Why choose a Clinically Documented CoQ10?

The two best absorbed CoQ10 formulations the soft-gel capsules containing Bio-Quinone Q10 ubiquinone (the oxidized form of CoQ10) formulation and the ubiquinol (the reduced form of CoQ10) formulation. The Bio-Quinone Q10 formulation was absorbed significantly better than the ubiquinol formulation and the other five ubiquinone formulations.

Bio-chemist Dr. Anne Louise Mortensen separated out the data for the 231 European heart failure patients who participated in the Q-Symbio study. She compared the data from the more homogeneous European sub-population of the Q-Symbio study with the data from the total Q-Symbio study population, which included Asian and Australian study participants as well.
The serum Coenzyme Q10 concentrations of the European heart failure patients averaged 3.42 micrograms per milliliter (mcg/ml) at 3 months and 3.55 mcg/ml at 2 years of the study. In contrast, the corresponding serum Coenzyme Q10 levels in the total Q-Symbio study group were 3.01 mcg/ml at 3 months and 2.2 mcg/ml at 2 years.
Coenzyme Q10 treatment lowered the risk of death from all-causes, the risk of death from cardiovascular diseases, and the risk of hospitalization to a greater extent in the European heart failure patients. The risk of a major adverse cardiovascular event was nearly two times lower and the risk of hospitalization was seven times lower in the European sub-population than in the total Q-Symbio population.
 

Adjuvant treatment with Myoqinon (Bio-Quinone) resulted in these statistically significant outcomes as compared with placebo treatment.

•    A 43% decrease in cardiovascular deaths
•    A 43% relative reduction in major adverse cardiovascular events
•    A 42% reduced risk of death from all causes
•    A 43% reduction in the number of unplanned hospitalizations
•    A 22% increase in patients who improved their NYHA class

There were fewer side effects in the Q10 group.
 

Supplementation with Coenzyme Q10 and selenium resulted in these statistically significant outcomes:

•    A reduction in cardiovascular deaths
•    A reduction in levels of NT-proBNP (a biological marker for heart disease)
•    Better cardiac function scores on echocardiograms

To date, there have been additional 13 publications detailing the results of secondary analyses of the data generated by Professor Alehagen's KiSel-10 clinical trial.  These 12 publications are summarized on the pages 7 – 19.

Johansson, P., Dahlström, Ö., Dahlström, U., & Alehagen, U. (2013). Effect of selenium and Q10 on the cardiac biomarker NT-proBNP. Scandinavian Cardiovascular Journal: SCJ, 47(5), 281-288

In patients with chronic heart failure, the heart secretes a substance that contains two proteins: B-type natriuretic peptide (called BNP) and N-terminal-pro-BNP (called NT-pro-BNP).  Rising levels of these two proteins in the blood are indicative of elevated cardiac wall tension and, therefore, of worsening heart failure. Consequently, a relatively simple and inexpensive blood test can be used to detect the levels of these normally reliable bio-markers of chronic heart failure.
In the KiSel-10 study, the Swedish researchers divided the elderly Swedish study participants into five quintiles.  Quintile 1 was the quintile with the lowest level of cardiac wall stress, quintiles 2 through 4 were the quintiles with moderate levels of cardiac wall stress, and quintile 5 was the quintile with the highest level of cardiac wall stress. The researchers found that, in quintiles 2 – 4, in the middle 60% of the participants in the study, the combination Coenzyme Q10 and selenium treatment significantly slowed down the increase in cardiac wall tension and decreased the cardiovascular mortality rates.
In other words, the effectiveness of the combined Coenzyme Q10 and selenium treatment varied according to how severe the cardiac wall tension, measured by the NT-pro-BNP levels, was.  Long-term combination supplementation was most effective at slowing the increase of NT-pro-BNP and at decreasing cardiovascular mortality in those elderly study participants who were in early to middle stages of developing cardiac dysfunction.
The Swedish researchers speculated that, in cases of severe cardiac dysfunction, there might be so many damaged heart muscle cells that the heart muscle could not respond adequately to the Coenzyme Q10 and selenium treatment. The researchers also wrote that the “major cardiovascular effect of Coenzyme Q10 is speculated to be due to its antioxidant properties.”  

Johansson, P., Dahlström, Ö., Dahlström, U., & Alehagen, U. (2015). Improved health-related quality of life, and more days out of hospital with supplementation with selenium and coenzyme q10 combined. Results from a double blind, placebo-controlled prospective study. The Journal of Nutrition, Health & Aging, 19(9), 870-877.

Continuing to mine the data from the KiSel-10 study, the Swedish researchers investigated the effect of 48 months of supplementation with Q10 and selenium on non-institutionalized elderly citizens with respect to the number of days out of hospital and health-related quality of life (Hr-QoL).  They examined the data from all hospital admissions during the study, and they examined the data from a Quality of Life Short Form-36 (SF-36), from the Cardiac Health Profile (CHP), and from a one-item overall-quality-of-life survey.
After the 48 months of supplementation with Coenzyme Q10 and selenium, the researchers continued to follow the study participants.  In the total group, the study participants who took selenium and Q10 recorded 1454 hospital-free days, and the study participants who took the placebo preparations recorded 1403 days out of the hospital.  The difference of 51 days was not statistically significant, but it might well have been clinically and personally significant.
At a point after the conclusion of the KiSel-10 supplementation period, in an effort to ensure that they were comparing participants with very similar characteristics, the investigators matched the records of 110 participants (55 active treatment and 55 placebo) and examined the hospital stay data.  In the matched group, the study participants who had gotten the active treatment had recorded a mean number of 1779 days out of hospital.  In the same period, the study participants in the placebo group, by comparison, had recorded 1533 days out of the hospital.  The difference of an extra 246 days out of the hospital (13% fewer days in the hospital) was statistically significant.
The study participants who received the active substances selenium and Q10 recorded significantly lower declines, with increasing age, in the following health-related quality-of-life areas: physical role performance, vitality, physical component score, overall quality of life, somatic dimension (functioning of the body), conative dimension (willingness to change, willingness to take action), and global function. The researchers concluded that the active treatment group had significantly more days out of the hospital and a slower deterioration of health-related quality of life.

Alehagen, U., Lindahl, T. L., Aaseth, J., Svensson, E., & Johansson, P. (2015). Levels of sP-selectin and hs-CRP Decrease with dietary intervention with selenium and Coenzyme Q10 combined: A Secondary analysis of a randomized clinical trial. Plos ONE, 10(9), 1-16.

Having established that a four-year-long daily supplementation with a combination of 200 mg of ubiquinone Q10 and 200 mcg of organic selenium yeast significantly reduces the risk of cardiovascular death in elderly Swedish citizens (average age: 78 years), Professor Alehagen and his team of researchers undertook a secondary analysis of the data from the KiSel-10 clinical trial.  
Specifically, they looked at data from bio-markers of inflammation in the body.  First, they looked at the data recording C-reactive protein (CRP) levels. CRP tests are blood tests that measure levels of systemic inflammation and, by extension, provide information about the extent of cardiovascular risk.
In the KiSel-10 study, the CRP levels for the placebo group were, on average, 4.8 nanograms/milliliter at the start of the study and 5.1 ng/mL at the end of the study. The corresponding CRP levels for active treatment selenium and Q10 group were 4.1 ng/mL at the start of the study and 2.1 ng/mL at the end of the study.
Secondly, the researchers looked at the levels of soluble Platelet-selectin (SP-selectin) in the active treatment and placebo groups.  SP-selectin is known to be a bio-marker for atherosclerosis (the build-up of plaque on the inside walls of blood vessels).  In the placebo group, the study start mean level was 56.6 milligrams/milliliter, and the study end mean level was 72.3 mg/mL, with the rise possibly indicating a worsening of the athero-thrombotic process with increasing age.  (Atherothrombosis is the formation of blood clots along the walls of the arteries) The rise in SP-selectin levels in the selenium and Q10 treatment group was significantly smaller: from a study start mean level of 55.9 mg/mL to a study end mean level of 58.0 mg/mL.
Thus, the analysis of the two bio-markers for inflammation and atherosclerosis showed significantly better outcomes in the treatment group that received the combination selenium and Coenzyme Q10 supplements than in the placebo group. Moreover, the incidence of cardiovascular death was significantly reduced in the active treatment group, as compared with the placebo group.  In the active treatment group, there were reduced cardiovascular death rates in participants at both high and low levels of CRP and SP-selectin.  
The researchers hypothesize that the mechanism for the beneficial health effect demonstrated in the KiSel-10 study is the anti-oxidative effect of the selenium and the Coenzyme Q10 working synergistically.  
Alehagen, U., Aaseth, J., & Johansson, P. (2015). Less increase of copeptin and MR-proADM due to intervention with selenium and coenzyme Q10 combined: Results from a 4-year prospective randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial among elderly Swedish citizens. Biofactors (Oxford, England), 41(6), 443-452.

The KiSel-10 researchers knew that selenium and Coenzyme Q10 are involved in the body’s antioxidative defense mechanisms.  Therefore, they evaluated the effect of selenium and Coenzyme Q10 supplementation on copeptin and adrenomedullin levels in the blood as biomarkers of oxidative stress.
In clinical testing, copeptin is a peptide that is regarded as a useful substitute marker for the presence of the antidiuretic hormone arginine vasopressin. Arginine vasopressin levels are known to have good prognostic value for outcomes in patients at risk of heart failure, but arginine vasopressin is difficult to measure because of the molecules’ small size and short half-life. Copeptin, on the other hand, can be easily tested for, and it is regarded as a reliable surrogate bio-marker for increased levels of arginine vasopressin.
Adrenomedullin is a peptide hormone that, in animal studies, has been shown to protect against angiotensin II-caused cardiovascular damage through the reduction of the level of oxidative stress.  It is found in sufficient concentrations in the blood to make measurement possible.
The researchers’ evaluations of the blood samples taken at baseline and after 18 months and 48 months of the KiSel-10 study showed that the active treatment group had significantly less increase in copeptin levels. Remember: higher levels of copeptin are associated with higher risk of heart failure. Moreover, the combination SelenoPrecise and Bio-Quinone treatment protected against cardiovascular deaths in both the patients who entered the study with high copeptin levels and the patients who entered the study with low copeptin levels.
 Similarly, the data showed that there had been significantly less increase in adrenomedullin levels in the active treatment group as compared to the placebo group. Again, the data showed that there were significantly fewer cardiovascular deaths in the selenium and Coenzyme Q10 supplementation group, both among the patients with above median levels and the patients with below median levels.
In their 10-year follow-up study of the data, the researchers noted the same cardioprotective effects of the selenium and Coenzyme Q10 supplementation that they had noted at the 4-year evaluation point.

Alehagen, U., Aaseth, J., & Johansson, P. (2015). Reduced Cardiovascular Mortality 10 Years after Supplementation with Selenium and Coenzyme Q10 for Four Years: Follow-Up Results of a Prospective Randomized Double-Blind Placebo-Controlled Trial in Elderly Citizens. Plos One, 10(12), e0141641.

Having established that four years of supplementation with SelenoPrecise and Bio-Quinone Q10 was positively associated with reduced cardiovascular disease risk and with improved cardiac function, the KiSel-10 researchers followed up by analyzing the persistence of the effect of supplementation on cardiovascular mortality 10 years after the initiation of the active treatment.
In particular, they looked to see if cardiovascular mortality varied according to gender, diabetes, development of ischemic heart disease, or New York Heart Association (NYHA) functional class. The researchers used death certificates and autopsy reports to collect data on mortality.
The significantly lower cardiovascular mortality rates in the selenium and Coenzyme Q10 treatment group persisted throughout the 10-year period from the start of the intervention.  There were positive risk reductions, with the active treatment, in both genders, in different NYHA functional classes, and in participants who developed ischemic heart disease (reduced blood flow and reduced oxygen to the heart).
In other words, the protection against heart disease was not limited to the four years in which the KiSel-10 study participants were receiving the supplements.  The protection continued through the follow-up period.
Why and how the cardioprotective effect persisted as long as it did remains to be explained, but the persistent effect was there to be seen in the data.  The researchers were able to track each of the 443 elderly participants. No participant disappeared from the scrutiny of the investigators.

Alehagen, U., & Aaseth, J. (2015). Selenium and coenzyme Q10 interrelationship in cardiovascular diseases--A clinician's point of view. Journal of Trace Elements in Medicine and Biology, 31157-162.

In this article, Professor Alehagen and Dr. Aaseth undertake a brief review of what they have learned, as clinicians, from the results of the KiSel-10 study and from their review of the literature of Coenzyme Q10 and selenium.
1. There is an important interrelationship between Coenzyme Q10 and selenium. The authors point out that the selenium deficiencies can inhibit the cells from getting optimal concentrations of Coenzyme Q10 and, also, that adequate concentrations of Q10 must be available for the cells to benefit from optimal selenium function.
2. The literature on the use of selenium and Coenzyme Q10 in heart disease extends back to Kuklinski (1994, lower mortality in patients with acute myocardial infarctions), Witte (2005, improved cardiac left ventricular function and better quality of life), and Leong (2010, less cardiac damage and shorter hospital stays following coronary artery bypass surgery).
3. The literature shows unequivocally that statin treatment leads to decreases in serum Q10 levels and that statin treatment leads to the inhibition of the synthesis of some important selenoproteins. Moreover, the risk of developing heart disease is positively associated with low serum Q10 levels and low serum selenium levels.
4. The clinical results from the KiSel-10 intervention study using both selenium and coenzyme Q10 in an elderly population were statistically significant: a reduction in cardiovascular mortality, an improved cardiac function shown in echocardiograms, and slower increases in heart muscle wall tension shown in lower concentrations of the biomarker NT-proBNP.
5. Coenzyme Q10 (in its reduced form) is an important antioxidant, and selenium is an essential component of some important antioxidant enzymes.  Antioxidant protection is especially important in the prevention of heart disease because the mitochondrial DNA in the heart muscle cells are especially susceptible to damage caused by oxidative stress (oxidative stress = an imbalance between the body’s production of free radicals and the body’s ability to neutralize said free radicals).
6. There is an interrelationship between selenium and Coenzyme Q10 that can be exploited for therapeutic advantage if both substances are used together as a preventive measure in middle-aged and elderly persons at risk for developing heart disease and as an adjunctive treatment of patients diagnosed with heart failure.
Alehagen, U., Johansson, P., Björnstedt, M., Rosén, A., Post, C., & Aaseth, J. (2016). Relatively high mortality risk in elderly Swedish subjects with low selenium status. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 70(1), 91-96. doi:10.1038/ejcn.2015.92

The Linköping University researchers knew that the daily dietary intake of selenium is generally quite low in Sweden.  They measured and evaluated the serum selenium levels of 668 elderly citizens of the rural municipality of Kinda.  They established that the serum selenium concentrations of the study participants in this sample was, on average, 67.1 micrograms per liter.  This is a level considerably below the physiological saturation level required for the activation of important selenoproteins such selenoprotein P and the glutathione peroxidases.

To show how low the serum selenium concentrations of the elderly Swedish population was, we can compare with the plasma selenium concentrations of 119 healthy British men and women aged 50 – 64 years [Hurst 2010].  The British study participants had a mean plasma selenium level of 95.7 micrograms per liter with a standard deviation of 11.5 micrograms per liter.  Roughly 68 percent of the study participants had plasma selenium concentrations that ranged between 84.2 and 107.2 micrograms per liter.  Roughly 95 percent of the study participants had plasma selenium concentrations that ranged between 72.7 and 118.7 micrograms per liter.  That is to say, higher than the Swedish average to 67.1 micrograms of selenium per liter of serum.

The researchers made appropriate adjustments to rule out the effect of such confounding variables as male gender, smoking, diabetes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and impaired heart function.  They found that individuals in the lowest quartile of serum selenium concentrations were at a 43% greater risk of death from all causes and at a 56% greater risk of death from heart disease.  The researchers concluded that moderate daily supplementation with selenium might improve the overall health of the Swedish population.
Alehagen, U., Alexander, J., & Aaseth, J. (2016). Supplementation with selenium and coenzyme Q10 reduces cardiovascular mortality in elderly with low selenium status. a secondary analysis of a randomised clinical trial. Plos One, 11(7), e0157541. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0157541

The KiSel-10 researchers did a secondary analysis of the available study data to determine whether the positive effects of daily supplementation with Coenzyme Q10 and high-selenium yeast for four years are directly associated with the baseline serum selenium levels of study participants.

They reported two important findings from their secondary analysis:
 
1) The risk of death from heart disease was higher among study participants with baseline serum selenium concentrations lower than 65 micrograms per liter as compared with study participants whose baseline serum selenium concentrations were above 85 micrograms per liter.

2) The daily supplementation with a combination of Coenzyme Q10 and high-selenium yeast was shown to provide protection against death from heart disease in the study participants with baseline serum selenium levels below 85 micrograms per liter.

Alehagen, U., Johansson, P., Aaseth, J., Alexander, J., & Wågsäter, D. (2017). Significant changes in circulating microRNA by dietary supplementation of selenium and Coenzyme Q10 in healthy elderly males. A subgroup analysis of a prospective randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial among elderly Swedish citizens. Plos One, 12(4), e0174880. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0174880

The KiSel-10 researchers focused in on the data from 50 study participants, all males, 25 of whom had been in the active treatment group and 25 of whom had been in the placebo group.  They isolated RNA from the plasma of these 50 study participants.

Then they analyzed the pre-treatment and post-treatment levels of the expression of numerous microRNAs.  At baseline, there were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of microRNA expression levels.  After four years of treatment with either Coenzyme Q10 and high-selenium yeast or placebo, however, the data showed significant differences between the two groups in as many as 70 different microRNAs.  (MicroRNAs are non-coding RNA molecules involved in the regulation of genes that code for proteins.  These microRNAs can inhibit the expression of genes and thus influence the formation of proteins.  MicroRNAs can play a significant role in the development of heart disease and diabetes.)

The researchers concluded that the significant differences between the Coenzyme Q10/high-selenium yeast treatment group and the placebo group in the expression of microRNAs might be one of the biological mechanisms by which the supplementation with Coenzyme Q10 and high-selenium yeast reduced significantly the risk of death from heart disease and reduced the extent of inflammation in the elderly Swedish citizens.  

Alehagen, U., Johansson, P., Aaseth, J., Alexander, J., & Brismar, K. (2017). Increase in insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) and insulin-like growth factor binding protein 1 after supplementation with selenium and Coenzyme Q10. A prospective randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial among elderly Swedish citizens. Plos One, 12(6), e0178614. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0178614.

The KiSel-10 study data show conclusively that daily Coenzyme Q10 and high-selenium yeast supplements provide protection against death from heart disease and from age-related declines in heart function.  The researchers trace these beneficial effects in part to the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory functions of the two substances.

Insulin-like growth factor-1 (abbreviated IGF-1) has many functions in the body such as cell growth and metabolism as well as anti-inflammatory and antioxidative effects.  IGF-1 concentrations tend to decrease with increasing age and during periods of inflammation.

Professor Alehagen and the KiSel-10 researchers examined the effects of four years of daily supplementation with Coenzyme Q10 and high-selenium yeast on concentrations of IGF-1 and its binding protein IGFBP-1 in the elderly Swedish study participants.  They found that the individuals in the group taking Coenzyme Q10 and high-selenium yeast supplements had significantly increased IGF-1 and IGF-1 SD scores at the end of the study period while individuals in the placebo group had reduced concentrations.

The researchers suggested that the positive effect of Coenzyme Q10 and high-selenium yeast supplementation on IGF-1 concentrations might be one of the biological mechanisms explaining the positive clinical effects the risk of death from heart disease and on heart function.

Alehagen, U., Aaseth, J., Alexander, J., Svensson, E., Johansson, P., & Larsson, A. (2017). Less fibrosis in elderly subjects supplemented with selenium and coenzyme Q10-A mechanism behind reduced cardiovascular mortality? Biofactors (Oxford, England), doi:10.1002/biof.1404

Professor Alehagen and his research colleagues investigated the effect of supplementation with Coenzyme Q10 and high-selenium yeast on eight bio-markers of fibrogenic activity in healthy elderly Swedish citizens, aged 70 – 88 years.  

Note: Cardiac fibrosis is the development of excess fibrous tissue depositions in the heart muscle or heart valves.  Cardiac fibrosis can increase the risk of heart failure.

The researchers analyzed the blood concentrations of the various bio-markers at the six-month mark and the 42-month mark in the study.  The data showed that there were significantly reduced blood concentrations of seven of the eight fibrosis bio-markers in the active Coenzyme Q10 and selenium group after 42 weeks of supplementation as compared with the placebo group.  

The reduced fibrogenic activity seems to be a consequence of the daily intervention with Coenzyme Q10 and high-selenium supplements.  There appears to be an association between the supplementation and the reduction in the bio-markers of fibrosis and the statistically significant reduction in the risk of death from cardiovascular disease among the elderly study participants.

Alehagen, U., Aaseth, J., Alexander, J., & Johansson, P. (2018). Still reduced cardiovascular mortality 12 years after supplementation with selenium and coenzyme Q10 for four years: A validation of previous 10-year follow-up results of a prospective randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial in elderly. Plos One, 13(4), e0193120. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0193120

Even as long as 12 years after the supplementation with Coenzyme Q10 and high selenium yeast, the elderly Swedish citizens who had gotten the active treatment rather than the placebo treatment in the KiSel-10 study showed significantly lower risk of death from heart disease.

Moreover, the reduced risk in the active treatment group was seen in such subgroups of patients as those with diabetes, hypertension, ischemic heart disease, and impaired functional capacity.  

Professor Alehagen and his team of researchers have not determined all of the mechanisms of the protective action of the Coenzyme Q10 and selenium supplements, but they point to the documented effects of the supplement combination on heart function, oxidative stress, fibrosis, and inflammation.

Alehagen, U., Alexander, J., Aaseth, J. & Larsson, A. (2019).  Decrease in inflammatory biomarker concentration by intervention with selenium and Coenzyme Q10: a sub-analysis of osteopontin, osteoprotergerin, TNFr1, TNFr2, and TWEAK. Journal of Inflammation, 16(5), 1-9.

Professor Alehagen and his colleagues sought to explain the mechanism by which daily combined supplementation for four years with 200 micrograms of an organic high-selenium yeast preparation (SelenoPrecise®) and 200 milligrams of Coenzyme Q10 (Bio-Quinone Q10 100 mg twice daily) significantly reduced cardiovascular mortality and improved heart function in senior citizens aged 70-88 years at baseline.

One plausible explanation is that the combined supplementation is associated with a significant reduction in numerous bio-markers of inflammation.  Inflammation is a prominent feature in the pathogenesis of many diseases.

First, in 2015, Professor Alehagen was able to demonstrate that the combined supplementation was singificantly associated with positive changes in the two bio-markers for inflammation C-reactive protein and sP-selectin, indicating a mechanism for reduced inflammation and atherosclerosis. Now, in this 2019 publication, Professor Alehagen reports significant reductions in four of five additional plasma bio-markers for inflammation: osteopontin, osteoprotegerin, sTNF receptor 1, and sTNF receptor 2.  The only plasma bio-marker that did not show a significant reduction associated with the selenium yeast and Coenzyme Q10 supplementation was TWEAK (the tumor  necrosis factor-like weak inducer of apoptosis).

Conclusion: The senior citizens enrolled in the KiSel-10 study had sub-optimal intakes of selenium and sub-optimal bio-synthesis of Coenzyme Q10.  Consequently, the combined supplementation improved their defenses against inflammation and oxidative stress and resulted in improved health-related quality of life, improved heart function, and reduced cardiovascular mortality.
 

Supplementation with 100 mg and 300 mg of Q10 per day yielded improvement in physical function and symptoms in veterans with Gulf War illness. Among males (85% of enrollees), there were statistically significant benefits from 100 mg/day of Bio-Quinone Q10 on General Self-Rated Health and on physical function scores

In 19 of 20 symptoms (sleep problems being the exception), Q10 supplementation was associated with signs of improvement, with several of the symptoms showing statistically significant improvement.
 

The researchers’ data suggest that Q10 supplementation can boost the immune system in Type 1 diabetics. Supplementation with Coenzyme Q10 reduces diabetes-associated inflammatory processes. Furthermore, Q10 supplementation may help prevent late complications.

The researchers observed signs of reduced inflammation, increased cytokine production capacity, improved NK cell activity, and reduced hBD2 expression in Type 1 diabetics receiving daily Q10 supplements. (hBD2 expression is indicative of pro-inflammatory activity)
 

The researchers investigated the association between Coenzyme Q10 deficiency in fibromyalgia patients and reduced NLRP3 inflammasome activation and IL-1β and IL-18 serum levels.  

Their results show an important role for Q10 in the control of inflammasome (inflammasome = a multi-protein complex responsible for activation of inflammatory processes).  Coenzyme Q10 supplementation at the level of 300 mg/day represents a new therapeutic intervention for fibromyalgia.
 

CoQ10 treatment induced important molecular and clinical improvements:
1. Improved mitochondrial bio-genesis
2. Improved antioxidants gene expression
3. Reduction in inflammation
4. Improvement in clinical symptoms
5. Improvement in sleep quality
6. Reductions in anxiety, depression, and hostility

In patients treated with Bio-Quinone Q10, the researchers observed a decrease in the symptoms of statin-associated myopathy, both in the numbers of the symptoms and in the intensity of the symptoms. Compared with placebo, the Q10 supplementation produced a reduction of muscle pain and muscle weakness and fatigue.
The addition of a selenium supplement to the Q10 supplement did not result in statistically significant changes. However, the researchers speculated that there may well be a connection between a lack of selenium in the diet and the Q10 deficiency that the Q10 supplementation addresses.
The results showed that supplementation of statin-treated patients with Q10 and selenium diminished the symptoms of myopathy and fatigue, which are associated with the taking of statin medications.
 

The administration of the statin medication atorvastatin reduced significantly the patients’ blood Coenzyme Q10 levels in both groups. Supplementation with Myoquinon then significantly increased CoQ10 levels in the active treatment group.
Atorvastatin did not decrease blood selenium levels in either group. Supplementation with SelenoPrecise increased blood selenium levels in the active treatment group.
The results from symptom questionnaire scores and muscle function tests did not show significant differences between the treatment group and the placebo group with respect to statin-induced muscle pain and weakness. However, four patients in the placebo group did stop the statin treatment because of unbearable pain from the statin medication. No patients in the treatment group stopped the statin treatment. This difference was not statistically significant but might be clinically significant.
Moreover, atorvastatin’s effect in decreasing CoQ10 concentrations may have long-term implications for heart muscle function. Patients on statin medications need Coenzyme Q10 supplements to protect the heart muscle cells.
 

With Q10 supplementation, changes in hematological parameters were observed:
•    Red Blood Cell count: an increase of 25.37% in the homozygous group and an increase of 23.24% in the heterozygous group.  
•    Hemoglobin level: an increase of 16.73% in the homozygous group and an increase of 10.7% in the heterozygous group.   
•    White Blood Cell count: an increase of 24.38% % in the homozygous group and an increase of 12.0% in the heterozygous group.  
•    C-reactive protein: a decrease of 7.8 times in the homozygous group and a decrease of 1.54 times in the heterozygous group.  
•    Thio-barbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS): a 48% decrease in the homozygous group and a 51% decrease in the heterozygous group as compared to the placebo group. (TBARS = a biological marker of oxidative damage)
These significant increases in hematological parameters and decreases in C-reactive protein and TBARS levels suggest that sickle cell patients need to include Coenzyme Q10 in their diets.
 

The purpose of the study was to investigate the efficacy of Q10 supplementation in blocking the effect of oxidative damage in Down syndrome patients. The earlier shorter study (6 months) demonstrated a mild protective effect of Q10 on DNA, and the Q10 treatment did seem to attenuate oxidative damage.

In the continuation of the trial, the results indicated an age-specific reduction in the percentage of cells showing the highest amount of oxidation. Overall, the researchers concluded that there is a potential role of Q10 treatment in modulating DNA repair mechanisms.
 

Nine of the 12 children achieved an increase in their total Quantitative Muscle Testing scores. Overall, the Bio-Quinone CoQ10 treatment resulted in an 8.5% increase in muscle strength.

The addition of daily CoQ10 treatment to the prednisone therapy resulted in an increase in muscle strength in the Duchenne muscular dystrophy patients.
 

Treatment significantly increased both ubiquinone and ubiquinol levels in seminal plasma and sperm cells.  Treatment also increased spermatozoa motility significantly.  

Q10 supplementation proved to be effective at improving sperm motility in patients diagnosed with idiopathic asthenozoospermia (reduced sperm motility of unknown cause).
 

Over a period of 9 years, the attending physician followed 41 patients with end-stage cancer until death.  The primary cancers were, variously, in the breast, brain, lungs, kidneys, pancreas, esophagus, stomach, colon, prostate, ovaries, and skin. The patients’ median predicted survival time was 12 months (range 3 - 29 months), and the actual median survival, with Q10 and antioxidant supplementation, was 17 months (1 - 120 months), 40% longer than the median predicted survival.
The patients’ mean actual survival was 28.8 months as opposed to 11.9 months for the mean predicted survival. Ten patients (24%) survived for less time than predicted, but 31 (76%) survived for a longer period than predicted.   The Q10 and antioxidant treatments were very well tolerated with few adverse effects.

The Friedreich’s ataxia patients had low serum Q10 and Vitamin E at baseline. Supplementation increased serum levels of Q10 and Vitamin E significantly.
With supplementation, 49% of the patients demonstrated improved International Co-operative Ataxia Ratings Scale (ICARS) scores. These patients showing the most improvement were the patients who had had significantly lower baseline serum Q10 levels.