title: [Quantification of the diameter of muscular fibres in the course of the development of the quadriceps].
abstract: Muscle biopsies were taken from the medium portion of the vastus lateralis of a hundred fetuses (aged between 10 and 40 weeks), children, adolescents and adults without any neuro-muscular disease. Diameters of the muscle fibers were measured with a Leitz ASM 68K on frozen sections which had been stained for myofibrillar ATPase. The results have been expressed as average diameters and histograms. The results demonstrated a gradual increase in diameter of the fibers during fetal development. At the birth, the average diameter of the type I and II fibers is 10-15 microns. Growth continues during postnatal development up until puberty, when the fibers reach their final diameter of 60-65 microns. Analysis of the histograms shows that before 18 weeks of gestation, there is a large dispersion in the diameter of the fibers. The first type I fibers are larger than the others and correspond to Wohlfart type b fibers. This is followed by the appearance of a second population of smaller type I fibers. These fibers gradually increase in diameter and one observes a homogenous population of type I fibers at the birth.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Pathologie Pédiatrique, Hôpital Saint-Vincent de Paul, Paris.
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Barbet
authors.forename: G S
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Butler-Browne
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Labbe
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Maillet
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pompidou
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D024510:Muscle Development; D009132:Muscles / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000196:embryology; D012016:Reference Values
vernacular_title: Quantification du diamètre des fibres musculaires au cours du développement du quadriceps.