The autogenic inhibition phenomenon describes that after a muscle is contracted, it automatically relaxes for a brief latent period due to Golgi tendon organs. What is this term?

• A. Post contraction inhibition
• B. Irradiation
• C. Inhibition
• D. Reciprocal inhibition

Answer: (C)

Autogenic inhibition is a neural reflex where the Golgi tendon organs detect tension during contraction and send signals that inhibit the same muscle’s alpha motor neurons, causing a brief relaxation. This inhibition of the same muscle explains why the muscle relaxes after contracting.

The other terms don’t fit as well: irradiation is about spread of neural activity to nearby muscles, not the relaxation of the contracting muscle itself; reciprocal inhibition is the inhibition of the antagonist muscle to allow the agonist to contract; and post contraction inhibition isn’t the standard label for this well-known reflex, which is specifically about inhibition of the same muscle after contraction.