Cardiac Muscle Contraction Steps. The thin and thick filaments can thus slide over each other to shorten the sarcomere and cell length without the individual actin or myosin molecules actually shortening. The pathway of contraction can be described in five steps.
Skeletal and cardiac muscle contraction is explained by the sliding filament theory with four key steps attachment power stroke release cocking Requirements for contraction stimulatory impulse action potential from a motor neuron high calcium concentration within muscle cells ATP for energy Definitions. This causes myosin to release from the actin filament. Actin and myosin slide on each other and causing contraction of the muscles.
When heart muscles begin to contract faster there is an increase in calcium into the cell allowing for more contraction triggering more calcium release through the sarcoplasm reticulum.
An action potential from a motor neuron triggers the release of acetylcholine into the motor end plate. During an eccentric contraction of the biceps muscle the elbow starts the movement while bent and then straightens as the hand moves away from the shoulder. Actin and myosin cross-bridge formation. The force generated by a muscle depends on the number of actin and myosin cross-bridges formed.