title: Relationship between muscle architecture and joint performance during concentric contractions in humans.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between muscle architecture of the triceps brachii (TB) and joint performance during concentric elbow extensions. Twenty-two men performed maximal isometric and concentric elbow extensions against various loads. Joint torque and angular velocity during concentric contractions were measured, and joint power was calculated. Muscle length, cross-sectional areas, and volume of TB were measured from magnetic resonance images. Pennation angle (PA) of TB at rest was determined by ultrasonography. The PA was significantly correlated with the maximal isometric torque (r = .471), but not to the torque normalized by muscle volume (r = .312). A significant correlation was found between PA and the angular velocity at 0 kg load (r = .563), even when the angular velocity was normalized by the muscle length (r = .536). The PA was significantly correlated with the maximal joint power (r = .519), but not with the power normalized by muscle volume (r = .393). These results suggest that PA has a positive influence on the muscle shortening velocity during an unloaded movement, but does not have a significant influence on the maximum power generation in untrained men.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Health and Sport Sciences, Doshisha University, Kyotanabe, Kyoto, Japan.
authors.forename: Taku
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Wakahara
authors.forename: Hiroaki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kanehisa
authors.forename: Yasuo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kawakami
authors.forename: Tetsuo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Fukunaga
authors.forename: Toshimasa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yanai
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004551:Elbow Joint / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009119:Muscle Contraction / Q000502:physiology*; D053580:Muscle Strength / Q000502:physiology*; D018482:Muscle, Skeletal / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000502:physiology*; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular / Q000502:physiology; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D013647:Task Performance and Analysis