CHAPTER 7 The Muscular System
205.e14
EXERCISE 8. CLINICAL THINKING CHALLENGE
1. Excitability—they can respond to a stimulus such as a
nerve impulse, 2) contractibility—they shorten in length
when stimulated, 3) extensibility—they will stretch when
respiration.
6. It offers several advantages over other sites. Excellent expo-
sure of abdominal organs, easy closure, and few sensory
nerves. Nearly all abdominal organs and tissues can be
reached through a ventral midline incision. Also, because all
of the abdominal muscles come together at the linea alba,
an incision through it opens the abdomen in one cut. When
it is time to close the abdomen, one layer of sutures
(stitches) in the linea alba can effectively and securely close
9. (1) The latent phase, (2) the contracting phase, and
(3) the relaxation phase.
10. When the animal dies, lack of oxygen to the cells
causes normal activities and barriers within the cells
11. Cardiac muscle cells are much smaller than skeletal
muscle cells and have only one nucleus per cell. They are
not shaped like the long, thin fi bers of skeletal muscle.
They are longer than they are wide and often have mul-
tiple branches. They are securely attached to each other
end to end to form intricate, branching networks of
cells. The fi rm, end-to-end attachments between cardiac
muscle cells are visible under the microscope as dark,
transverse lines between the cells.