scholarly journals Poorly Understood Aspects of Striated Muscle Contraction

2015 ◽  
Vol 2015 ◽  
pp. 1-28 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alf Månsson ◽  
Dilson Rassier ◽  
Georgios Tsiavaliaris
Keyword(s):  
Muscle Contraction ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Striated Muscle ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Skeletal Muscle Function ◽  
Tension Development ◽  
Atomic Structures ◽  
Molecular Events ◽  
Physiological Properties

Muscle contraction results from cyclic interactions between the contractile proteins myosin and actin, driven by the turnover of adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Despite intense studies, several molecular events in the contraction process are poorly understood, including the relationship between force-generation and phosphate-release in the ATP-turnover. Different aspects of the force-generating transition are reflected in the changes in tension development by muscle cells, myofibrils and single molecules upon changes in temperature, altered phosphate concentration, or length perturbations. It has been notoriously difficult to explain all these events within a given theoretical framework and to unequivocally correlate observed events with the atomic structures of the myosin motor. Other incompletely understood issues include the role of the two heads of myosin II and structural changes in the actin filaments as well as the importance of the three-dimensional order. We here review these issues in relation to controversies regarding basic physiological properties of striated muscle. We also briefly consider actomyosin mutation effects in cardiac and skeletal muscle function and the possibility to treat these defects by drugs.

The Filament Lattice of Striated Muscle

1998 ◽  
Vol 78 (2) ◽  
pp. 359-391 ◽  
Author(s):  
BARRY M. MILLMAN
Keyword(s):  
Muscle Contraction ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Striated Muscle ◽  
Muscle Fibers ◽  
Lattice Stability ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
Thin Filaments ◽  
Intact Muscle ◽  
Radial Forces ◽  
Speed Of Shortening

Millman, Barry M. The Filament Lattice of Striated Muscle. Physiol. Rev. 78: 359–391, 1998. — The filament lattice of striated muscle is an overlapping hexagonal array of thick and thin filaments within which muscle contraction takes place. Its structure can be studied by electron microscopy or X-ray diffraction. With the latter technique, structural changes can be monitored during contraction and other physiological conditions. The lattice of intact muscle fibers can change size through osmotic swelling or shrinking or by changing the sarcomere length of the muscle. Similarly, muscle fibers that have been chemically or mechanically skinned can be compressed with bathing solutions containing very large inert polymeric molecules. The effects of lattice change on muscle contraction in vertebrate skeletal and cardiac muscle and in invertebrate striated muscle are reviewed. The force developed, the speed of shortening, and stiffness are compared with structural changes occurring within the lattice. Radial forces between the filaments in the lattice, which can include electrostatic, Van der Waals, entropic, structural, and cross bridge, are assessed for their contributions to lattice stability and to the contraction process.

Role of LHCII-containing macrodomains in the structure, function and dynamics of grana

2000 ◽  
Vol 27 (3) ◽  
pp. 279 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Garab ◽  
L. Mustárdy
Keyword(s):  
Excitation Energy ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Higher Plants ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
Lateral Heterogeneity ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
3D Network

In higher plants and green algae two types of thylakoids are distinguished, granum (stacked) and stroma (unstacked) thylakoids. They form a three-dimensional (3D) network with large lateral heterogeneity: photosystem II (PSII) and the associated main chlorophyll a/b light-harvesting complex (LHCII) are found predominantly in the stacked region, while PSI and LHCI are located mainly in the unstacked region of the membrane. This picture emerged from the discovery of the physical separation of the two photosystems (Boardman and Anderson 1964). Granal chloroplasts possess significant flexibility, which is essential for optimizing the photosynthetic machinery under various environmental conditions. However, our understanding concerning the assembly, structural dynamics and regulatory functions of grana is far from being complete. In this paper we overview the significance of the three-dimensional structure of grana in the absorption properties, ionic equilibrations, and in the diffusion of membrane components between the stacked and unstacked regions. Further, we discuss the role of chiral macrodomains in the grana. Lateral heterogeneity of thylakoid membranes is proposed to be a consequence of the formation of macrodomains constituted of LHCII and PSII; their long range order permits long distance migration of excitation energy, which explains the energetic connectivity of PSII particles. The ability of macrodomains to undergo light-induced reversible structural changes lends structural flexibility to the granum. In purified LHCII, which has also been shown to form stacked lamellar aggregates with long range chiral order, excitation energy migrates for large distances; these macroaggregates are also capable of undergoing light-induced reversible structural changes and fluorescence quenching. Hence, some basic properties of grana appear to originate from its main constituent, the LHCII.

scholarly journals Nanoscopic changes in the lattice structure of striated muscle sarcomeres involved in the mechanism of spontaneous oscillatory contraction (SPOC)

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fumiaki Kono ◽  
Seitaro Kawai ◽  
Yuta Shimamoto ◽  
Shin’ichi Ishiwata
Keyword(s):  
Structural Changes ◽  
Striated Muscle ◽  
Lattice Structure ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Force Balance ◽  
Dynamic Force ◽  
Structural Requirement ◽  
Oscillatory Dynamics ◽  
Contractile System ◽  
Wide Range

Abstract Muscles perform a wide range of motile functions in animals. Among various types are skeletal and cardiac muscles, which exhibit a steady auto-oscillation of force and length when they are activated at an intermediate level of contraction. This phenomenon, termed spontaneous oscillatory contraction or SPOC, occurs devoid of cell membranes and at fixed concentrations of chemical substances, and is thus the property of the contractile system per se. We have previously developed a theoretical model of SPOC and proposed that the oscillation emerges from a dynamic force balance along both the longitudinal and lateral axes of sarcomeres, the contractile units of the striated muscle. Here, we experimentally tested this hypothesis by developing an imaging-based analysis that facilitates detection of the structural changes of single sarcomeres at unprecedented spatial resolution. We found that the sarcomere width oscillates anti-phase with the sarcomere length in SPOC. We also found that the oscillatory dynamics can be altered by osmotic compression of the myofilament lattice structure of sarcomeres, but they are unchanged by a proteolytic digestion of titin/connectin—the spring-like protein that provides passive elasticity to sarcomeres. Our data thus reveal the three-dimensional mechanical dynamics of oscillating sarcomeres and suggest a structural requirement of steady auto-oscillation.

scholarly journals Estimation of Forces on Actin Filaments in Living Muscle from X-ray Diffraction Patterns and Mechanical Data

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (23) ◽  
pp. 6044
Author(s):  
Srboljub M. Mijailovich ◽  
Momcilo Prodanovic ◽  
Thomas C. Irving
Keyword(s):  
Muscle Contraction ◽  
Striated Muscle ◽  
Thin Filaments ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Cytoskeletal Network ◽  
Molecular Events ◽  
Mechanisms Of Adaptation ◽  
Length Changes ◽  
Diffraction Patterns ◽  
Intracellular Forces

Many biological processes are triggered or driven by mechanical forces in the cytoskeletal network, but these transducing forces have rarely been assessed. Striated muscle, with its well-organized structure provides an opportunity to assess intracellular forces using small-angle X-ray fiber diffraction. We present a new methodology using Monte Carlo simulations of muscle contraction in an explicit 3D sarcomere lattice to predict the fiber deformations and length changes along thin filaments during contraction. Comparison of predicted diffraction patterns to experimental meridional X-ray reflection profiles allows assessment of the stepwise changes in intermonomer spacings and forces in the myofilaments within living muscle cells. These changes along the filament length reflect the effect of forces from randomly attached crossbridges. This approach enables correlation of the molecular events, such as the current number of attached crossbridges and the distributions of crossbridge forces to macroscopic measurements of force and length changes during muscle contraction. In addition, assessments of fluctuations in local forces in the myofilaments may reveal how variations in the filament forces acting on signaling proteins in the sarcomere M-bands and Z-discs modulate gene expression, protein synthesis and degradation, and as well to mechanisms of adaptation of muscle in response to changes in mechanical loading.

Role of LHCII-containing macrodomains in the structure, function and dynamics of grana

2000 ◽  
Vol 27 (7) ◽  
pp. 723 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Garab ◽  
L. Mustárdy
Keyword(s):  
Excitation Energy ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Higher Plants ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
Lateral Heterogeneity ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
3D Network

In higher plants and green algae two types of thylakoids are distinguished, granum (stacked) and stroma (unstacked) thylakoids. They form a three-dimensional (3D) network with large lateral heterogeneity: photosystem II (PSII) and the associated main chlorophyll a/b light-harvesting complex (LHCII) are found predominantly in the stacked region, while PSI and LHCI are located mainly in the unstacked region of the membrane. This picture emerged from the discovery of the physical separation of the two photosystems (Boardman and Anderson 1964). Granal chloroplasts possess significant flexibility, which is essential for optimizing the photosynthetic machinery under various environmental conditions. However, our understanding concerning the assembly, structural dynamics and regulatory functions of grana is far from being complete. In this paper we overview the significance of the three-dimensional structure of grana in the absorption properties, ionic equilibrations, and in the diffusion of membrane components between the stacked and unstacked regions. Further, we discuss the role of chiral macrodomains in the grana. Lateral heterogeneity of thylakoid membranes is proposed to be a consequence of the formation of macrodomains constituted of LHCII and PSII; their long range order permits long distance migration of excitation energy, which explains the energetic connectivity of PSII particles. The ability of macrodomains to undergo light-induced reversible structural changes lends structural flexibility to the granum. In purified LHCII, which has also been shown to form stacked lamellar aggregates with long range chiral order, excitation energy migrates for large distances; these macroaggregates are also capable of undergoing light-induced reversible structural changes and fluorescence quenching. Hence, some basic properties of grana appear to originate from its main constituent, the LHCII.

Role of LHCII-containing macrodomains in the structure, function and dynamics of grana

1999 ◽  
Vol 26 (7) ◽  
pp. 649 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Garab ◽  
L. Mustárdy
Keyword(s):  
Excitation Energy ◽  
Long Range ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Higher Plants ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Dimensional Structure ◽  
Lateral Heterogeneity ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
3D Network

In higher plants and green algae two types of thylakoids are distinguished, granum (stacked) and stroma (unstacked) thylakoids. They form a three-dimensional (3D) network with large lateral heterogeneity: photosystem II (PSII) and the associated main chlorophyll a/b light-harvesting complex (LHCII) are found predominantly in the stacked region, while PSI and LHCI are located mainly in the unstacked region of the membrane. This picture emerged from the discovery of the physical separation of the two photosystems (Boardman and Anderson 1964). Granal chloroplasts possess significant flexibility, which is essential for optimizing the photosynthetic machinery under various environmental conditions. However, our understanding concerning the assembly, structural dynamics and regulatory functions of grana is far from being complete. In this paper we overview the significance of the three-dimensional structure of grana in the absorption properties, ionic equilibrations, and in the diffusion of membrane components between the stacked and unstacked regions. Further, we discuss the role of chiral macrodomains in the grana. Lateral heterogeneity of thylakoid membranes is proposed to be a consequence of the formation of macrodomains constituted of LHCII and PSII; their long range order permits long distance migration of excitation energy, which explains the energetic connectivity of PSII particles. The ability of macrodomains to undergo light-induced reversible structural changes lends structural flexibility to the granum. In purified LHCII, which has also been shown to form stacked lamellar aggregates with long range chiral order, excitation energy migrates for large distances; these macroaggregates are also capable of undergoing light-induced reversible structural changes and fluorescence quenching. Hence, some basic properties of grana appear to originate from its main constituent, the LHCII.

Inositol trisphosphate, calcium and muscle contraction

1988 ◽  
Vol 320 (1199) ◽  
pp. 399-414 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Smooth Muscle ◽  
Muscle Contraction ◽  
Phosphatase Activity ◽  
G Protein ◽  
Striated Muscle ◽  
Smooth Muscles ◽  
Physiological Role ◽  
Protein S ◽  
Storage Site

The identity of organelles storing intracellular calcium and the role of Ins(1,4,5) P 3 , in muscle have been explored with, respectively, electron probe X-ray microanalysis (EPMA) and laser photolysis of ‘caged’ compounds. The participation of G-protein(s) in the release of intracellular Ca 2+ was determined in saponin-permeabilized smooth muscle. The sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) is identified as the major source of activator Ca 2+ in both smooth and striated muscle; similar (EPMA) studies suggest that the endoplasmic reticulum is the major Ca 2+ storage site in non-muscle cells. In none of the cell types did mitochondria play a significant, physiological role in the regulation of cytoplasmic Ca 2+ . The latency of guinea pig portal vein smooth muscle contraction following photolytic release of phenylephrine, an α 1 -agonist, is 1.5 ± 0.26 s at 20 °C and 0.6 ± 0.18 s at 30 °C; the latency of contraction after photolytic release of Ins(1,4,5) P 3 from caged Ins(1,4,5) P 3 is 0.5 ± 0.12 s at 20 °C. The long latency of α 1 -adrenergic Ca 2+ release and its temperature dependence are consistent with a process mediated by G-protein-coupled activation of phosphatidylinositol 4,5 bisphosphate (PtdIns(4,5) P 2 ) hydrolysis. GTPγS, a non-hydrolysable analogue of GTP, causes Ca 2+ release and contraction in permeabilized smooth muscle. Ins(1,4,5) P 3 has an additive effect during the late, but not the early, phase of GTPγS action, and GTPγS can cause Ca 2+ release and contraction of permeabilized smooth muscles refractory to Ins(l,4,5) P 3 . These results suggest that activation of G protein (s) can release Ca 2+ by, at least, two G-proteinregulated mechanisms: one mediated by Ins(1,4,5) P 3 and the other Ins(1,4,5) P 3 - independent. The Ins(1,4,5) P 3 , 5-phosphatase activity and the slow time-course (seconds) of the contractile response toIns(1,4,5) P 3 released with laser flash photolysis from caged Ins(1,4,5) P 3 in frog skeletal muscle suggest that Ins(1,4,5) P 3 is unlikely to be the physiological messenger of excitation-contraction coupling of striated muscle. In contrast, in smooth muscle the high Ins Ins(1,4,5) P 3 -5-phosphatase activity and the rate of force development after photolytic release of Ins(1,4,5) P 3 are compatible with a physiological role of Ins(1,4,5) P 3 as a messenger of pharmacomechanical coupling.

Application of stereological analysis of cell volume to isolated myocytes in culture with and without adrenergic innervation

1990 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 416-417
Author(s):  
Jane K. Rosenthal ◽  
Dianne L. Atkins ◽  
William J. Marvin ◽  
Penny A. Krumm
Keyword(s):  
Cardiac Myocytes ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Adrenergic Innervation ◽  
Culture Cell ◽  
Serial Sections ◽  
Newborn Rats ◽  
Primary Culture Cell ◽  
Biological Studies ◽  
Cell Volumes

To comprehend structural changes in cardiac myocytes accompanying adrenergic innervation, it is essential that a three dimensional analysis be performed. To date, biological studies which utilize stereological methods have been limited to cells in tissue and in organs. Our laboratory has utilized current stereological techniques for measuring absolute volumes of individual myocytes in primary culture. Cell volumes are calculated for two distinct groups of cells at 96 hours in culture: isolated myocytes and myocytes innervated with adrenergic neurons (Figure 1).Cardiac myocytes are cultured from the ventricular apices of newborn rats. Cells are plated directly onto tissue culture dishes with or without preplated explants from the paravertebral thoracolumbar sympathetic chain. On day four cultures are photographed and marked for one-to-one cell location. Following conventional fixation and embeddment in eponate-12, the cells are relocated and mounted for microtomy. The cells are completely sectioned at 120nm in their parallel orientation to the surface of the dish (Figure 2). Serial sections are collected on formvar coated slotted grids and are recorded in sequence.

Going Beyond 3-D Imaging: Automated 3-D Montaged image Analysis of Cytological Specimens

1996 ◽  
Vol 54 ◽  
pp. 282-283
Author(s):  
Badrinath Roysam ◽  
Hakan Ancin ◽  
Douglas E. Becker ◽  
Robert W. Mackin ◽  
Matthew M. Chestnut ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Image Analysis ◽  
Structural Changes ◽  
Sampling Methods ◽  
Spatial Clustering ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Field Of View ◽  
Cell Counting ◽  
Depth Of Field ◽  
Tissue Cell ◽  
Tissue Organization

This paper summarizes recent advances made by this group in the automated three-dimensional (3-D) image analysis of cytological specimens that are much thicker than the depth of field, and much wider than the field of view of the microscope. The imaging of thick samples is motivated by the need to sample large volumes of tissue rapidly, make more accurate measurements than possible with 2-D sampling, and also to perform analysis in a manner that preserves the relative locations and 3-D structures of the cells. The motivation to study specimens much wider than the field of view arises when measurements and insights at the tissue, rather than the cell level are needed.The term “analysis” indicates a activities ranging from cell counting, neuron tracing, cell morphometry, measurement of tracers, through characterization of large populations of cells with regard to higher-level tissue organization by detecting patterns such as 3-D spatial clustering, the presence of subpopulations, and their relationships to each other. Of even more interest are changes in these parameters as a function of development, and as a reaction to external stimuli. There is a widespread need to measure structural changes in tissue caused by toxins, physiologic states, biochemicals, aging, development, and electrochemical or physical stimuli. These agents could affect the number of cells per unit volume of tissue, cell volume and shape, and cause structural changes in individual cells, inter-connections, or subtle changes in higher-level tissue architecture. It is important to process large intact volumes of tissue to achieve adequate sampling and sensitivity to subtle changes. It is desirable to perform such studies rapidly, with utmost automation, and at minimal cost. Automated 3-D image analysis methods offer unique advantages and opportunities, without making simplifying assumptions of tissue uniformity, unlike random sampling methods such as stereology.12 Although stereological methods are known to be statistically unbiased, they may not be statistically efficient. Another disadvantage of sampling methods is the lack of full visual confirmation - an attractive feature of image analysis based methods.

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