Bones & Joints
Which type of joint describes a ball-and-socket joint, a hinge joint, and plane joint AND allows for the widest range of movement?
Diarthrotic joints
Which two types of muscle tissue are considered involuntary?
Smooth and cardiac muscle.
What is the name of the chemical messenger released at the neuromuscular junction to initiate a muscle contraction?
Acetylcholine.
Damage to which part of the vertebral column would most likely impair breathing?
cervical
Explain why skeletal and cardiac muscle tissues are not interchangeable in the body.
The different types of muscle tissue are not interchangeable because each one has a unique structure and function that makes it perfectly suited for its specific job. For example, cardiac muscle has an intricate structure that allows it to contract on its own and without fatigue, which is necessary for pumping blood for a lifetime.
What is the specific location where a motor neuron and a muscle cell meet?
The neuromuscular junction.
What type of joint is found in the wrist and ankle, allowing for a gliding or sliding motion?
The wrist and ankle have plane joints which allow for a gliding or sliding motion.
Which structural feature gives skeletal and cardiac muscle their striated appearance?
Striations are caused by the arrangement of sarcomeres
What would happen if a person's body stopped producing acetylcholine?
They would experience paralysis, as their muscles would not be able to receive the signal to contract.
What are the five classifications of bones based on their shape? List an example for each.
Long bones (femur), short bones (carpals), flat bones (sternum), irregular bones (vertebrae), and sesamoid bones (patella)
Provide an example of an antagonistic muscle pair, and describe how they work together to produce movement.
An antagonistic pair consists of a muscle that flexes a joint and an opposing muscle that extends it. An example is the biceps and triceps.
What two proteins are primarily responsible for muscle contraction?
Actin and Myosin.
Why are bones like the femur, which are classified as long bones, more susceptible to stress fractures than other bone types?
Long bones are responsible for bearing the majority of the body's weight, which makes them susceptible to repeated stress.
What is the general appearance of smooth muscle cells under a microscope?
Smooth muscle cells have a spindle-like shape and lack striations.
What molecule must bind to the protein myosin in order for a muscle to relax?
ATP. During a muscle contraction, ATP binds to the myosin head, allowing it to detach from actin. The ATP is then hydrolyzed (broken down) into ADP and a phosphate, which provides the energy for the myosin head to reattach to the actin, causing the muscle to contract.