Tension Distribution to the Five Digits of the Hand by Neuromuscular Compartments in the Macaque Flexor Digitorum Profundus

The macaque flexor digitorum profundus (FDP) consists of a muscle belly with four neuromuscular regions and a complex insertion tendon that divides to serve all five digits of the hand. To determine the extent to which compartments within FDP act on single versus multiple digits, we stimulated the p...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of neuroscience 2001-03, Vol.21 (6), p.2150-2158
Main Authors: Schieber, Marc H, Gardinier, Jennifer, Liu, Jie
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Action Potentials - physiology
Animals
Axons - physiology
Axotomy
Electric Stimulation - methods
Electromyography
Fingers - physiology
flexor digitorum profundus
Hand - physiology
Macaca
Macaca nemestrina
Male
Median Nerve - physiology
Muscle Contraction - physiology
Muscle, Skeletal - innervation
Muscle, Skeletal - physiology
neuromuscular system
Reflex - physiology
Ulnar Nerve - physiology
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Summary:The macaque flexor digitorum profundus (FDP) consists of a muscle belly with four neuromuscular regions and a complex insertion tendon that divides to serve all five digits of the hand. To determine the extent to which compartments within FDP act on single versus multiple digits, we stimulated the primary nerve branch innervating each neuromuscular region while recording the tension in all five distal insertion tendons. Stimulation of each primary nerve branch activated a distinct region of the muscle belly, so that each primary nerve branch and the muscle region innervated can be considered a neuromuscular compartment. Although each neuromuscular compartment provided a distinct distribution of tension across the five distal tendons, none acted on only one digital tendon. Most of the distribution of tension to multiple digits could be attributed to passive biomechanical interactions in the complex insertion tendon, although for the larger compartments a wider distribution resulted from the broad insertion of the muscle belly. Nerve ligations excluded contributions of spinal reflexes or distal axon reflexes to the distribution of tension to multiple digits. We conclude that the macaque FDP consists of four neuromuscular compartments, each of which provides a distinct distribution of tension to multiple digits.
ISSN:0270-6474
1529-2401
DOI:10.1523/jneurosci.21-06-02150.2001