Word: actomyosin
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
Muscles, he says, are chemical engines that get their energy from a compound called adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Their active portions are submicroscopic fibers made of a peculiar protein called actomyosin. When the protein is linked with ATP (to supply energy), it is like a coiled spring or a loaded gun. An electrical impulse from the nervous system can "fire the gun," making the fibers contract powerfully...
...fibers can be duplicated in the laboratory out of their chemical constituents, actin and myosin. When properly stimulated, the, synthetic muscles react much like the real thing. "We have reproduced, and thus made it possible to analyze, one of the most mysterious manifestations of life," says Szent-Gyorgyi. "Seeing actomyosin contract for the first time was the most exciting experience in [my] scientific career...
| 1 |