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Your mighty tendons help you sprint, jump and move – a genetic mutation in one key protein may increase athletic performance

As molecular biologists and orthopedic surgeons who study the locomotor system, we believe one key part of it has been underestimated – the tendons.

Tendons are tough tissues that connect muscle to bone. Tendons are what allow kangaroos to jump over 25 feet (7.62 meters) high and run up to 40 mph (64 kph). While their leg muscles are small, the kangaroos’ highly developed and long tendons act like powerful springs. People can also jump higher if they squat down first because their tendons store elastic energy that helps propel them upward. In our research, we found that the presence of one particular protein in tendons plays a key role in how tendons heal – and a genetic mutation…

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Articles of Interest

Tendon Anatomy

Tendons are situated between bone and muscles and are bright white in colour, their fibro-elastic composition gives them the strength require to transmit large mechanical forces. Each muscle has two tendons, one proximally and one distally. The point at which the tendon forms attachment to the muscle is also known as the myotendinous junction (MTJ) and the point at which it attaches to the bone is known as the osteotendinous junction.

Are ligaments and tendons the same thing?

Tendons connect muscle to bone. They function with muscles to create movement by moving a bone at a joint. An example of a tendon that you have probably heard of is the Achilles tendon at the ankle. The gastrocnemius and soleus muscles of the calf come together at the back of the ankle and become the strong Achilles tendon that then attaches to the calcaneus, or heel bone. When the gastrocnemius and/or soleus muscle contracts to plantarflex the foot, that action includes the involvement of the Achilles tendon.

Dealing with Chronic Tendonitis

Often with chronic tendonitis there's also more than 1 injury going on. You might even be suffering from a series of inter-related conditions. For example if you have foot tendonitis (or sesamoiditis), you might feel some lower back, hip, thigh or even knee pain on that same side (or even the opposite 'healthy' side). If you've started noticing secondary pain, it's likely this pain is still being caused by your original injury. If you haven't received a proper diagnosis you may not even be aware of the true cause for all of your pain.

Finding Balance: A Scientific Approach to Tendon Performance and Health

Muscle is 95 percent cell material, and a tendon is about 5 percent. Cells help tissues recover and repair between intense training sessions. For this reason, tendon recovery can be much slower than muscle recovery. The delay in recovery predisposes the tendon to weakening and breakdown during periods of frequent, intense training.

How To Improve Our Tendon Health with Training

“In general, what you want for your ligaments is for them to be as stiff and strong as possible,” said Dr. Baar. “The stiffer the ligament the better the structural support. The same is not true of tendons. If tendons are too stiff, muscle injuries are more likely to occur.

How to Keep Your Tendons Healthy as You Age

With so much focus on strength training to build new muscle and slow the age-related muscle loss, it’s easy to forget that another type of tissue that changes with age–your tendons. Just as we work our muscles to keep them healthy, it’s important to keep your tendons healthy and resistant to injury too. These strong, flexible bands of connective tissue matter! Tendons are a weak link for some people, and if you tear one it can make it hard to exercise for weeks or months. In addition, tendons are susceptible to injury from overuse. That’s why it’s important not to do the same exercises over and over without allowing your muscles and tendons adequate time to rest and repair.

Ligaments, Tendons, & Bones! Oh My!

Every time you make a fist or wave goodbye to a loved one, there are several bones, tendons, and ligaments at work in your hand. As one of the most complex and fascinating body parts, each hand is made up of 27 different bones as well as a variety of tendons and ligaments.

Pain, Tight Tendons and Loose Ligaments

The source of the pain around the bones and muscles is actually that the tendons are too tight, or the ligaments are too loose or both.

Protect Your Tendons

You’ve probably heard of such sports injuries as tennis elbow or jumper’s knee. These are just 2 examples of tendinitis, a painful condition caused by overusing and straining the joints in your body. Tendons are the tough but flexible bands of tissue that connect muscle to bones. You have about 4,000 tendons throughout your body. Tendons make it possible for you to bend your knee, rotate your shoulder, and grasp with your hand.

Structure and Function of Ligaments and Tendons

Ligaments and tendons are soft collagenous tissues. Ligaments connect bone to bone and tendons connect muscles to bone. Ligaments and tendons play a significant role in musculoskeletal biomechanics. They represent an important area of orthopaedic treatment for which many challenges for repair remain. A good deal of these challenges have to do with restoring the normal mechanical function of these tissues. Again, as with all biological tissues, ligaments and tendons have a hierarchical structure that affects their mechanical behavior.

Tendon Disorders

Tendons are rope-like bundles or bands of strong, smooth, shiny fibres that attach muscles to bones. Tendons transfer force from the muscle to the bone to produce the movement of joints. There are two types of tendons: tendons without sheaths and tendons with sheaths.

Tendons and Ligaments: Connecting Developmental Biology to Musculoskeletal Disease Pathogenesis

Despite the unique and important roles of tendons and ligaments in the musculoskeletal function and musculoskeletal diseases, research in this area is not as advanced as in other skeletal tissues. This is partly because, until recently, the transcription factors critical for the formation and maintenance of these tissues were unknown.

The Best Ways to Treat, Prevent Tendonitis

Tennis elbow, quarterback shoulder, and jumper's knee are forms of tendonitis, a painful but often preventable injury. Tendonitis is your body's way of telling you that you're putting too much stress on this muscle and joint.

The Science About Tending to Tendon Health

Chances are you’re not giving your tendons the proper attention they deserve. Here’s what science tells us about tendon health.

Uncovering the cellular secrets of healthy tendons

Research has unveiled the intricate cellular landscape of healthy human hamstring tendons, shedding new light on this vital yet often overlooked component of our musculoskeletal system.

Understanding Connective Tissue: Tendons and Ligaments

Tendons are comprised of thick, rubbery white tissue. Every muscle has a tendon on each end that attaches the muscles to the bone. Any kind of skeletal movement, from walking to lifting weights, happens because the muscle contracts and pulls on the tendon, which in turn pulls on the bone and moves it.

What Nuclear Bombs Tell Us About Our Tendons

"What we see in the tendons [is] that they actually have a memory of the bomb pulse," says lead author Katja Heinemeier, a senior researcher at the University of Copenhagen and Jan Heinemeier's daughter. This means that the tendon tissue in those samples was at least several decades old. From these results, the scientists concluded that tendon tissue renewal is almost nonexistent in adults.

Resources

7 Crucial Facts You Didn't Know about Tendons

We are not able to repair/heal degenerative tendon pathology. In other words, no surgery, no shockwave therapy, no injections whatsoever, and not even exercise are able to repair or heal a degenerated tendon...

Tendinopathy Rehabilitation

Clinical practice is full of challenges, including keeping up with the latest research and applying it in your clinical practice. This site is dedicated to making your life a whole lot easier when it comes to tendinopathy knowledge and skills.

Radiopaedia

Tendons are flexible and inelastic bands of strong fibrous connective tissue that transmit force from muscle to bone and form an integral part of the musculoskeletal system. They can be intraarticular, coated in a tendon sheath or remain extrasynovial, coated by paratenon.