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Related Concept Videos

Skeletal Muscle Anatomy00:55

Skeletal Muscle Anatomy

Skeletal muscle is the most abundant type of muscle in the body. Tendons are the connective tissue that attaches skeletal muscle to bones. Skeletal muscles pull on tendons, which in turn pull on bones to carry out voluntary movements.
Formation of Muscle Fibers from Myoblasts01:13

Formation of Muscle Fibers from Myoblasts

De novo myogenesis, or the formation of muscle fibers, begins during the early embryonic stages. The skeletal muscle is formed from somites– blocks of embryonic cell layers. The somites are further divided into dermatomes, myotomes, sclerotomes, and syndetomes. Among these, the myotomes give rise to muscle fibers.
Muscle progenitor cells (MPCs) are formed from the myotomes. MPCs express genes that encode the transcription factors Pax3 and Pax7. Along with Pax 3/7, other transcription factors...
Satellite Stem Cells and Muscular Dystrophy01:21

Satellite Stem Cells and Muscular Dystrophy

Satellite stem cells or myosatellite cells are quiescent stem cells that Alexander Mauro first identified in 1961. These cells are located between the sarcolemma, the plasma membrane of muscle fibers, and the basal lamina, the connective tissue sheath covering it. These mononucleated cells are activated in response to muscle injury, can transform into myoblasts, and may form or repair muscle fibers. Myosatellite cells can provide additional myonuclei for muscle regeneration or return to a...
Microscopic Anatomy of Skeletal Muscles01:13

Microscopic Anatomy of Skeletal Muscles

Skeletal muscle cells, also called muscle fibers, are distinctly elongated, multi-nucleated, slender biological units. They are packed with specialized structures designed to facilitate their primary function, which is contraction.
The muscle sarcolemma is a plasma membrane enclosing each muscle cell that conducts electrical signals called action potentials. The sarcolemma extends into the cell to form T-tubules, ensuring the neural impulses are uniformly distributed across the entire muscle...
Types of Skeletal Muscle Fibers01:32

Types of Skeletal Muscle Fibers

Skeletal muscles comprise various fibers, each with distinct characteristics and roles in movement and stability. They are mainly categorized into three types — fast-twitch, slow-twitch, and intermediate.
Fast-twitch fibers
Fast-twitch fibers, or Type II fibers, are designed for quick, powerful bursts of speed and strength. They reach peak tension within approximately 0.01 seconds following stimulation. Characterized by a large diameter and densely packed myofibrils, these fibers contain...
Structure and Organization of Smooth Muscles01:13

Structure and Organization of Smooth Muscles

Smooth muscle tissue is a type of muscle tissue that can be found lining various vital organs in the human body, including the lungs, blood vessels, digestive tract, and respiratory tract. This type of tissue is responsible for regulating the movements of these organs, playing crucial roles in the functioning of various systems, including the vascular, digestive, respiratory, and urinary systems.
Structure of smooth muscle cell
Smooth muscle cells are spindle-shaped with tapering ends and a...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 24, 2026

Author Spotlight: Nuclei Isolation from Mouse Cardiac Progenitor Cells for Epigenome and Gene Expression Profiling at Single-Cell Resolution
10:03

Author Spotlight: Nuclei Isolation from Mouse Cardiac Progenitor Cells for Epigenome and Gene Expression Profiling at Single-Cell Resolution

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Single nucleus and spatial transcriptomic profiling of healthy human hamstring tendon.

Jolet Y Mimpen1, Lorenzo Ramos-Mucci1, Claudia Paul1

  • 1The Botnar Institute of Musculoskeletal Sciences, Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.

FASEB Journal : Official Publication of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology
|May 14, 2024
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Healthy human hamstring tendons have diverse cell types, including unexpected muscle and nerve cells. Fibroblasts are key to tendon health and function, regulating extracellular matrix and tissue homeostasis.

Keywords:
fibroblastshamstringsingle nucleus transcriptomicsskeletal musclespatial transcriptomicstendon

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Author Spotlight: Deciphering the Cellular Mysteries of Intermuscular Adipose Tissue in Humans

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Author Spotlight: Deciphering the Cellular Mysteries of Intermuscular Adipose Tissue in Humans
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Area of Science:

  • Molecular biology
  • Cell biology
  • Biomedical science

Background:

  • The cellular composition and molecular underpinnings of healthy human tendons are not well understood.
  • Human hamstring tendons exhibit low pathology, serving as a model for healthy tendon tissue.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To comprehensively identify and map all cell types within healthy human hamstring tendons.
  • To elucidate the transcriptomes and spatial distribution of these cells.
  • To analyze cellular interactions and regulatory networks governing tendon homeostasis.

Main Methods:

  • Single nucleus RNA sequencing (snRNA-seq) was performed on 10,533 nuclei from four healthy donors.
  • Spatial transcriptomics and advanced imaging techniques were employed to define cell locations.
  • Bioinformatic analyses were conducted to identify cell types and transcriptional networks.

Main Results:

  • Twelve distinct cell types were identified in healthy hamstring tendons.
  • Confirmed cell types include fibroblasts, endothelial cells, mural cells, and immune cells.
  • Novel cell types found in tendons include skeletal muscle cells, satellite cells, adipocytes, and nervous system cells.
  • Fibroblasts are distributed throughout the tendon and are central to extracellular matrix production and organization, indicating a key role in homeostasis.

Conclusions:

  • Healthy human tendons possess a complex cellular composition beyond traditional understanding.
  • Fibroblasts are identified as crucial regulators of hamstring tendon homeostasis.
  • These findings provide a foundational understanding of healthy tendon biology and cellular interactions.