Figure 1.
(A) Schematic representation of a cardiac sarcomere (lacking nebulin) illustrating the three major filament systems: actin-based thin filaments (gray), myosin-based thick filaments (blue), and titin (pink). The lateral boundaries of the sarcomere are the Z-discs. The I-bands surrounds the Z-disc and is a region where thin filaments are not superimposed by thick filaments. The A-band region contains thin filaments and thick filaments. The M-band falls within the H-zone, where thick filaments do not interdigitate with thick filaments. (B) Electron micrograph of skeletal muscle sarcomere. (C) Enlarged view of the M-band region. The M-band is composed of a series of three to five electron-dense M-lines: M6′, M4′, M1, M4, and M6. [Part A modified, with permission, from (255); Parts B and C modified, with permission, from (9).]