Tier 3 — preclinical

Comparison study of plasma coenzyme Q10 levels in healthy subjects supplemented with ubiquinol versus ubiquinone

Peter H. Langsjoen, Alena M. Langsjoen
Clinical Pharmacology in Drug Development 2014 3(1):13-17

Bibliography

PubMed
PMID 27128225
DOI
10.1002/cpdd.73
Funding
The indexed PubMed and publisher records checked for this entry did not provide a study-specific funding statement.
Competing interests
The indexed PubMed and publisher records checked for this entry did not provide a formal competing-interest statement. Both authors were affiliated with Coenzyme Q10 Laboratory, Inc.; this affiliation is recorded as relevant context.

Study snapshot

DesignFixed-sequence comparative crossover study with washout
ModelHealthy adult volunteers
Sample12
Intervention200 mg/day ubiquinone for 4 weeks, 4-week washout, then 200 mg/day ubiquinol for 4 weeks; softgel excipients were described as identical
Duration12 weeks total including washout
EndpointsPlasma total CoQ10; Plasma ubiquinol; Plasma ubiquinone; CoQ10-to-cholesterol ratio; Alpha-tocopherol; Tolerability

What the study showed, in plain terms

Twelve healthy volunteers took 200 mg/day ubiquinone for four weeks, completed a four-week washout, and then took 200 mg/day ubiquinol for four weeks. The two softgels were reported to use identical excipients.

Mean plasma total CoQ10 rose from 0.9 to 2.5 µg/mL during ubiquinone and from 0.9 to 4.3 µg/mL during ubiquinol. The increase in total plasma CoQ10 and the cholesterol-adjusted CoQ10 ratio was significantly greater during the ubiquinol period.

This is useful direct bioavailability evidence for the two tested products, but the fixed treatment order, small sample and pharmacokinetic endpoints prevent the result from proving that ubiquinol as a class produces superior clinical outcomes.

Key findings

Plasma total CoQ10 increased from 0.9 to 2.5 µg/mL after four weeks of 200 mg/day ubiquinone and from 0.9 to 4.3 µg/mL after four weeks of 200 mg/day ubiquinol.

The between-form increase in plasma CoQ10 favored the tested ubiquinol product (P<0.005), and the CoQ10/cholesterol ratio also favored ubiquinol (P<0.001).

No side effects were noted during the study.

What this study can and cannot tell us

The study was very small (n=12) and used a fixed sequence rather than randomized treatment order, so period or sequence effects cannot be excluded.

Only circulating CoQ10 status and related laboratory measures were assessed; no patient-important clinical endpoint was tested.

The finding applies to the exact products and excipients studied and should not be generalized into a fixed bioavailability multiplier for all ubiquinol and ubiquinone formulations.

Editorial review

Reviewed by the Biohack Blueprint research team

Last verified

Dr. Khaled Mahmoud, MBBChCritical Care Medicine, Longevity Science & Editorial Direction Dr. Amr Yasser, PhDCardiometabolic, Musculoskeletal, Gut & Bioavailability Dr. Abdulla Mostafa, PhDCellular Senescence, Neurological, Mitochondrial & Brain-Ageing Biology