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Anatomy of the Heart

Anatomy of the Heart

The human heart is made up of three layers of tissue that are surrounded by the pericardium, a membrane that protects and confines the heart. The outermost layer, closest to the pericardium, is the epicardium. The pericardial cavity separates the pericardium from the epicardium. Beneath the epicardium is the myocardium, the middle layer, and the endocardium, the innermost layer. There are four chambers of the heart: the right atrium, the right ventricle, the left atrium, and the left ventricle.

Motor Units

Motor Units

A motor unit consists of two main components: a single efferent motor neuron (i.e., a neuron that carries impulses away from the central nervous system) and all of the muscle fibers it innervates. The motor neuron may innervate multiple muscle fibers, which are single cells, but only one motor neuron innervates a single muscle fiber.

Motor Units

Motor Units

The motor unit is a fundamental component of the neuromuscular system and plays a crucial role in coordinating muscle contractions. It consists of a somatic motor neuron, which connects and controls multiple skeletal muscle fibers, forming a single functional segment. The axon of the motor neuron branches out and establishes synaptic connections known as neuromuscular junctions with individual muscle fibers within the motor unit.
Motor units come in different sizes, with smaller units...

Motor Unit Stimulation

Motor Unit Stimulation

When the neuron of a motor unit fires an action potential, it triggers a series of events, leading to a twitch contraction in the muscle fibers. The process of excitation-contraction coupling is crucial in relaying the action potential to the muscle fibers.
The latent period of contraction marks the onset of excitation-contraction coupling, when the action potential propagates across the sarcolemma, preparing the muscle fibers for contraction. As the fibers enter the contraction phase, the...

Hierarchy of Motor Control

Hierarchy of Motor Control

The hierarchy of motor control refers to the different levels of organization and processing involved in controlling movement in the body. These levels range from higher cortical areas involved in planning and decision-making to lower spinal cord reflexes that respond automatically to external stimuli.

Direct Motor Pathways

Direct Motor Pathways

The direct motor pathways, also known as the pyramidal tracts, are a group of neural pathways that originate in the brain and descend through the spinal cord. They control the voluntary movement of the body. There are two major direct motor pathways: the corticospinal and the corticobulbar tracts.
The corticospinal tract is responsible for the voluntary movement of the limbs and trunk. It originates in the cerebral cortex of the brain and descends through the cerebrum's internal capsule and...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 29, 2026

Biophysical Characterization of Flagellar Motor Functions

Biophysical Characterization of Flagellar Motor Functions

Published on: January 18, 2017

The heart function as a motor-brake system.

Ivan Colorado Cervantes¹, Vittorio Sansalone¹, Luciano Teresi²

¹Faculté des Sciences et Technologie, Université Paris-Est, Créteil Val de Marne, France.

Journal of Theoretical Biology

|February 5, 2019

Summary

This study supports active diastole, proposing the heart functions as a suction pump. Cardiac muscle acts as a motor or brake, synchronized with left ventricle and atrium activity.

Keywords:

Active stretch Biomechanics Cardiac muscle Contraction Left heart

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Published on: December 5, 2014

Area of Science:

Cardiovascular Physiology
Biomechanical Modeling

Background:

The role of active diastole in cardiac function remains a long-standing debate.
Understanding ventricular filling mechanisms is crucial for comprehending overall heart performance.

Purpose of the Study:

To advocate for the active diastole model by analyzing left heart pressure-volume loops.
To propose a novel heart model based on the motor-brake dichotomy of cardiac muscle function.

Main Methods:

Development of a lumped parameter model of the left heart (left ventricle and left atrium) using hollow spherical shells.
Incorporation of active stretch to describe muscle fiber contractile behavior and a nonlinear hyperelastic energy function.
Analysis of experimental pressure-volume data from a normal human subject.

Main Results:

The model successfully illustrates key features of left ventricle-left atrium coupling and cardiac pumping.
Demonstrated synchronized contraction patterns between the left ventricle and left atrium.
Identified distinct contraction characteristics in different phases of the cardiac cycle.

Conclusions:

The findings support the hypothesis that the heart operates as a suction pump, utilizing active diastole.
Cardiac muscle's dual role as a motor and brake allows adaptation to varying physiological demands.
The synchronized interplay between the left ventricle and left atrium is essential for efficient cardiac function.