T. Clark Brelje, Ph.D.
University of Minnesota
Department of Genetics, Cell Biology and Development
6-160 Jackson Hall
321 Church St SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455
Robert L. Sorenson, Ph.D.
University of Minnesota
Department of Genetics, Cell Biology and Development
6-160 Jackson Hall
321 Church St SE
Minneapolis, MN 55455
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Smooth muscle is an involuntary muscle that lacks striations.
Smooth muscle often occurs in layers oriented in different directions. Smooth muscle cells are seen in cross-section (top) and longitudinal section (bottom).
Plasma Membrane (sarcolemma; dark green)
Caveolae (#1, #2, and #3) - small invaginations of the plasma membrane involved in the regulation of channels and calcium signaling.
Nucleus (blue) / Nuclear Envelope (purple) - elongated with a ~3 µm diameter.
Golgi Apparatus (yellow) - found near one end of the nucleus in the center of the cell.
Mitochondria (red) - many found near the ends of the nucleus.
Endoplasmic Reticulum (cyan)
Contractile Filaments - a network of thin (actin) filaments and thick (myosin) filaments. Difficult to resolve in this section.
Dense Bodies - dark linear structures scattered throughout the cytoplasm. Anchors for thin filaments and intermediate filaments.
Cytoplasm (sarcoplasm; green)
Nerve fibers with many axons and a single axon are seen. The unmyelinated axons (orange) are surrounded by processes from Schwann cells (tan).