scholarly journals Mechanisms of residual force enhancement in skeletal muscle: insights from experiments and mathematical models

2011 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 199-207 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stuart G. Campbell ◽  
Kenneth S. Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Skeletal Muscle ◽  
Mathematical Models ◽  
Force Enhancement ◽  
Residual Force ◽  
Residual Force Enhancement

scholarly journals Residual force enhancement in skeletal muscle

2006 ◽  
Vol 574 (3) ◽  
pp. 635-642 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Herzog ◽  
E. J. Lee ◽  
D. E. Rassier
Keyword(s):  
Skeletal Muscle ◽  
Force Enhancement ◽  
Residual Force ◽  
Residual Force Enhancement

scholarly journals The role of sarcomere length non-uniformities in residual force enhancement of skeletal muscle myofibrils

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (3) ◽  
pp. 150657 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kaleena Johnston ◽  
Azim Jinha ◽  
Walter Herzog
Keyword(s):  
Skeletal Muscle ◽  
Sarcomere Length ◽  
Isometric Force ◽  
Myosin Filament ◽  
Rabbit Muscle ◽  
Force Enhancement ◽  
Length Relationship ◽  
Reference Length ◽  
Residual Force ◽  
Residual Force Enhancement

The sarcomere length non-uniformity theory (SLNT) is a widely accepted explanation for residual force enhancement (RFE). RFE is the increase in steady-state isometric force following active muscle stretching. The SLNT predicts that active stretching of a muscle causes sarcomere lengths (SL) to become non-uniform, with some sarcomeres stretched beyond actin–myosin filament overlap (popping), causing RFE. Despite being widely known, this theory has never been directly tested. We performed experiments on isolated rabbit muscle myofibrils ( n  = 12) comparing SL non-uniformities for purely isometric reference contractions (I-state) and contractions following active stretch producing RFE (FE-state). Myofibrils were activated isometrically along the descending limb of the force–length relationship (mean ± 1 standard deviation (SD) = 2.8 ± 0.3 µm sarcomere −1 ). Once the I-state was reached, myofibrils were shortened to an SL on the plateau of the force–length relationship (2.4 µm sarcomere −1 ), and then were actively stretched to the reference length (2.9 ± 0.3 µm sarcomere −1 ). We observed RFE in all myofibrils (39 ± 15%), and saw varying amounts of non-uniformity (1 SD = 0.9 ± 0.5 µm) that was not significantly correlated with the amount of RFE, but through pairwise comparisons was found to be significantly greater than the non-uniformity measured for the I-state (0.7 ± 0.4 µm). Three myofibrils exhibited no increase in non-uniformity. Active stretching was accompanied by sarcomere popping in four myofibrils, and seven had popped sarcomeres in the I-state. These results suggest that, while non-uniformities are present with RFE, they are also present in the I-state. Furthermore, non-uniformity is not associated with the magnitude of RFE, and myofibrils that had no increase in non-uniformity with stretch still showed normal RFE. Therefore, it appears that SL non-uniformity is a normal associate of muscle contraction, but does not contribute to RFE following active stretching of isolated skeletal muscle myofibrils.

scholarly journals The influence of residual force enhancement on spinal and supraspinal excitability

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e5421 ◽  
Author(s):  
Caleb T. Sypkes ◽  
Benjamin J. Kozlowski ◽  
Jordan Grant ◽  
Leah R. Bent ◽  
Chris J. McNeil ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Skeletal Muscle ◽  
Steady State ◽  
Evoked Potentials ◽  
Isometric Contraction ◽  
Motor Evoked Potentials ◽  
Isometric Force ◽  
Force Enhancement ◽  
Active Muscle ◽  
Residual Force ◽  
Residual Force Enhancement

Background Following active muscle lengthening, there is an increase in steady-state isometric force as compared with a purely isometric contraction at the same muscle length and level of activation. This fundamental property of skeletal muscle is known as residual force enhancement (RFE). While the basic mechanisms contributing to this increase in steady-state isometric force have been well documented, changes in central nervous system (CNS) excitability for submaximal contractions during RFE are unclear. The purpose of this study was to investigate spinal and supraspinal excitability in the RFE isometric steady-state following active lengthening of the ankle dorsiflexor muscles. Methods A total of 11 male participants (20–28 years) performed dorsiflexions at a constant level of electromyographic activity (40% of maximum). Half of the contractions were purely isometric (8 s at an ankle angle of 130°), and the other half were during the RFE isometric steady-state following active lengthening (2 s isometric at 90°, a 1 s lengthening phase at 40°/s, and 5 s at 130°). Motor evoked potentials (MEPs), cervicomedullary motor evoked potentials (CMEPs), and compound muscle action potentials (M-waves) were recorded from the tibialis anterior during the purely isometric contraction and RFE isometric steady-state. Results Compared to the purely isometric condition, following active lengthening, there was 10% RFE (p < 0.05), with a 17% decrease in normalized CMEP amplitude (CMEP/Mmax) (p < 0.05) and no change in normalized MEP amplitude (MEP/CMEP) (p > 0.05). Discussion These results indicate that spinal excitability is reduced during submaximal voluntary contractions in the RFE state with no change in supraspinal excitability. These findings may have further implications to everyday life offering insight into how the CNS optimizes control of skeletal muscle following submaximal active muscle lengthening.

scholarly journals Residual force enhancement in human skeletal muscles: A systematic review and meta-analysis

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daiani de Campos ◽  
Lucas B.R. Orssatto ◽  
Gabriel S. Trajano ◽  
Walter Herzog ◽  
Heiliane de Brito Fontana
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Skeletal Muscles ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Force Enhancement ◽  
Residual Force ◽  
Residual Force Enhancement ◽  
Human Skeletal Muscles

scholarly journals Modifiability of the history dependence of force through chronic eccentric and concentric biased resistance training

2019 ◽  
Vol 126 (3) ◽  
pp. 647-657 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jackey Chen ◽  
Geoffrey A. Power
Keyword(s):  
Steady State ◽  
Resistance Training ◽  
Isometric Force ◽  
Eccentric Training ◽  
Force Enhancement ◽  
History Dependence ◽  
Force Depression ◽  
Residual Force ◽  
Residual Force Enhancement ◽  
Concentric Training

The increase and decrease in steady-state isometric force following active muscle lengthening and shortening are referred to as residual force enhancement (RFE) and force depression (FD), respectively. The RFE and FD states are associated with decreased (activation reduction; AR) and increased (activation increase; AI) neuromuscular activity, respectively. Although the mechanisms have been discussed over the last 60 years, no studies have systematically investigated the modifiability of RFE and FD with training. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether RFE and FD could be modulated through eccentric and concentric biased resistance training. Fifteen healthy young adult men (age: 24 ± 2 yr, weight: 77 ± 8 kg, height: 178 ± 5 cm) underwent 4 wk of isokinetic dorsiflexion training, in which one leg was trained eccentrically (−25°/s) and the other concentrically (+25°/s) over a 50° ankle excursion. Maximal and submaximal (40% maximum voluntary contraction) steady-state isometric torque and EMG values following active lengthening and shortening were compared to purely isometric values at the same joint angles and torque levels. Residual torque enhancement (rTE) decreased by ~36% after eccentric training ( P < 0.05) and increased by ~89% after concentric training ( P < 0.05), whereas residual torque depression (rTD), AR, AI, and optimal angles for torque production were not significantly altered by resistance training ( P ≥ 0.05). It appears that rTE, but not rTD, for the human ankle dorsiflexors is differentially modifiable through contraction type-dependent resistance training. NEW & NOTEWORTHY The history dependence of force production is a property of muscle unexplained by current cross bridge and sliding filament theories. Whether a muscle is actively lengthened (residual force enhancement; RFE) or shortened (force depression) to a given length, the isometric force should be equal to a purely isometric contraction—but it is not! In this study we show that eccentric training decreased RFE, whereas concentric training increased RFE and converted all nonresponders (i.e., not exhibiting RFE) into responders.

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