November 8 2013. The results of a randomized trial reported on November 6, 2013 in Nutrition Journal found a reduction in inflammation and an increase in antioxidant enzyme activities in individuals with coronary artery disease who were supplemented with coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10).
Researchers in Taiwan divided 42 men and women who were being treated with statin drugs for coronary artery stenosis to receive 300 milligrams CoQ10 per day or a placebo for twelve weeks. Blood samples collected at the beginning and end of the trial were analyzed for CoQ10, vitamin E, inflammation markers including C-reactive protein, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and interleukin 6, and the antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase and glutathione peroxidase.
Plasma coenzyme Q10 and vitamin E levels significantly increased among CoQ10-supplemented participants by the end of the trial. The authors remark that “Coenzyme Q10 not only protects vitamin E against superoxide-driven oxidation but also regenerates vitamin E during antioxidation processes.”
Subjects who received CoQ10 experienced a reduction in interleukin-6 and TNF-alpha, indicating a decline in inflammation, as well as elevations in SOD, catalase and glutathione peroxidase that resulted in a significant increase in comparison with the placebo group. The authors conclude that “Coronary artery disease patients might benefit from using coenzyme Q10 supplements to increase their antioxidation and anti-inflammation capacity during statins therapy.”
