The Relationship between Sarcomere and the Tension - Case Study Example

C. jacchus and C. pygmaea exhibit longer masseter and temporalis muscles. They also have a higher fibre-to-muscle mass ratio. They have a more significant excursion potential of distal tendons; hence the muscle can stretch further. More fibres in C. Jacchus and C. Pygmaea lead to wider jaw gaps and can offer more power during gouging (Campbell 25). They also have shorter angles of pinnation, larger PCSA, and a smaller proportion of tendons. S. Oedipus has a more significant tendon proportion than the common marmoset masseter. Hence, S.oedipus has a lower muscle excursion and a lower contraction velocity leading to shorter stretching and hence smaller gaps. It also has a greater pinnation angle and a smaller PCSA. Therefore, they produce a smaller biting force than C. jacchus and C. pygmaea. (Garber, Estrada, Heymann and Strier 208).

Burrows and Nash (10) explain that the lateral pterygoid muscle in C. pygmaea and C. jacchus gives them a wider gap. They also found no difference in the anteroposterior ratios of both species. There is little to suggest that these mammals have undergone a reorganisation of the soft tissue structures. Kilgore et al. (11) indicate that C. pygmaea, C. jacchus and S. Oedipus have evolved significantly to adapt to their feeding mode.

Both the new literature cited and the course workbooks agree that C. pygmaea and C. jacchus can have wider jaw gaps than S. Oedipus. This has influenced their feeding habits as well as their diet. C. pygmaea and C. jacchus have long mandibles that enable them to produce a stronger bite as the masseter and temporalis are longer as compared to the latter’s shorter ones that are short (Lord 56). The coursework and outsourced materials show no inconsistency in the information offered.

Future clinical investigations should establish whether muscles have an optimal length that produces optimal biting force. Also, studies should look into the positions of the stretched muscles and their overlap as it operates in vivo. The above scientific research should be carried out in a primate investigation facility. I rate my answers as a 4/5. If I had to do the assignment again, I would outsource information from interviews with primate researchers.