Contractility

Contractility
Contractility Con`trac*til"i*ty, n. 1. The quality or property by which bodies shrink or contract. [1913 Webster]

2. (Physiol.) The power possessed by the fibers of living muscle of contracting or shortening. [1913 Webster]

Note: When subject to the will, as in the muscles of locomotion, such power is called voluntary contractility; when not controlled by the will, as in the muscles of the heart, it is involuntary contractility. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Contractility — Myocardial contractility is the intrinsic ability of the heart to contract independent of preload and afterload. Changes in the ability to produce force during contraction result from different degrees of binding between myosin (thick) and actin… …   Wikipedia

  • contractility — noun see contractile …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • contractility — n. [L. cum, together; trahere, to draw] The capability of muscle fibers to contract …   Dictionary of invertebrate zoology

  • contractility — See contractile. * * * …   Universalium

  • contractility — noun a) The condition of being able to contract or shrink (used especially of muscles) b) The extent to which something contracts or shrinks See Also: contractile …   Wiktionary

  • contractility — The ability or property of a substance, especially of muscle, of shortening, or becoming reduced in size, or developing increased tension. cardiac c. a measure of cardiac pump performance, the degree to which muscle fibers can shorten when… …   Medical dictionary

  • contractility — n. contractile quality, state of being contractile (Zoology) …   English contemporary dictionary

  • contractility — con·trac·til·i·ty …   English syllables

  • contractility — noun the capability or quality of shrinking or contracting, especially by muscle fibers and even some other forms of living matter • Derivationally related forms: ↑contractile • Hypernyms: ↑ability • Hyponyms: ↑astringency, ↑stypsis …   Useful english dictionary

  • cardiac contractility — the intrinsic property, belonging to cardiac cells and tissues, of contraction in response to an appropriate stimulus. Cardiac contractility is variable and under the control of the autonomic nervous system and is also affected by other factors… …   Medical dictionary

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”