skeltal muscle multinucleate

[superduper12]

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is there a reason skeletal muscle is multinucleate?

ex. such as cardiac muscle have intercalated discs made of gap junctions to allow for flow of ions.

 

[nole]

From what I can remember, these cells are multinucleated due to the fusion of myotubes which are cells that form skeletal muscle cells. i don't think it really has a purpose like the intercalated discs of cardiac muscles.

 

[RySerr21]

could it be because they skeletal muscle is so active?

 

[TexasTriathlete]

When these muscles are developing, they start as individual, smaller cells, all joined together, like in any other tissue. These cells eventually fuse together and form the long muscle cells that span the length of the muscle.

So, what nole said.

The benefit to this is thought to be that it adds to the cell's resiliency. Skeletal muscle cells are constantly being damaged. The membranes are constantly being disrupted and patched by satellite cells adjacent to the sarcolemma.

With all this that the muscle cells go through, a mononucleated cell might just crap out. A cell with a ****-ton of nuclei can make a ****-ton of protein to repair any damage, and keep the muscle working relatively smoothly.