Fatigue accumulation and twitch potentiation during complex MVC-relative profiles

Coordinated contraction of thoracic and pharyngeal upper airway respiratory muscles optimizes ventilation, whereas pharyngeal muscle dysfunction may lead to obstructive apneas during sleep. We hypothesized that the force potentiation exhibited by the pharyngeal respiratory muscle, the sternohyoid, in keeping with its faster contractile kinetics, would be greater than that of the thoracic respiratory muscle, the diaphragm. Rat muscles were studied in vitro at 37 degrees C with three force-potentiating protocols: posttetanic twitch potentiation, staircase phenomenon (twitch potentiation), and a classic fatigue paradigm. The sternohyoid had a faster isometric contraction time, a more rightward located force-frequency relationship, and both a more rapid onset and a greater degree of fatigue than the diaphragm. During the early portion of the fatigue protocols, the increase in force was significantly greater for the sternohyoid muscle than the diaphragm (e.g., 33 vs. 3% increase at 20 Hz, P < 0.005). During repetitive twitches at 2, 3, and 5 Hz (staircase test), sternohyoid muscle force increased more than diaphragm force at the higher stimulus frequencies (e.g., by 38 vs. 23% at 5 Hz, P < 0.01). After brief tetanic stimuli, sternohyoid twitch force increased more than diaphragm twitch force (e.g., 73 vs. 14% increase after 125 Hz tetanus, P < 0.005). These data indicate that force potentiation is exhibited by both diaphragm and sternohyoid respiratory muscles, but to different extents, when activated repetitively.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Download Full-text

The relationship between stimulus-induced antidromic firing and twitch potentiation produced by paraoxon in rat phrenic nerve-diaphragm preparations

British Journal of Pharmacology ◽

10.1111/j.1476-5381.1983.tb11044.x ◽

1983 ◽

Vol 80 (1) ◽

pp. 17-25 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

A.L. Clark ◽

F. Hobbiger ◽

D.A. Terrar

Keyword(s):

Phrenic Nerve ◽

Twitch Potentiation ◽

The Relationship

Download Full-text

Effects of pH on the length-dependent twitch potentiation in skeletal muscle

Journal of Applied Physiology ◽

10.1152/japplphysiol.00912.2001 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 92 (3) ◽

pp. 1293-1299 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Dilson E. Rassier ◽

Walter Herzog

Keyword(s):

Skeletal Muscle ◽

Force Production ◽

Optimal Length ◽

Twitch Potentiation ◽

Length Dependence ◽

Charge Potential ◽

Before And After ◽

Effects Of Ph ◽

Isometric Twitch

When muscle is elongated, there is a length dependence of twitch potentiation and an increased Ca2+ sensitivity of the myofilaments. Changes in the charge potential of myofilaments, induced by a decrease in pH, are known to abolish the length dependence of Ca2+ sensitivity. This study was aimed at testing the hypothesis that a decrease in pH, and the concomitant loss of length dependence of Ca2+sensitivity, depresses the length dependence of staircase potentiation. In vitro, isometric twitch contractions of fiber bundles dissected from the mouse extensor digitorum longus, performed before and after 10 s of 10-Hz stimulation (i.e., the staircase potentiation protocol) were analyzed at five different lengths, ranging from optimal length for maximal force production ( L o; = 12 ± 0.7 mm) to L o + 1.2 mm ( L o + 10%). These measurements were made at an extracellular pH of 6.6, 7.4, and 7.8 (pH changes induced by altering the CO2 concentration of the bath solution). At pH 7.4 and 7.8, the degree of potentiation after 10-Hz stimulation showed a linear decrease with increased fiber bundle length ( r 2 = 0.95 and r 2 = 0.99, respectively). At pH 6.6, the length dependence of potentiation was abolished, and the slope of the length-potentiation relationship was not different from zero ( r 2 = 0.05). The results of this study indicate that length dependence of potentiation in intact skeletal muscle is abolished by lowering the pH. Because decreasing the pH decreases Ca2+ sensitivity and changes the charge potential of the filaments, the mechanism of length-dependent potentiation may be closely related to the length dependence of Ca2+sensitivity, and changes in the charge potential of the myofilaments may be important in regulating this relationship.

Download Full-text