Calcium benzoate Calcium benzoate Calcium benzoate refers to the calcium salt of benzoic acid. When used in the food industry as a preservative, its E number is E213 (INS number 213); it is approved for use as a food additive in the EU, USA and Australia and New Zealand. The formulas and structures of calcium carboxylate derivatives of calcium and related metals are complex. Generally the coordination number is eight and the carboxylates form Ca-O bonds. Another variable is the degree of hydration. It is preferentially used more than other benzoic acid salts or its esters in foods due to its better
Mitochondrial calcium uniporter Calcium is balanced through the MCU in conjunction with the sodium-calcium exchanger. The MCU has a very low affinity for calcium, so the cytosolic calcium concentration needs to be approximately 5-10 uM for significant transport of calcium into the mitochondria. Mitochondria are closely associated with the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), at contact sites, which contains stores of cellular calcium ions for calcium signaling. The presence of 1,4,5-triphosphate (IP) triggers the release of calcium from these intracellular stores, which creates microdomains of high calcium concentration between the ER and the mitochondria, creating the conditions for the MCU to take up calcium. Ruthenium