CoQ10 - A Super-Molecule with Mounting Evidence of Whole Body Benefits

MD Marcus Gitterle Chief medical officer of Cellexir and Wound Centrics: http://www.woundcentrics.com/

Marcus ansvarar för Wound Centrics 40 kliniker i 12 stater i USA och skriver för Cellexir en artikelserie om forskningen kring anti aging och åldrande processer. Marcus har även gjort formulan för Cellexir One.

In our recent blog series, we began with a look at exciting developments in the science of aging, and emerging evidence showing that aging can be favorably affected by certain strategic nutritional supplements, in measurable, scientifically measrurable ways.

In our last blog post, we took a closer look at one of the exciting molecules capable of exerting beneficial effects on the aging process in our cells: PQQ. As we learned, PQQ gives its benefits by improving the function of our cellular power plants, the mitochondria.

In this blog post, we will take a look at another “star molecule,” Coenzyme-Q10 (CoQ10), also known as “Ubiquinone.” The subject of numerous peer-reviewed scientific papers, CoQ10 is also intimately related to mitochondrial function., and without CoQ10, our mitochondria would be unable to create the steady supply of Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP) required by our cells.

We know that when there is ample CoQ10 in our cells, our mitochondria operate much more efficiently, producing ATP in abundance, and just as importantly, they do so without generating excess, toxic “free radicals.”

But we know that just because something is important to the functioning of our cells, does not necessarily mean taking more of it as a supplement will have any special benefits. So, how do we know that CoQ10 is something worth taking?

What does the research say?

A PubMed search reveals over 430 randomized, controlled trials, the highest standard of medical evidence. What do those trials indicate? A Meta-Analysis published this year stated, “Evidence from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) suggests that coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) can regulate adipokine levels to impact inflammation and oxidative stress in conditions of metabolic syndrome.”^[1]

Why is this significant?

We now know that adipocytes (fat cells), secrete hormones that stimulate systemic inflammation. These hormones are called “adpiokines.” The fact that CoQ10 has been shown to favorably regulate adipokine levels is highly significant, and suggests that supplementing with CoQ10 might help one maintain normal metabolism, and prevent a shift toward metabolic syndrome.

Other studies have shown that CoQ10 can restore function in aging oocytes (female reproductive cells), by restoring mitochondrial function ^[2]. This brilliantly illustrates the direct, anti-aging effects of CoQ10 in human cells.

Fibrosis is one of the hallmarks of aging. It is the progressive loss of elasticity and suppleness in all tissues, leading to changes in skin, bone, internal organs, and particularly the vascular system. One of the key goals of anti-aging is to avoid fibrosis, and keep our tissues supple, and vital.

Excitingly, CoQ10 can help prevent fibrosis, as underscored in a recent paper by Iain Hargreaves and David Mantle, where they state “Clinical studies have indicated that CoQ10 supplementation may decrease the level of cardiovascular fibrosis to which older individuals are subjected, and thereby improve cardiovascular function and reduce the risk of cardiovascular associated mortality.“^[3]

Skin changes are often the first visible sign of aging, but what is becoming increasingly clear is that the cells which make up our skin are simply suffering from reversible mitochondrial dysfunction, which has been shown to be reversible with CoQ10.^[4] This is not merely a cosmetic boon, because the skin is our largest organ, and a key line of defense.

If skin cells are the most visibly associated with aging, our blood vessels are disproportionately associated with the worst diseases of aging, including coronary artery disease, peripheral vascular disease, and stroke. Perhaps the most exciting research on CoQ10 underscores its value in protecting these vital tissues. In a 2018 study from Jia Hu of the Department of Aging Biology, Institute of Pathogenesis and Disease Prevention, Shinshu University Graduate School of Medicine, Hu and colleagues state, “CoQ10H2 protects endothelial cells against senescence by promoting mitochondrial function and thus could delay vascular aging.”^[5]

Other recent studies underscore the ability of CoQ10 to protect the aging brain; something we are all keenly interested in. Con Stough and colleagues are currently engaged in a multi-center trial of CoQ10 in otherwise healthy, aging individuals, stating that “CoQ10 is a novel treatment which has the potential to improve brain function in healthy elderly populations due to established beneficial effects on mitochondrial function, vascular function and oxidative stress.”^[6]

This blog could grow to book-length enumerating all the exciting research on CoQ10, and we just can’t cover all of it here, but I hope I’ve given the reader a sense of the excitement surrounding this key molecule, and its role in helping us age optimally, and add life to our years.

Marcus Gitterle, M.D.

1. Dludla PV, Orlando P, Silvestri S, Marcheggiani F, Cirilli I, Nyambuya TM, Mxinwa V, Mokgalaboni K, Nkambule BB, Johnson R, Mazibuko-Mbeje SE, Muller CJF, Louw J, Tiano L. Coenzyme Q10 Supplementation Improves Adipokine Levels and Alleviates Inflammation and Lipid Peroxidation in Conditions of Metabolic Syndrome: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Int J Mol Sci. 2020 May 4;21(9):3247. doi: 10.3390/ijms21093247. PMID: 32375340; PMCID: PMC7247332.
2. Ben-Meir A, Burstein E, Borrego-Alvarez A, Chong J, Wong E, Yavorska T, Naranian T, Chi M, Wang Y, Bentov Y, Alexis J, Meriano J, Sung HK, Gasser DL, Moley KH, Hekimi S, Casper RF, Jurisicova A. Coenzyme Q10 restores oocyte mitochondrial function and fertility during reproductive aging. Aging Cell. 2015 Oct;14(5):887-95. doi: 10.1111/acel.12368. Epub 2015 Jun 26. PMID: 26111777; PMCID: PMC4568976.
3. Hargreaves IP, Mantle D. Coenzyme Q10 Supplementation in Fibrosis and Aging. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2019;1178:103-112. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-25650-06. PMID: 31493224.
4. Schniertshauer D, Gebhard D, Bergemann J. Age-Dependent Loss of Mitochondrial Function in Epithelial Tissue Can Be Reversed by Coenzyme Q10. J Aging Res. 2018 Sep 5;2018:6354680. doi: 10.1155/2018/6354680. PMID: 30254763; PMCID: PMC6145312.
5. This blog could grow to book-length enumerating all the exciting research on CoQ10, and we just can’t cover all of it here, but I would be remiss without mentioning the abundance of research showing its effects on vascular health.
6. Stough C, Nankivell M, Camfield DA, Perry NL, Pipingas A, Macpherson H, Wesnes K, Ou R, Hare D, de Haan J, Head G, Lansjoen P, Langsjoen A, Tan B, Pase MP, King R, Rowsell R, Zwalf O, Rathner Y, Cooke M, Rosenfeldt F. CoQ10 and Cognition a Review and Study Protocol for a 90-Day Randomized Controlled Trial Investigating the Cognitive Effects of Ubiquinol in the Healthy Elderly. Front Aging Neurosci. 2019 May 29;11:103. doi: 10.3389/fnagi.2019.00103. PMID: 31191293; PMCID: PMC6549544.