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 Coordination and Action01:24

Muscle Coordination and Action

2.6K
Muscle coordination is a complex and finely tuned process essential for smooth and purposeful movements like flexion, extension, adduction, abduction, and rotation. The human body orchestrates the actions of various muscles working in concert, each with a specific role. Four functional types describe how muscles work together: agonist, antagonist, synergist, and fixator.
Agonists
Agonist muscles, often called prime movers, are the primary muscles responsible for producing a specific movement....
2.6K
Muscles of the Shoulder01:23

Muscles of the Shoulder

8.0K
The muscles surrounding the shoulder girdle, including the clavicle and scapula, primarily stabilize the scapula. This stable base allows other muscles to move the humerus effectively. Scapular movements often mirror those of the humerus and extend its range of motion. For instance, raising the arm above the head would not be feasible without simultaneous upward rotation of the scapula.
Anterior Thoracic Muscles
The anterior thoracic muscles include the serratus anterior, subclavius, and...
8.0K
Muscle Contraction01:15

Muscle Contraction

94.4K
 
94.4K
Muscles that Move the Arm01:31

Muscles that Move the Arm

4.0K
Nine muscles are involved in arm movements. Two of these, the pectoralis major and latissimus dorsi, originate from the axial skeleton and are called axial muscles. The other seven originate from the scapula and are called the scapular muscles.
The pectoralis major has two origins. Its clavicular head originates on the medial half of the clavicle. In contrast, the sternocostal head originates on the costal cartilages of ribs 1-6, the sternum, and the aponeurosis of the external oblique of the...
4.0K
Excitation-Contraction Coupling in Skeletal Muscles01:20

Excitation-Contraction Coupling in Skeletal Muscles

12.2K
Excitation-contraction coupling is a series of events that occur between generating an action potential and initiating a muscle contraction. It occurs at the triad, a structure found in skeletal muscle fibers that comprise a T-tubule and terminal cisternae of the sarcoplasmic reticulum on each side. These triads are visible in longitudinally sectioned muscle fibers. They are typically located at the A-I junction — the junction between the A and I bands of the sarcomere.
When an action...
12.2K
Muscles that Move the Head01:19

Muscles that Move the Head

4.2K
The muscles that move the head are a dynamic and complex group of structures that work together to facilitate a wide range of head movements, including rotation, flexion, extension, and lateral bending.
The bilateral sternocleidomastoid, or SCM, and the suprahyoid and infrahyoid muscles are significant head flexors. The SCM muscles originate at the sternum and clavicle and attach to the mastoid process of the temporal bone. The SCM contracts bilaterally to bend the head forward, whereas...
4.2K

You might also read

Related Articles

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

Sort by
Same author

Associations of sagittal spinal alignment with shear wave velocity, thickness, and echo intensity of muscles attached to the spine and pelvis in healthy women.

Journal of biomechanics·2026
Same author

Influence of iliofemoral ligament laxity on hip joint contact forces during gait.

Journal of biomechanics·2026
Same author

Correlation between plantar pressure and foot morphology in 65 + year-old individuals.

Gait & posture·2026
Same author

Association between infrapatellar fat pad stiffness and gait-related mechanical characteristics in women with knee osteoarthritis.

Clinical biomechanics (Bristol, Avon)·2026
Same author

Machine learning-based clinical tool for identifying factors associated with symptomatic knee osteoarthritis: the Nagahama study.

The Knee·2026
Same author

Independent Influences of Increased Step Length and Step Frequency on Lower-Limb Joint Loading During Fast Walking.

Annals of biomedical engineering·2026

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Nov 12, 2025

Combining Multiple Data Acquisition Systems to Study Corticospinal Output and Multi-segment Biomechanics
08:48

Combining Multiple Data Acquisition Systems to Study Corticospinal Output and Multi-segment Biomechanics

Published on: January 9, 2016

7.1K

Quantification of muscle coordination underlying basic shoulder movements using muscle synergy extraction.

Jun Umehara1, Masahide Yagi2, Tetsuya Hirono3

  • 1Human Health Sciences, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan; Research Fellow of Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Tokyo, Japan; Center for Information and Neural Networks, National Institute of Information and Communications Technology, Osaka, Japan.

Journal of Biomechanics
|March 20, 2021
PubMed
Summary

Shoulder muscles coordinate basic movements through muscle synergy. Six global synergies represent these coordinated muscle activities, offering insights into shoulder muscle coordination during various movements.

Keywords:
ElectromyographyMuscle coordinationMuscle synergyShoulder

More Related Videos

Multifunctional Setup for Studying Human Motor Control Using Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, Electromyography, Motion Capture, and Virtual Reality
08:09

Multifunctional Setup for Studying Human Motor Control Using Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, Electromyography, Motion Capture, and Virtual Reality

Published on: September 3, 2015

11.2K
Measuring 3D In-vivo Shoulder Kinematics using Biplanar Videoradiography
06:09

Measuring 3D In-vivo Shoulder Kinematics using Biplanar Videoradiography

Published on: March 12, 2021

3.5K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Nov 12, 2025

Combining Multiple Data Acquisition Systems to Study Corticospinal Output and Multi-segment Biomechanics
08:48

Combining Multiple Data Acquisition Systems to Study Corticospinal Output and Multi-segment Biomechanics

Published on: January 9, 2016

7.1K
Multifunctional Setup for Studying Human Motor Control Using Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, Electromyography, Motion Capture, and Virtual Reality
08:09

Multifunctional Setup for Studying Human Motor Control Using Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, Electromyography, Motion Capture, and Virtual Reality

Published on: September 3, 2015

11.2K
Measuring 3D In-vivo Shoulder Kinematics using Biplanar Videoradiography
06:09

Measuring 3D In-vivo Shoulder Kinematics using Biplanar Videoradiography

Published on: March 12, 2021

3.5K

Area of Science:

  • Biomechanics
  • Neuroscience
  • Human Movement Science

Background:

  • Shoulder joint function relies on complex, coordinated muscle activity.
  • Muscle synergy analysis provides a framework for understanding motor control and coordination.
  • Investigating muscle synergy in basic shoulder movements is crucial for understanding functional anatomy.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore muscle coordination patterns in basic shoulder movements using muscle synergy.
  • To identify the fundamental units of muscle activity underlying shoulder kinematics.

Main Methods:

  • Thirteen healthy men performed 14 distinct multiplanar shoulder movements.
  • Surface electromyography recorded activity from 12 shoulder muscle portions.
  • Dimensionality reduction techniques extracted muscle synergies from the electromyography data.

Main Results:

  • Approximately two "separate" synergies and six "global" synergies were identified per subject.
  • Six global synergies explained 88.0 ± 1.3% of the variance in the overall dataset.
  • Distinct muscle synergy patterns were observed across different shoulder tasks.

Conclusions:

  • Basic shoulder movements are executed through the coordinated action of approximately six muscle synergy units.
  • These identified muscle synergies serve as potential indicators of shoulder muscle coordination.
  • This study provides a quantitative basis for understanding shoulder muscle control strategies.