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    3. what chemical causes a dead body to stiffen
    what chemical causes a dead body to stiffen

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    +2  Views: 353 Answers: 1 Posted: 12 years ago
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      Rigor Mortis causes the dead body to stiffen because of chemical changes in the muscles. In death there is no supply of ATP (energy molecule) to the cell and therefore cellular respiration ceases to occur. This causes the calcium pump in the sarcoplasmic reticulum in the cell to stop working and the calcium ions diffuse from an area in the cell where they are in a high concentration to an area in the cell with a low concentration of calcium ions in the sarcomere. There the calcium ions bind with troponing and allowing the crossbridging between the proteins actin and myosin which causes the muscle to stiffen.

      12 years ago. Rating: 4
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