CGTC FAQs: Academic Support

Skeletal (voluntary)

Smooth (involuntary)

Cardiac (heart)

💪 Types of Muscle Tissue

1. Skeletal Muscle (Voluntary)

Key idea: You control it

• 📍 Attached to bones

• 🧠 Controlled by the somatic nervous system

• 🔬 Striated (striped appearance)

• 💪 Functions:

  • Movement (walking, lifting)

  • Posture

  • Heat production

👉 Example: Biceps, quadriceps

2. Smooth Muscle (Involuntary)

Key idea: Automatic control (no thinking required)

• 📍 Found in walls of organs:

  • Intestines

  • Blood vessels

  • Bladder

• 🧠 Controlled by the autonomic nervous system

• 🔬 Non-striated (smooth appearance)

• 🌀 Functions:

  • Moves food (peristalsis)

  • Regulates blood flow

  • Controls organ movement

👉 Example: Digesting food without thinking about it

3. Cardiac Muscle (Heart Only)

Key idea: Specialized + self-beating

• 📍 Found only in the heart

• 🧠 Involuntary, but has its own pacemaker (SA node)

• 🔬 Striated, but different from skeletal

• ⚡ Unique features:

  • Intercalated discs (help cells contract together)

  • Rhythmic, continuous contractions

👉 Function: Pumps blood throughout the body