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Updated: Jul 15, 2026

Preparation of the Rat Vocal Fold for Neuromuscular Analyses
Published on: May 15, 2020
A complex muscle fiber network in the cricothyroid muscle: a scanning electron microscopic study
Masamitsu Hyodo1, Aki Taguchi, Takahiko Yamagata
1Department of Otolaryngology, Ehime University School of Medicine, Toon City, Ehime, Japan. hyodoma@m.ehime-u.ac.jp
Objectives:
To examine the three-dimensional ultrastructure of cricothyroid (CT) muscle fibers to elucidate their morphologic characteristics with regard to the specific functions of the muscle.
Study Design:
An anatomic animal study.
Methods:
The CT muscles of five adult rats were processed using the HCl-hydrolysis method to remove the peri- and intramuscular connective tissue components. The fine muscle fiber arrangements were observed by scanning electron microscopy.
Results:
Complex muscle fiber interconnections (myomyous junctions) were identified in the muscles. Myomyous junctions were characterized by the connection of many villous processes that were 1 to 2 mum in diameter and 2 to 4 mum in length with a serrated appearance at the ends of a lateral branch or a bifurcating trunk of the muscle fibers.
Conclusions:
Myomyous junctions form a complex muscle fiber network, which is thought to synchronize the activity of the CT muscle fibers. This is the first three-dimensional demonstration of the muscle fiber network in the CT muscle; this network may play a major role in the functional specificity of the CT muscle.
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