in what ways would having many mitochondria be beneficial to muscle cells?

Question

muscle cells have more mitochondria than some other kinds of eukaryotic cells.

Answer 1

1) Every cell in the human body is unique, every cell has specific requirements. Lets take an example,the secretory cells(which secrete enzymes) have a large number of endoplasmic reticuleum(ER) and ribosomes to synthesize proteins, similarly, since muscle cells have to perform a lot of work(in comparison to other cells.....muscles perform a lot of work), they need a lot of energy. Since mitochondria is the organelle which produces the 'energy currency' of the cell(the ATP), muscle cells require more mitichondria to produce more ATP.

2) The mitochondria of the muscles are of condensed type...i.e. they have more number of cristae, which, to put it simply are needed to produce more number of ATP.

Answer 2

Mitochondria are the power generating units in cells, they convert nutritional energy sources such as carbohydrates (Sugars, Fats, etc) into a usable form of energy. This process is respiration which requires a carbon source (Sugars, Fats, etc) and oxygen. The product of this conversion is ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate) which is a crucial transporter of chemical energy and is found in all cellular reactions.

One such reaction is the contraction of muscle fibres, which requires a huge amount of energy. The more mitochondria there are in a cell, the faster it can convert sugars to energy (in the form of ATP) and the more chemical energy there is available for tasks such as muscle contraction.

The reason muscles ache after heavy exercise is because the mitochondria continue to convert sugars even when the there is very little oxygen available. Without oxygen present during respiration the mitochondria undergo "anaerobic respiration" producing Lactic acid as a waste product, this increases the acidity of the cell temporarily and causes the post-exercise aches.

Bottom line: Muscle cells have more mitochondria because they 'work' much harder than other cells. The process of contraction is very energy intensive and must happen on demand with minimal delay. An example of a very lazy cell is red blood cells (erythrocytes) which lose all of their mitochondria early in formation, as they require very little energy.

Hope that helped

Answer 3

muscle function is to produce force and cause motion, either locomotion or movement within internal organs. Much of muscle contraction occurs without conscious thought and is necessary for survival, like the contraction of the heart, or peristalsis (which pushes food through the digestive system). Voluntary muscle contraction is used to move the body, and can be finely controlled, like movements of the eye, or gross movements like the quadriceps muscle of the thigh.

As the muscles cells are continuously at work they need high amount of energy for their voluntary and involunatry work.
Mitochondria are called the powerhouse of cells,they produce energy in the form of ATP via the process of oxidative phosphorylation.More the mitochondria,more the energy is released and more efficientlly the muscle cells can work.