Terminal cisternae - Wikipedia Terminal cisternae Not to be confused with Terminal cistern at the end of spinal cord. hide This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. ( Learn how and when to remove these template messages ) This article needs attention from an expert in medicine. Please add a reason or a talk parameter to this template to explain the issue with the article. WikiProject Medicine may be able to help recruit an expert. ( November 2008 ) This article does not cite any sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( October 2008 ) Skeletal muscle, with terminal cisterna labeled near bottom. Terminal cisternae are enlarged areas of the sarcoplasmic reticulum surrounding the transverse tubules. These discrete regions within the muscle cell store calcium ( increasing the capacity of the sarcoplasmic reticulum to release calcium ) and release it when an action potential courses down the transverse tubules, eliciting muscle contraction. Because terminal cisternae ensure rapid calcium delivery, they are well developed in muscles that contract quickly, such as fast twitch skeletal muscle. Terminal cisternae then go on to release calcium, which binds to troponin. This releases tropomyosin, exposing active sites of the thin filament, actin. There are several mechanisms directly linked to the terminal cisternae which facilitate Excitation - Contraction coupling, which include ryanodine ( RYR ) receptors, and a voltage gated calcium channel which help transfer the action potential into a calcium efflux of the Sarcoplasmic Reticulum. A T - tubule surrounded by two terminal cisternae is referred to as a `` triad '' in physiology. As previously explained, the terminal cisternae along with the transverse tubules are the mechanisms of transduction from a nervous impulse to an actual muscle contraction. This cell biology article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Terminal_cisternae&oldid=849695911 '' Categories : Anatomy Cell biology stubs Hidden categories : Articles needing expert attention with no reason or talk parameter Articles needing expert attention from November 2008 All articles needing expert attention Medicine articles needing expert attention Articles lacking sources from October 2008 All articles lacking sources Articles with multiple maintenance issues Anatomy articles needing expert attention All stub articles Talk About Wikipedia Svenska Edit links This page was last edited on 10 July 2018, at 18 : 28 ( UTC ). About Wikipedia

Question: what is the function of the terminal cisternae
Answer: store calcium (increasing the capacity of the sarcoplasmic reticulum to release calcium) and release it when an action potential courses down the transverse tubules, eliciting muscle contraction