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Contractions of holothurian muscles

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Summary

In response to quick stretch, contraction is elicited in longitudinal retractor muscles of five tested species of holothurians, and in the pharyngeal retractor ofCucumaria. The effects of amplitude of stretch and rate of stretch are additive. Rates of contraction and repetitiveness of response, and spontaneous rhythmicity (especially in muscles ofLeptosynapta), correlate with mode of life.

Contractile responses to stretch are abolished by anesthesia with procaine or magnesium. Responses are enhanced by physostigmine or prostigmine, blocked by d-tubocurarine. Responses to electric shocks persist after block of responses to stretch and after block of spontaneous activity by anesthesia, by cholinergic blockers or by Na replacement. Responses to both stretch and shock are abolished by reducing calcium or by agents which block Ca-conductance.

It is postulated (1) that quick stretch stimulates the terminals of cholinergic nerves, (2) that conduction in these nerve fibers is by Na but is TTX resistant, (3) that the nerve endings activate conductance increase for Ca++ in muscle fibers which initiate contractions.

No muscle potentials were recorded by suction or pressure electrodes and no nexal junctions were observed between muscle fibers. The muscles were well innervated and synaptic endings and some neural somata were seen in the nerve bundles.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Washington Laboratories, Friday Harbor, Washington, USA

    C. Ladd Prosser & George O. Mackie

  2. Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois, USA

    C. Ladd Prosser & George O. Mackie

  3. Biology Department, University of Victoria, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

    C. Ladd Prosser & George O. Mackie

Authors
  1. C. Ladd Prosser
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  2. George O. Mackie
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Additional information

Thanks are due to Dennis Willows, director and to staff, University of Washington Laboratories, Friday Harbor; to C.L. Singla of the University of Victoria for preparing and examining electron micrographs; to J.L.S. Cobb for commenting on electron micrographs; to Richard Meiss for designing and constructing ramp stretching device. C. Ladd Prosser was supported by NIH grant 5-R01 AM 12768-10 and George O. Mackie by grant no. A 1427, Nat. Sci. and Eng. Res. Council of Canada.

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Prosser, C.L., Mackie, G.O. Contractions of holothurian muscles. J. Comp. Physiol. 136, 103–112 (1980). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00656906

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00656906

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