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Updated: Feb 14, 2026

Assessing Functional Metrics of Skeletal Muscle Health in Human Skeletal Muscle Microtissues
Published on: February 18, 2021
Rigor bonds cause reduced sarcomeric volume in skinned porcine skeletal muscle under PSE-like conditions
Jiao Liu1, Matthias Schwartzkopf2, Anders Arner1
1Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Abstract:
Effects of rigor cross-bridge attachment on water holding in PSE-like conditions were investigated. A new model using permeabilised/skinned porcine longissimus thoracis et lumborum muscle fibres was established to study effects of varied pH, temperature and the presence of rigor bonds on the muscle fibre structure. Preparations were exposed during 30min to different temperatures (22 and 38°C) and pH (7.0 and 5.5) in relaxed and rigor states, followed by evaluation of active force and filament lattice spacing (using small angle X-ray scattering) at standard pH (7.0) and temperature (22°C) conditions. A significant reduction of active force and filament spacing was observed after treatment in rigor at denaturing (38°C, pH5.5) conditions. The present study show that rigor bond attachment under denaturing conditions leads to a compressed interfilamental space, loss of sarcomeric water and affected contractile function.
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