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