Health | WPN World People News

A man with complete motor paralysis moves his legs voluntarily while receiving electrical stimulation to his spinal cord via electrodes placed on his back. The subject’s legs are supported in braces so that they can move without resistance from gravity. The electrodes on his legs are used for recording muscle activity.

A new study overturns longstanding scientific ideas regarding how energy is distributed within muscles for powering movement. Scientists are reporting the first clear evidence that muscle cells distribute energy primarily by the rapid conduction of electrical charges through a vast, interconnected network of mitochondria — the cell’s “powerhouse” — in a way that resembles the wire grid that distributes power throughout a city. The study offers an unprecedented, detailed look at the distribution system that rapidly provides energy throughout the cell where it is needed for muscle contraction.