Relationship between Elastic and Contractile Components in Mammalian Skeletal Muscle

EXISTING biochemical and anatomical evidence has implicated two sets of interdigitating myofilaments with the active contractile component of vertebrate striated muscle. Comparable information about the series elastic element, the other physiologically demonstrable muscle component, is not yet known. Some mechanical properties of the series elastic and contractile components in rat limb muscle were therefore examined for similarities to determine whether a relationship exists between them.