Mitochondria are organelles that provide almost all of the energy in humans.*1) Here, the mitochondria require a number of essential substances, including the B vitamins, iron, magnesium, sulphur and copper. Coenzyme Q10 plays an important role in this.
But because CoQ10 decreases significantly with age in the organs *2) and because it is reduced by certain medications (statins) *3), people try to supplement CoQ10. The CoQ10 supplements are a billion dollar market. How effective are these supplements anyway? I have examined CoQ10 as ubiquinone, as ubiquinol, CavaQ10 (β-methyl-cyclodextrin–ubiquinone) and MitoQ.
1. ATP generation (respiratory chain): In particular, one would like a better function of the respiratory chain in the mitochondria. Against ME/CFS, withochondrial dysfunction and for general performance improvement in all organs from brain to muscles.
If you look at the studies, it looks as if the assumed CoQ10 does not reach the mitochondria at all, or almost not at all.*4) CoQ10 is a huge molecule (C59) that can hardly penetrate the cell membranes. In particular, not the mitochondrial membranes, for which there is no transport protein.
- The absorption of CoQ10 from the intestine into the blood is only 1-4% (the high value in “improved absorption”). For water-soluble Q10 (CavaQ10) the 4 to 16 times. With MitoQ about 10%.
- The uptake from blood into the cells is only 1-3% (in ubiquinone), 3-5% (in ubiquinol) and 18-41% (in MitoQ)
- Does it even reach the mitochondrion to produce ATP? The statements range from not at all (see *4) to "approx. 0.1%" to "1000 times" in MitoQ. However, MitoQ does not function as a regular coenzyme Q in the respiratory chain. Then it even throttles the ATP production *6)
Test of orally taken CoQ10 in ATP generation
As described above, there are doubts as to whether orally taken (exogenous) Coenzyme Q10 is at all effective in generating ATP in the mitochondria. Various studies show that Coenzyme Q10 also reaches the inside of the cells. But does it come to the inner mitochondrial membrane where the ATP is generated? This study provides answers:Geranylgeraniol prevents... What the mitochondria do was actually measured here. Result (Fig 2B):
CTRL = control group = 100%
MVS = after treatment with Mevastatin -> only 45%
GGO = after treatment with GG -> significantly increased to 125%
UB = after treatment with Ubiquinone (Coenzyme Q10)->unchanged gate control group 100%
As expected, the statin significantly reduced cellular respiration. GG was able to increase it by 25%. The Coenzyme Q10 (UB) had can influence, although it was significantly increased in the cell. This suggests that CoQ10 did not get into the mitochondria, but GGO did.Side note: You can see from the additional data in the original graphic that the GG was able to exactly compensate for the harmful effects of the statin MVS. Surprisingly, the CoQ10 (only) together with the statin was able to increase cell function by at least 8%. This is probably related to the antioxidant effect.
So what should you take?
- Ubiquinone is recommended as an antioxidant. That's what you usually get under "CoQ10". Ubiquinol or the MitoQ if you want to spend more money. But that only affects the energy to a limited extent. The water-soluble CoQ10 (β-methyl-cyclodextrin–ubiquinone, CAVAQ10) is a good compromise because of the significantly better absorption. CoQ10 solubilized in Olive oil looks like a promising formulation too.
- GG (geranylgeraniol) for more ATP. It is actively transported into the mitochondria and increases the production of CoQ10 where it is needed. Also make sure there is enough protein (tyrosine), B* vitamins, iron, magnesium.
- Vitamin K2- helps in electron transport in the respiratory chain and for more new mitochondria
*1) A few percent are also produced by glycolysis. Anaerobic lactic acid fermentation provides another approximately 5%, but these are also regenerated by mitochondria in the liver.
*2) see https://tocotrienole.com/?thema=GG&seite=250515-CoQ10-in-age
*3) see https://tocotrienole.com/?thema=GG&seite=250609-Statin-side effects
*4) Table the studies, the results, thes Q10 not reaches the mitochondria
| Author (Year) – Model | Design & Dose | Method & result | Title & PubMed link |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zierz et al. (1990) – Patients with withochondrial myopathy | Oral ubidecarenone (dose not specified) | muscle biopsies before/after;ka increase the Muscle‑CoQ₁₀ | Exogenous coenzyme Q (CoQ) fails to increase CoQ in skeletal muscle of two patients with withochondrial myopathies |
| Bresolin et al. (1990) – Patients with withochondrial myopathy | CoQ₁₀ vs. placebo (double blind), dose ~2 mg/kg/d, 6 months | Muscle biopsies:ka significant increase of CoQ₁₀ in muscle | Ubidecarenone in the Treatment of withochondrial myopathies: a multi-centre double-blind trial |
| Morén et al. (1996) – Patients with withochondrial myopathy | 1200 mg/day orally for 6 months | muscle biopsies;ka increase of CoQ₁₀, possibly slight decrease in subsarcolemmal mitochondria | Clinical and biochemical correlations in withochondrial myopathies treated with CoQ₁₀ |
| Chan et al. (1992) – Patients with withochondrial encephalomyopathy | 150 mg/day orally for approximately 10 months | Muscle biopsy + ³¹P‑NMR:ka clear increase of CoQ₁₀, but slightly improved withochondrial function | 31P NMR spectroscopy and ergometer exercise test as evidence for muscle oxidative performance inprovement with coenzyme Q |
*5) Some studies have also demonstrated CoQ10 on (but not in) mitochondria
| Author (Year) – Model | Design & Dose | Result in mitochondria | Title & Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scialò et al. (1998) – Rat | Single oral administration of CoQ10 | Significant increase in CoQ10 at brain mitochondria | Coenzyme Q10 administration increases brain withochondrial concentrations |
| Cooke et al. (2019) – Review (Human & Animal) | Long-term oral administration of CoQ10-β-cyclodextrin (water-soluble modified CoQ10) |
Increases CoQ10 content in muscle mitochondria (horse animal study) | Prolonged oral CoQ10–β-cyclodextrin supplementation increases plasma and skeletal muscle CoQ10 concentrations |
*6)MitoQ: The company advertises a fantastic “1000 times higher” bioavailability for its product. This is ubiqionol, which has been chemically modified so that it can reach cell membranes more easily with an electrical charge. However, there is no evidence for the factor 1000 ka, even when asked (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0yph066qRs).
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5388232/ found that MitoQ gets into the inner mitochondrial membrane, but then gets stuck in the intermembrane space with a positive charge and not in the respiratory chain. Then even severely throttles ATP production. "Proton backflow was severely impaired, leading to a decrease in ATP production and an increase in AMP production."
End CoQ10 for mitochondria