Figure 3.

A) In strains not only the myofibers rupture but also their basal lamina as well as mysial sheaths and blood vessels running in the endo- or perimysium are torn. The ruptured myofibers become necrotized only over a short distance. B) The injured part of the ruptured myofiber inside the remaining old basal lamina is replaced by the regenerating myofiber, which then begins to penetrate into the connective tissue scar between the stumps of the ruptured myofibers. C) The maturation of the regenerating myofibers includes formation of a mature contractile apparatus and attachment of the ends of the regenerated myofibers to the intervening scar by newly formed MTJs. The retraction of the scar pulls the ends closer to each other, but they appear to stay separated by a thin layer of connective tissue to which the ends remain attached by newly formed MTJs.