Biochimica et Biophysica Acta 2006-02-01

Rotations of a few cross-bridges in muscle by confocal total internal reflection microscopy.

J Borejdo, J Talent, I Akopova, T P Burghardt

Index: Biochim. Biophys. Acta 1763(2) , 137-40, (2006)

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Abstract

In order to measure the cycling of a few ( approximately 6) myosin heads in contracting skeletal muscle, myofibrils were illuminated by Total Internal Reflection and observed through a confocal aperture. Myosin heads rotated at a rate approximately equal to the ATPase rate, suggesting that bulk ATPase of a whole muscle reflects the cycle frequency of individual heads.