
Muscles move through a combination of chemical reactions and mechanical energy. The nervous system sends a message to the muscular system, triggering a chemical reaction. This reaction causes the muscle fibres to reorganise themselves, shortening the muscle and causing it to contract. When the nervous system signal stops, the chemical process reverses, the muscle fibres rearrange again, and the muscle relaxes.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| What causes muscle contractions? | Messages from the nervous system cause muscle contractions. |
| What happens when the nervous system sends a message? | A chemical reaction occurs, causing muscle fibres to reorganise and shorten, resulting in a contraction. |
| What happens when the nervous system signal stops? | The chemical process reverses, causing the muscle fibres to rearrange and the muscle to relax. |
| What is the neuromuscular junction? | The place where the motor neuron reaches a muscle cell. |
| What happens when the nervous system signal reaches the neuromuscular junction? | A chemical message (a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine) is released by the motor neuron, binding to receptors on the outside of the muscle fibre. |
| What happens when acetylcholine binds to receptors on the muscle fibre membrane? | A multistep molecular process within the muscle fibre begins. |
| What happens to the proteins inside muscle fibres? | They are organised into long chains that can interact with each other, reorganising to shorten and relax. |
| What provides the energy for muscles to move? | Mechanical energy, which is stored in physical systems such as the human body, directly powers the movement of matter. |
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What You'll Learn
- The neuromuscular junction: where the motor neuron reaches a muscle cell
- The nervous system: sends messages to the muscular system, triggering chemical reactions
- Chemical reactions: lead to muscle fibres reorganising themselves, causing contraction
- Muscle fibres: proteins inside these fibres interact with each other, reorganise, shorten and relax
- Energy: chemical energy is absorbed, stored and released by chemical bonds

The neuromuscular junction: where the motor neuron reaches a muscle cell
The neuromuscular junction is the place where the motor neuron reaches a muscle cell. When a nervous system signal reaches the neuromuscular junction, a chemical message is released by the motor neuron. This chemical message, a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine, binds to receptors on the outside of the muscle fibre. This starts a chemical reaction within the muscle.
A multistep molecular process within the muscle fibre begins when acetylcholine binds to receptors on the muscle fibre membrane. The proteins inside muscle fibres are organised into long chains that can interact with each other, reorganising to shorten and relax. This process is known as the mechanism of muscle contraction.
The whole process can be summarised in three steps: first, a message travels from the nervous system to the muscular system, triggering chemical reactions. Second, the chemical reactions lead to the muscle fibres reorganising themselves in a way that shortens the muscle, causing a contraction. Third, when the nervous system signal is no longer present, the chemical process reverses, and the muscle fibres rearrange again, causing the muscle to relax.
The energy needed for this process comes from exergonic reactions. Chemical energy is absorbed, stored, and released by chemical bonds. In addition to chemical energy, mechanical, radiant, and electrical energy are important in human functioning.
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The nervous system: sends messages to the muscular system, triggering chemical reactions
The nervous system sends messages to the muscular system, triggering chemical reactions that cause muscle contractions. This process can be summarised in three steps:
- A message travels from the nervous system to the muscular system, triggering chemical reactions.
- The chemical reactions lead to the muscle fibres reorganising themselves in a way that shortens the muscle—that's the contraction.
- When the nervous system signal is no longer present, the chemical process reverses, and the muscle fibres rearrange again and the muscle relaxes.
The neuromuscular junction is the name of the place where the motor neuron reaches a muscle cell. When the nervous system signal reaches the neuromuscular junction, a chemical message is released by the motor neuron. This chemical message, a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine, binds to receptors on the outside of the muscle fibre. That starts a chemical reaction within the muscle. A multistep molecular process within the muscle fibre begins when acetylcholine binds to receptors on the muscle fibre membrane. The proteins inside muscle fibres are organised into long chains that can interact with each other, reorganising to shorten and relax.
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Chemical reactions: lead to muscle fibres reorganising themselves, causing contraction
The mechanism of muscle contraction can be summarised in three steps. Firstly, a message travels from the nervous system to the muscular system, triggering chemical reactions. Secondly, the chemical reactions lead to the muscle fibres reorganising themselves in a way that shortens the muscle, causing contraction. Finally, when the nervous system signal is no longer present, the chemical process reverses, and the muscle fibres rearrange again and the muscle relaxes.
The neuromuscular junction is the place where the motor neuron reaches a muscle cell. When the nervous system signal reaches the neuromuscular junction, a chemical message is released by the motor neuron. This chemical message, a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine, binds to receptors on the outside of the muscle fibre. That starts a chemical reaction within the muscle. A multistep molecular process within the muscle fibre begins when acetylcholine binds to receptors on the muscle fibre membrane. The proteins inside muscle fibres are organised into long chains that can interact with each other, reorganising to shorten and relax.
The energy needed for endergonic reactions comes from exergonic reactions. Chemical energy is absorbed, stored, and released by chemical bonds. In addition to chemical energy, mechanical, radiant, and electrical energy are important in human functioning. Mechanical energy, which is stored in physical systems such as the human body, directly powers the movement of matter.
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Muscle fibres: proteins inside these fibres interact with each other, reorganise, shorten and relax
Muscle fibres are composed of proteins that are organised into long chains. When a message travels from the nervous system to the muscular system, it triggers a chemical reaction. This reaction causes the proteins inside the muscle fibres to interact with each other, reorganising to shorten the muscle. This is known as a contraction.
The process begins when a motor neuron reaches a muscle cell at the neuromuscular junction. The motor neuron releases a chemical message, a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine, which binds to receptors on the outside of the muscle fibre. This starts a chemical reaction within the muscle, initiating a multistep molecular process within the muscle fibre.
The proteins inside the muscle fibres are able to interact with each other due to their organisation into long chains. They can reorganise, shortening the muscle, and then relax when the chemical process reverses. This reversal occurs when the nervous system signal is no longer present, causing the muscle fibres to rearrange and the muscle to relax.
Mechanical energy, stored in physical systems such as the human body, powers the movement of matter. When you lift a brick into place on a wall, for example, your muscles provide the mechanical energy that moves the brick.
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Energy: chemical energy is absorbed, stored and released by chemical bonds
Energy is neither created nor destroyed, so where does the energy needed for endergonic reactions come from? In many cases, it comes from exergonic reactions. Chemical energy is absorbed, stored, and released by chemical bonds.
The process of muscle movement can be summarised in three steps:
- A message travels from the nervous system to the muscular system, triggering chemical reactions.
- The chemical reactions lead to the muscle fibres reorganising themselves in a way that shortens the muscle, causing the contraction.
- When the nervous system signal is no longer present, the chemical process reverses, and the muscle fibres rearrange again and the muscle relaxes.
The neuromuscular junction is the name of the place where the motor neuron reaches a muscle cell. Skeletal muscle tissue is composed of cells called muscle fibres. When the nervous system signal reaches the neuromuscular junction, a chemical message is released by the motor neuron. The chemical message, a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine, binds to receptors on the outside of the muscle fibre. That starts a chemical reaction within the muscle.
A multistep molecular process within the muscle fibre begins when acetylcholine binds to receptors on the muscle fibre membrane. The proteins inside muscle fibres are organised into long chains that can interact with each other, reorganising to shorten and relax. When the stimulation of the motor neuron providing the impulse to the muscle fibres stops, the chemical reaction that causes the rearrangement of the muscle fibres' proteins is stopped.
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Frequently asked questions
Muscles contract and relax to mechanically move the body.
A message travels from the nervous system to the muscular system, triggering chemical reactions.
The chemical process reverses, and the muscle fibres rearrange again and the muscle relaxes.
The chemical message is a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine, which binds to receptors on the outside of the muscle fibre.











































