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The Interaction of the Muscle Contractile and Elastic Elements during...
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The Interaction of the Muscle Contractile and Elastic Elements during Movement

A special issue of Biology (ISSN 2079-7737). This special issue belongs to the section "Physiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2022) | Viewed by 5864

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Falk Mersmann

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Training and Movement Sciences, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 10115 Berlin, Germany
Interests: muscle-tendon adaptation; muscle–tendon mechanics; muscle–tendon interaction; imbalances; tendinopathy
Prof. Dr. Arnaud Ferry

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Center for Research in Myology, UMRS_974, 75013 Paris, France
2. UFRSTAPS, Université de Paris, 75006 Paris, France
Interests: muscle function; exercise; neuromuscular diseases
Dr. Amelie Werkhausen

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Physical Performance, Norwegian School of Sport Sciences (NIH), 0806 Oslo, Norway
Interests: muscle architecture; muscle–tendon function and their training-induced adaptations
Dr. Andrea Monte

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences University of Verona, 37131 Verona, Italy
Interests: muscle mechanics; tendon mechanics; locomotion; energy cost; fascicle behavior; F–V relationship; stiffness; mechanical work
Dr. Sebastian Bohm

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Training and Movement Sciences, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 10115 Berlin, Germany
Interests: muscle–tendon mechanics and interaction; muscle and tendon plasticity; neuromotor control of unperturbed and perturbed locomotion
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Muscles, sarcomeres in particular, are the motor of movement since they generate force and enable shortening, while specific structures within the muscle fibres, the extracellular matrix, and the surrounding connective tissue transmit the force that is generate to move the skeleton. Several elastic elements of the muscle–tendon unit, both in parallel and in series with the muscle, can store and release elastic strain energy, affecting the operating length and velocity from the whole muscle to the sarcomere. This interplay between the contractile and elastic elements allows different functions, such as metabolic energy conservation, power amplification, and power attenuation. Although our understating of the interaction of muscle contractile and elastic elements has advanced significantly in the last two decades, several research questions remain unanswered.

In this Special Issue, we plan to collect articles that provide insight into how fibre, muscle, and its parallel and series elastic connective tissues interact during movement, how this interaction affects the motor output, and how the interaction changes with adaptation or pathology.

In this Special Issue, research articles, reviews, and short communications exploring biomechanical and the physiological effects of contractile–elastic element interaction in determining movement are welcome.

Dr. Falk Mersmann 
Prof. Dr. Arnaud Ferry
Dr. Amelie Werkhausen
Dr. Andrea Monte
Dr. Sebastian Bohm
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Biology is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • muscle function
  • muscle–tendon interaction
  • elastic energy
  • transfer of force
  • extracellular matrix function
  • muscle fibre internal structures
  • movement
  • physical activity
  • inactivity
  • neuromuscular diseases.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

21 pages, 814 KiB  
Article
Contractile Work of the Soleus and Biarticular Mechanisms of the Gastrocnemii Muscles Increase the Net Ankle Mechanical Work at High Walking Speeds
by Mohamadreza Kharazi, Christos Theodorakis, Falk Mersmann, Sebastian Bohm and Adamantios Arampatzis
Biology 2023, 12(6), 872; https://doi.org/10.3390/biology12060872 - 16 Jun 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2066
Abstract
Increasing walking speed is accompanied by an increase of the mechanical power and work performed at the ankle joint despite the decrease of the intrinsic muscle force potential of the soleus (Sol) and gastrocnemius medialis (GM) muscles. In the present study, we measured [...] Read more.
Increasing walking speed is accompanied by an increase of the mechanical power and work performed at the ankle joint despite the decrease of the intrinsic muscle force potential of the soleus (Sol) and gastrocnemius medialis (GM) muscles. In the present study, we measured Achilles tendon (AT) elongation and, based on an experimentally determined AT force–elongation relationship, quantified AT force at four walking speeds (slow 0.7 m.s−1, preferred 1.4 m.s−1, transition 2.0 m.s−1, and maximum 2.6 ± 0.3 m.s−1). Further, we investigated the mechanical power and work of the AT force at the ankle joint and, separately, the mechanical power and work of the monoarticular Sol at the ankle joint and the biarticular gastrocnemii at the ankle and knee joints. We found a 21% decrease in maximum AT force at the two higher speeds compared to the preferred; however, the net work of the AT force at the ankle joint (ATF work) increased as a function of walking speed. An earlier plantar flexion accompanied by an increased electromyographic activity of the Sol and GM muscles and a knee-to-ankle joint energy transfer via the biarticular gastrocnemii increased the net ATF mechanical work by 1.7 and 2.4-fold in the transition and maximum walking speed, respectively. Our findings provide first-time evidence for a different mechanistic participation of the monoarticular Sol muscle (i.e., increased contractile net work carried out) and the biarticular gastrocnemii (i.e., increased contribution of biarticular mechanisms) to the speed-related increase of net ATF work. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Interaction of the Muscle Contractile and Elastic Elements during Movement)
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15 pages, 3787 KiB  
Article
The Effects of Downhill Running and Maturation on Histological and Morphological Properties of Tendon and Enthesis in Mice
by Kaichi Ozone, Yuki Minegishi, Yuichiro Oka, Michiaki Sato and Naohiko Kanemura
Biology 2023, 12(3), 456; https://doi.org/10.3390/biology12030456 - 16 Mar 2023
Viewed by 1744
Abstract
To date, it remains unclear how overuse affects the tendons and entheses at different stages of maturation. Therefore, we evaluated histological and morphological changes in the tendons and entheses in adolescent (4-week-old) and adult mice (8-week-old) by performing flat-land and downhill running exercises. [...] Read more.
To date, it remains unclear how overuse affects the tendons and entheses at different stages of maturation. Therefore, we evaluated histological and morphological changes in the tendons and entheses in adolescent (4-week-old) and adult mice (8-week-old) by performing flat-land and downhill running exercises. The mice were divided into the Sedentary, High Flat (flat-land high-speed running; concentric-contraction exercise), Low Down (downhill low-speed running; eccentric-contraction exercise), and High Down (downhill high-speed running; eccentric-contraction exercise) groups. Histological changes and inflammatory factor expressions were compared in the entheses and tendons after 4 weeks of exercise. Downhill, but not flat-land high-speed running, induced muscle–tendon complex hypertrophy in both adolescent and adult mice. Histological enthesis changes were induced in both groups during downhill running but were less pronounced in adult mice. Conversely, no significant cell aggregation or fiber orientation changes were observed in the tendon, but increased inflammatory factors were observed in both groups, with significantly higher expression in the tendons of adult mice. Downhill running induced histological and morphological enthesis changes and inflammatory factor increase in the tendons, regardless of running speed variations. These results may help elucidate the pathogenesis of enthesopathy and tendinopathy, which have different pathophysiologies despite having the same pathogenetic factors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Interaction of the Muscle Contractile and Elastic Elements during Movement)
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10 pages, 1205 KiB  
Article
Achilles Tendon Mechanical Behavior and Ankle Joint Function at the Walk-to-Run Transition
by Andrea Monte, Paolo Tecchio, Francesca Nardello and Paola Zamparo
Biology 2022, 11(6), 912; https://doi.org/10.3390/biology11060912 - 14 Jun 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1515
Abstract
Walking at speeds higher than transition speed is associated with a decrease in the plantar-flexor muscle fibres’ ability to produce force and, potentially, to an impaired behaviour of the muscle–tendon unit (MTU) elastic components. This study aimed to investigate the ankle joint functional [...] Read more.
Walking at speeds higher than transition speed is associated with a decrease in the plantar-flexor muscle fibres’ ability to produce force and, potentially, to an impaired behaviour of the muscle–tendon unit (MTU) elastic components. This study aimed to investigate the ankle joint functional indexes and the Achilles tendon mechanical behaviour (changes in AT force and power) to better elucidate the mechanical determinants of the walk-to-run transition. Kinematics, kinetic and ultrasound data of the gastrocnemius medialis (GM) were investigated during overground walking and running at speeds ranging from 5–9 km·h−1. AT and GM MTU force and power were calculated during the propulsive phase; the ankle joint function indexes (damper, strut, spring and motor) were obtained using a combination of kinetic and kinematic data. AT force was larger in running at speeds > 6.5 km/h. The contribution of AT to the total power provided by the GM MTU was significantly larger in running at speeds > 7.5 km/h. The spring and strut indexes of the ankle were significantly larger in running at speeds > 7.5 km/h. These data suggest that the walk-to-run transition could (at least partially) be explained by the need to preserve AT mechanical behaviour and the ankle spring function. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Interaction of the Muscle Contractile and Elastic Elements during Movement)
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