the neuromuscular age-related remodeling principle.

scholarly journals The Effect of Spinal Manipulation on the Electrophysiological and Metabolic Properties of the Tibialis Anterior Muscle

Healthcare ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 548
Author(s):  
Imran Khan Niazi ◽  
Ernest Nlandu Kamavuako ◽  
Kelly Holt ◽  
Taha Al Muhammadee Janjua ◽  
Nitika Kumari ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Muscle Strength ◽  
Motor Unit ◽  
Repeated Measures ◽  
Tibialis Anterior ◽  
Spinal Manipulation ◽  
Near Infrared ◽  
Discharge Rate ◽  
Tibialis Anterior Muscle ◽  
Passive Movement ◽  
Metabolic Properties

There is growing evidence showing that spinal manipulation increases muscle strength in healthy individuals as well as in people with some musculoskeletal and neurological disorders. However, the underlying mechanism by which spinal manipulation changes muscle strength is less clear. This study aimed to assess the effects of a single spinal manipulation session on the electrophysiological and metabolic properties of the tibialis anterior (TA) muscle. Maximum voluntary contractions (MVC) of the ankle dorsiflexors, high-density electromyography (HDsEMG), intramuscular EMG, and near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) were recorded from the TA muscle in 25 participants with low level recurring spinal dysfunction using a randomized controlled crossover design. The following outcomes: motor unit discharge rate (MUDR), strength (force at MVC), muscle conduction velocity (CV), relative changes in oxy- and deoxyhemoglobin were assessed pre and post a spinal manipulation intervention and passive movement control. Repeated measures ANOVA was used to assess within and between-group differences. Following the spinal manipulation intervention, there was a significant increase in MVC (p = 0.02; avg 18.87 ± 28.35%) and a significant increase in CV in both the isometric steady-state (10% of MVC) contractions (p < 0.01; avg 22.11 ± 11.69%) and during the isometric ramp (10% of MVC) contractions (p < 0.01; avg 4.52 ± 4.58%) compared to the control intervention. There were no other significant findings. The observed TA strength and CV increase, without changes in MUDR, suggests that the strength changes observed following spinal manipulation are, in part, due to increased recruitment of larger, higher threshold motor units. Further research needs to investigate the longer term and potential functional effects of spinal manipulation in various patients who may benefit from improved muscle function and greater motor unit recruitment.

Decreased motor unit discharge rate in the potentiated human tibialis anterior muscle

2011 ◽  
Vol 201 (4) ◽  
pp. 483-492 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. G. Inglis ◽  
J. Howard ◽  
K. McIntosh ◽  
D. A. Gabriel ◽  
R. Vandenboom
Keyword(s):  
Motor Unit ◽  
Tibialis Anterior ◽  
Discharge Rate ◽  
Tibialis Anterior Muscle ◽  
Unit Discharge ◽  
Motor Unit Discharge ◽  
Human Tibialis Anterior Muscle

scholarly journals The extraction of neural strategies from the surface EMG

2004 ◽  
Vol 96 (4) ◽  
pp. 1486-1495 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dario Farina ◽  
Roberto Merletti ◽  
Roger M. Enoka
Keyword(s):  
Motor Unit ◽  
Neural Control ◽  
Muscle Activation ◽  
Control Strategies ◽  
Discharge Rate ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Surface Emg ◽  
Global Features ◽  
Emg Signal ◽  
The Many

This brief review examines some of the methods used to infer central control strategies from surface electromyogram (EMG) recordings. Among the many uses of the surface EMG in studying the neural control of movement, the review critically evaluates only some of the applications. The focus is on the relations between global features of the surface EMG and the underlying physiological processes. Because direct measurements of motor unit activation are not available and many factors can influence the signal, these relations are frequently misinterpreted. These errors are compounded by the counterintuitive effects that some system parameters can have on the EMG signal. The phenomenon of crosstalk is used as an example of these problems. The review describes the limitations of techniques used to infer the level of muscle activation, the type of motor unit recruited, the upper limit of motor unit recruitment, the average discharge rate, and the degree of synchronization between motor units. Although the global surface EMG is a useful measure of muscle activation and assessment, there are limits to the information that can be extracted from this signal.

Amplitude cancellation reduces the size of motor unit potentials averaged from the surface EMG

2006 ◽  
Vol 100 (6) ◽  
pp. 1928-1937 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin G. Keenan ◽  
Dario Farina ◽  
Roberto Merletti ◽  
Roger M. Enoka
Keyword(s):  
Motor Unit ◽  
Conduction Velocity ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Surface Emg ◽  
Excitation Level ◽  
Bipolar Electrode ◽  
Emg Signal ◽  
Motor Unit Synchronization ◽  
Rate Coding ◽  
Simulated Surface

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the influence of selected physiological parameters on amplitude cancellation in the simulated surface electromyogram (EMG) and the consequences for spike-triggered averages of motor unit potentials derived from the interference and rectified EMG signals. The surface EMG was simulated from prescribed recruitment and rate coding characteristics of a motor unit population. The potentials of the motor units were detected on the skin over a hand muscle with a bipolar electrode configuration. Averages derived from the EMG signal were generated using the discharge times for each of the 24 motor units with lowest recruitment thresholds from a population of 120 across three conditions: 1) excitation level; 2) motor unit conduction velocity; and 3) motor unit synchronization. The area of the surface-detected potential was compared with potentials averaged from the interference, rectified, and no-cancellation EMGs. The no-cancellation EMG comprised motor unit potentials that were rectified before they were summed, thereby preventing cancellation between the opposite phases of the potentials. The percent decrease in area of potentials extracted from the rectified EMG was linearly related to the amount of amplitude cancellation in the interference EMG signal, with the amount of cancellation influenced by variation in excitation level and motor unit conduction velocity. Motor unit synchronization increased potentials derived from both the rectified and interference EMG signals, although cancellation limited the increase in area for both potentials. These findings document the influence of amplitude cancellation on motor unit potentials averaged from the surface EMG and the consequences for using the procedure to characterize motor unit properties.

Rectification is required to extract oscillatory envelope modulation from surface electromyographic signals

2014 ◽  
Vol 112 (7) ◽  
pp. 1685-1691 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher J. Dakin ◽  
Brian H. Dalton ◽  
Billy L. Luu ◽  
Jean-Sébastien Blouin
Keyword(s):  
Motor Unit ◽  
Stimulus Frequency ◽  
Motor Units ◽  
Surface Emg ◽  
Medial Gastrocnemius ◽  
Single Motor Unit ◽  
Single Motor ◽  
Single Motor Units ◽  
Emg Signal ◽  
Envelope Modulation

Rectification of surface electromyographic (EMG) recordings prior to their correlation with other signals is a widely used form of preprocessing. Recently this practice has come into question, elevating the subject of EMG rectification to a topic of much debate. Proponents for rectifying suggest it accentuates the EMG spike timing information, whereas opponents indicate it is unnecessary and its nonlinear distortion of data is potentially destructive. Here we examine the necessity of rectification on the extraction of muscle responses, but for the first time using a known oscillatory input to the muscle in the form of electrical vestibular stimulation. Participants were exposed to sinusoidal vestibular stimuli while surface and intramuscular EMG were recorded from the left medial gastrocnemius. We compared the unrectified and rectified surface EMG to single motor units to determine which method best identified stimulus-EMG coherence and phase at the single-motor unit level. Surface EMG modulation at the stimulus frequency was obvious in the unrectified surface EMG. However, this modulation was not identified by the fast Fourier transform, and therefore stimulus coherence with the unrectified EMG signal failed to capture this covariance. Both the rectified surface EMG and single motor units displayed significant coherence over the entire stimulus bandwidth (1–20 Hz). Furthermore, the stimulus-phase relationship for the rectified EMG and motor units shared a moderate correlation ( r = 0.56). These data indicate that rectification of surface EMG is a necessary step to extract EMG envelope modulation due to motor unit entrainment to a known stimulus.

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