8. Muscle
8. Muscle
- Gillian Pocock, Gillian PocockSenior Lecturer in Clinical Science, Canterbury Christ Church University, Canterbury, UK
- Christopher D. RichardsChristopher D. RichardsEmeritus Professor of Experimental Physiology, Division of Physiology, Pharmacology and Neuroscience, Faculty of Life Sciences, University College London, London, UK
- and David A. RichardsDavid A. RichardsAssociate Professor, Department of Basic Pharmaceutical Sciences, Husson University School of Pharmacy, Bangor, Maine, USA
Abstract
This chapter looks at one of the distinguishing characteristics of most multicellular animals, which is their ability to use coordinated movement to explore their environment. It emphasizes how this movement is achieved by the use of muscles, which consist of cells or myocytes that can change their length by a specific contractile process. In vertebrates, including man, three types of muscle can be identified on the basis of their structure and function: skeletal muscle, cardiac muscle, and smooth muscle. The chapter clarifies that skeletal muscle is the muscle directly attached to the bones of the skeleton, and its role is both to maintain posture and to move the limbs by contracting in a coordinated way. Cardiac muscle is the muscle of the heart, while smooth muscle is the muscle that lines the blood vessels and the hollow organs of the body.
