Editing Intercalated disc (section)

{{Short description|Microscopic feature of cardiac muscle}}
{{Infobox microanatomy
| Name        = Intercalated disc
| Latin       = discus intercalaris, discus intercalatus
| Image       = Glanzstreifen.jpg
| Caption   = [[Cardiac muscle]], an intercalated disc can be seen joining [[cardiomyocyte]]s in magnified section
| Image2      = 1020 Cardiac Muscle.jpg
| Caption2    = Intercalated discs, desmosomes and gap junctions in cardiac muscle fiber.
| Precursor   =
| System      =
| PartOf = [[Cardiac muscle]]
}}
'''Intercalated discs''' or '''lines of Eberth''' are microscopic identifying features of [[cardiac muscle]]. Cardiac muscle consists of individual heart muscle cells ([[cardiomyocytes]]) connected by intercalated discs to work as a single functional [[Syncytium#Cardiac muscle|syncytium]]. By contrast, skeletal muscle consists of [[multinucleate]]d muscle fibers and exhibits no intercalated discs. Intercalated discs support synchronized contraction of cardiac tissue in a wave-like pattern so that the heart can work like a pump.<ref name="Openstax Anatomy & Physiology attribution">{{CC-notice|cc=by4|url=https://openstax.org/books/anatomy-and-physiology/pages/10-7-cardiac-muscle-tissue}} {{cite book|last1=Betts|first1=J Gordon|last2=Desaix|first2=Peter|last3=Johnson|first3=Eddie|last4=Johnson|first4=Jody E|last5=Korol|first5=Oksana|last6=Kruse|first6=Dean|last7=Poe|first7=Brandon|last8=Wise|first8=James|last9=Womble|first9=Mark D|last10=Young|first10=Kelly A|title=Anatomy & Physiology|location=Houston|publisher=OpenStax CNX|isbn=978-1-947172-04-3|date=June 8, 2023|at=10.7 Cardiac muscle tissue}}</ref> They occur at the Z line of the [[sarcomere]] and can be visualized easily when observing a longitudinal section of the tissue.