Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Muscle Stimulation Frequency01:22

Muscle Stimulation Frequency

5.0K
The contraction strength of muscles is regulated by motor neurons, which modulate the frequency of action potentials dispatched to the motor units based on the body's requirements. This process of varying the muscle stimulation frequency allows muscles to contract with a force that is precisely tailored to the needs of the moment, whether lifting a feather or a heavy box.
Wave summation
At low firing rates, motor neurons induce individual twitch contractions in muscle fibers. These twitches...
5.0K
Isotonic and Isometric Muscle Contractions01:22

Isotonic and Isometric Muscle Contractions

8.6K
Two primary types of muscle contractions are isotonic and isometric, each serving unique functions and involving distinct mechanisms. Both isotonic and isometric contractions are integral to the body's complex system of movement and stability. Isotonic exercises contribute significantly to functional strength and movement, while isometric contractions are crucial for maintaining posture and joint stability.
Isotonic contractions
Isotonic contractions occur when a muscle changes length while...
8.6K
Forced Oscillations01:06

Forced Oscillations

8.2K
When an oscillator is forced with a periodic driving force, the motion may seem chaotic. The motions of such oscillators are known as transients. After the transients die out, the oscillator reaches a steady state, where the motion is periodic, and the displacement is determined.
8.2K
Damped Oscillations01:07

Damped Oscillations

7.5K
In the real world, oscillations seldom follow true simple harmonic motion. A system that continues its motion indefinitely without losing its amplitude is termed undamped. However, friction of some sort usually dampens the motion, so it fades away or needs more force to continue. For example, a guitar string stops oscillating a few seconds after being plucked. Similarly, one must continually push a swing to keep a child swinging on a playground.
Although friction and other non-conservative...
7.5K
Specialized Characteristics of Cardiac Muscles01:27

Specialized Characteristics of Cardiac Muscles

4.7K
The primary role of cardiac muscles is to propel blood throughout the cardiovascular system. The cardiac muscle cells, or cardiomyocytes, exhibit specialized characteristics that allow them to perform this function.
Cardiac muscle cells are smaller than skeletal muscles, averaging 10–20 mm in diameter and 50–100 mm in length. However, they have large energy demands for continuous contraction and relaxation. This energy is almost exclusively derived from aerobic metabolism of energy...
4.7K
Smooth Muscle Contraction01:25

Smooth Muscle Contraction

8.9K
Smooth muscle contraction is a complex process vital for various bodily functions, from maintaining blood vessel tension to facilitating the movement of food through the digestive tract. Unlike striated muscles, smooth muscle contraction begins more slowly and lasts longer.
The onset of contraction is triggered by an increase in calcium ions within the sarcoplasm, similar to the process in striated muscle. However, smooth muscles have a relatively smaller reservoir of the sarcoplasmic...
8.9K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Bulk Ferromagnetic Icosahedral Quasicrystals without Rapid Quenching.

Journal of the American Chemical Society·2026
Same author

Machine Learning-Based Prediction of Polymer Chemical Resistance to Organic Solvents.

ACS omega·2026
Same author

Design of metabolism-inspired hydrogels driven by emergence of function.

Chemical communications (Cambridge, England)·2026
Same author

Alteration of bile acid metabolism in mice under thermoneutral conditions.

Steroids·2026
Same author

Design and Optimization of a Twisted Photodiode Pixel Structure for All-Directional Phase-Detection Autofocus CMOS Image Sensors.

Sensors (Basel, Switzerland)·2026
Same author

Self-Oscillating Helix Showing Amplified Winding and Unwinding Motions.

Advanced materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.)·2026

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Mar 16, 2026

Bioinspired Soft Robot with Incorporated Microelectrodes
08:24

Bioinspired Soft Robot with Incorporated Microelectrodes

Published on: February 28, 2020

9.4K

Self-oscillating gels beating like a heart muscle.

Ryo Yoshida1

  • 1Department of Materials Engineering, School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan.

Biophysics (Nagoya-Shi, Japan)
|August 6, 2016
PubMed
Summary

Researchers developed novel self-oscillating polymer gels that mimic heart muscle function. These smart materials autonomously swell and deswell, offering potential for biomimetic actuators and advanced functional surfaces.

Keywords:
Belousov-Zhabotinsky reactionBiomimeticsPolymer gelsSelf-oscillation

More Related Videos

Cardiac Muscle Cell-based Actuator and Self-stabilizing Biorobot - Part 2
09:33

Cardiac Muscle Cell-based Actuator and Self-stabilizing Biorobot - Part 2

Published on: May 9, 2017

9.2K
The Mechanics of Poro-Elastic Contractile Actomyosin Networks As a Model System of the Cell Cytoskeleton
08:50

The Mechanics of Poro-Elastic Contractile Actomyosin Networks As a Model System of the Cell Cytoskeleton

Published on: March 10, 2023

1.2K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Mar 16, 2026

Bioinspired Soft Robot with Incorporated Microelectrodes
08:24

Bioinspired Soft Robot with Incorporated Microelectrodes

Published on: February 28, 2020

9.4K
Cardiac Muscle Cell-based Actuator and Self-stabilizing Biorobot - Part 2
09:33

Cardiac Muscle Cell-based Actuator and Self-stabilizing Biorobot - Part 2

Published on: May 9, 2017

9.2K
The Mechanics of Poro-Elastic Contractile Actomyosin Networks As a Model System of the Cell Cytoskeleton
08:50

The Mechanics of Poro-Elastic Contractile Actomyosin Networks As a Model System of the Cell Cytoskeleton

Published on: March 10, 2023

1.2K

Area of Science:

  • Polymer Chemistry
  • Materials Science
  • Biomimetic Systems

Background:

  • Stimuli-responsive polymer gels are widely studied for smart materials.
  • Novel biomimetic gels with autonomous self-oscillating functions, inspired by heart muscle, were first reported in 1996.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review recent progress in self-oscillating polymer gels.
  • To highlight the design and application of these novel biomimetic gels.

Main Methods:

  • Utilizing the Belousov-Zhabotinsky (BZ) reaction to design self-oscillating polymers and gels.
  • Covalently immobilizing the BZ reaction catalyst within a poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) network.

Main Results:

  • The developed polymer gels exhibit autonomous cyclic swelling-deswelling changes.
  • These changes occur spontaneously in the presence of reactants, without external stimuli.
  • The self-oscillating gels demonstrate potential for functional material systems.

Conclusions:

  • Self-oscillating polymer gels offer a novel approach to biomimetic materials.
  • Potential applications include bio-mimetic actuators and mass transport surfaces.
  • This review summarizes recent advancements in this field.