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The functional unit of contractile system in striated muscle is
  • a)
    cross bridge
  • b)
    myofibril
  • c)
    sacromere
  • d)
    Z-band
Correct answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer?
Verified Answer
The functional unit of contractile system in striated muscle isa)cross...
A skeletal muscle consists of a bundle of long fibres running the length of the muscle. Each fibre is a single cell with many nuclei.
Skeletal muscle is also called striated muscle because the regular arrangement of the myofilaments creates a repeating pattern of light and dark bands. Each repeating unit is a sarcomere, the basic functional unit of the muscle. The borders of the sarcomere, the Z-lines are lined up in adjacent myofibrils and contribute to the striations visible with a light microscope. The thin filaments are attached to the Z-lines and project towards the centre of the sarcomere, while the thick filaments are centred in the sarcomere. At rest, the thick and thin filaments do not overlap completely, and the area near the edge of the sarcomere where there are only thin filaments is called the I-band. The A-band is the broad region that corresponds to the length of the thick filaments. The thin filaments do not extend completely across the sarcomere. So, the H-zone in the centre of the A-band contains only thick filaments. This arrangement of thick and thin filaments is the key to how the sacromere and hence, the whole muscle contracts.
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Most Upvoted Answer
The functional unit of contractile system in striated muscle isa)cross...
Structure of Striated Muscle:
- Striated muscle is composed of repeating units called sarcomeres, which are the functional units responsible for muscle contraction.
- Sarcomeres are made up of thick and thin filaments that slide past each other during muscle contraction.

Components of Sarcomere:
- Z-band: The Z-band is a protein structure that serves as the attachment site for actin filaments. It marks the boundary of each sarcomere.
- I-band: The I-band contains only thin filaments and is located between two adjacent sarcomeres.
- A-band: The A-band contains both thick and thin filaments and is located at the center of the sarcomere.
- H-zone: The H-zone is a region within the A-band that contains only thick filaments.

Function of Sarcomere:
- During muscle contraction, the thin filaments slide past the thick filaments, resulting in the shortening of the sarcomere.
- This sliding of filaments is facilitated by the interaction of myosin heads (thick filaments) with actin filaments (thin filaments) through cross-bridges.

Role of Sacromere:
- The sarcomere is the basic contractile unit of muscle that generates force and movement by shortening during contraction.
- It is within the sarcomere that the sliding filament theory of muscle contraction occurs, where actin and myosin filaments interact to produce muscle movement.
- The Z-band marks the boundary of each sarcomere and plays a crucial role in maintaining the structural integrity of the muscle fiber.
Therefore, the correct answer to the question is the sarcomere, as it is the fundamental unit of the contractile system in striated muscle responsible for muscle contraction.
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The functional unit of contractile system in striated muscle isa)cross bridgeb)myofibrilc)sacromered)Z-bandCorrect answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer?
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