CoQ10 Affects Enzyme Levels Predictive of Chronic Disease in Men

Written by Greg Arnold, DC, CSCS. Study finds CoQ10 reduces markers of inflammation and potentially the risk of chronic disease.  

Over the past 2 decades, research has started to find a common link between cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, and type 2 diabetes, in the form of blood levels of a liver enzyme called gamma-glutamyltransferase, or GGT (1, 2, 3). Specifically, elevated GGT levels are “a potential early and sensitive marker of inflammation and oxidative stress (4, 5).” As a result, finding ways to decrease GGT levels, and thereby possibly affect chronic disease risk, are important.

Now a new study (6) suggests that CoQ10 supplementation may be an effective way to maintain healthy levels of GGT and play a role in minimizing risk of chronic disease. In the study, 53 healthy males were given 150 milligrams per day of CoQ10 (in the form called ubiquinol) per day (50-mg capsules taken 3 times per day) for 14 days. Blood samples taken before and after the study to measure GGT levels.  No control group was used.

By the end of the 14-day supplementation period, GGT activity decreased by 13.2% (20.49 to 17.79 Units/Liter, p < 0.001) while blood levels of CoQ10 quadrupled (0.96 to 4.6 picomoles/microliter, p < 0.001). In addition, the rate of cell damage (“redox state”) in the blood decreased by 20.5% (7.47 to 5.95%, p < 0.001) after 2 weeks of CoQ10 supplementation.

For the researchers, “there is a strong relationship between human CoQ10 status and serum GGT activity” and that “longitudinal studies should be conducted to elucidate the long-term relationship of serum CoQ10 and serum GGT activity.”

Source: Onur, Simone, et al. “Ubiquinol reduces gamma glutamyltransferase as a marker of oxidative stress in humans.” BMC research notes 7.1 (2014): 427.

© 2014 Onur et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0)

Click here to read the full text study.

Posted January 19, 2015.

Greg Arnold is a Chiropractic Physician practicing in Hauppauge, NY.  You can contact Dr. Arnold directly by emailing him at PitchingDoc@msn.com or visiting his web site at www.PitchingDoc.com

References:

  1. Brenner H, Rothenbacher D, Arndt V, Schuberth S, Fraisse E, Fliedner TM: Distribution, determinants, and prognostic value of gammaglutamyltransferase for all-cause mortality in a cohort of construction workers from southern Germany. Prev Med 1997; 26(3):305–310
  2. Lee DH, Jacobs DR Jr, Gross M, Kiefe CI, Roseman J, Lewis CE, Steffes M: Gamma-glutamyltransferase is a predictor of incident diabetes and hypertension: the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) Study. Clin Chem 2003; 49(8):1358–1366
  3. Jousilahti P, Rastenyte D, Tuomilehto J: Serum gamma-glutamyl transferase, self-reported alcohol drinking, and the risk of stroke. Stroke 2000; 31(8):1851–1855
  4. Lim JS, Yang JH, Chun BY, Kam S, Jacobs DR Jr, Lee DH: Is serum gammaglutamyltransferase inversely associated with serum antioxidants as a marker of oxidative stress? Free Radic Biol Med 2004, 37(7):1018–1023
  5. Lee DH, Lim JS, Yang JH, Ha MH, Jacobs DR Jr: Serum gammaglutamyltransferase within its normal range predicts a chronic elevation of alanine aminotransferase: a four year follow-up study. Free Radic Res 2005, 39(6):589–593
  6. Onur S.  Ubiquinol reduces gamma glutamyltransferase as a marker of oxidative stress in human.  BMC Res Notes. 2014 Jul 4;7:427. doi: 10.1186/1756-0500-7-427

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