3. Explain the heart generates and conducts an electrical current. Page 388
The heart has its own built-in conduction system for generating action potentials spontaneously and coordinating contractions during the cardiac cycle. All the cardiac muscle fibers in each region of the heart are electrically linked together. The intercalated disks are connections that electrically join the muscle fibers of the heart into a single unit that can conduct electrical impulses through the entire wall of the heart chamber without stopping. Four structures are embedded in the wall of the heart and responsible for generating the action potentials and conducting them to make sure that the atria contract and then the ventricles contract in an efficient manner.
The heart has its own built-in conduction system for generating action potentials spontaneously and coordinating contractions during the cardiac cycle. All the cardiac muscle fibers in each region of the heart are electrically linked together. The intercalated disks are connections that electrically join the muscle fibers of the heart into a single unit that can conduct electrical impulses through the entire wall of the heart chamber without stopping. Four structures are embedded in the wall of the heart and responsible for generating the action potentials and conducting them to make sure that the atria contract and then the ventricles contract in an efficient manner.