Controversy abounds in the cardiac muscle literature over the rate-limiting steps of cardiac muscle contraction and relaxation. However, the idea of a single biochemical mechanism being the all-inclusive rate-limiting step for cardiac muscle contraction and relaxation may be oversimplified. There is ample evidence that Ca(2+) concentration and dynamics, intrinsic cross-bridge properties, and ev...

Controversy abounds in the cardiac muscle literature over the rate-limiting steps of cardiac muscle contraction and relaxation. However, the idea of a single biochemical mechanism being the all-inclusive rate-limiting step for cardiac muscle contraction and relaxation may be oversimplified. There is ample evidence that Ca2þ concentration and dynamics, intrinsic cross-bridge properties, and even...

The identification of non-coding RNA species, previously thought of as 'junk' DNA, adds a new dimension of complexity to the regulation of DNA, RNA and protein. MicroRNAs are short non-coding RNA species that control gene expression, are dysregulated in settings of cardiac and skeletal muscle disease and have emerged as promising therapeutic targets. MicroRNAs specifically enriched in cardiac a...

Background It is appreciated that aerobic endurance exercise can attenuate unfavorable myocardial remodeling post myocardial infarction (MI). In contrast, little is known about the effects of increasing skeletal muscle mass, typically achieved through resistance training, on this process. Here, we utilized transgenic (TG) mice, that can induce the growth of functional skeletal muscle by switchi...

BACKGROUND It is appreciated that aerobic endurance exercise can attenuate unfavorable myocardial remodeling following myocardial infarction. In contrast, little is known about the effects of increasing skeletal muscle mass, typically achieved through resistance training, on this process. Here, we utilized transgenic (TG) mice that can induce the growth of functional skeletal muscle by switchin...

The effect of changes in temperature on the calcium sensitivity of tension development was examined in permeabilized cellular preparations of rat ventricle and rabbit psoas muscle. Maximum force and Ca2+ sensitivity of force development increased with temperature in both muscle types. Cardiac muscle was more sensitive to changes in temperature than skeletal muscle in the range 10-15 degrees C. ...

We determined the actin isotypes encoded by 30 actin cDNA clones previously isolated from an adult human muscle cDNA library. Using 3' untranslated region probes derived from a-skeletal, 13and -y-actin cDNAs and from an a-cardiac actin genomic clone, we showed that 28 of the cDNAs correspond to a-skeletal actin transcripts. Unexpectedly, however, the remaining two cDNA clones proved to derive f...

Triadin is an intrinsic membrane protein first identified in the skeletal muscle junctional sarcoplasmic reticulum and is considered to play an important role in excitation-contraction coupling. Using polyclonal antibodies to skeletal muscle triadin, we have identified and characterized three isoforms in rabbit cardiac muscle. The cDNAs encoding these three isoforms of triadin have been isolate...

The cardiac muscle and the coronary vasculature are in close proximity to each other, and a two-way interaction, called cross-talk, exists. Here we focus on the mechanical aspects of cross-talk including the role of the extracellular matrix. Cardiac muscle affects the coronary vasculature. In diastole, the effect of the cardiac muscle on the coronary vasculature depends on the (changes in) musc...

• A comparison of the properties of cardiac actin with those of skeletal actin has been undertaken in an attempt to explain several fundamental differences between the behavior of heart and skeletal muscle which have recently been elucidated. Most striking among these is the finding that cardiac muscle develops less tension than its skeletal counterpart. Burton has calculated that the force gen...