As we get older, the risk of heart disease increases.  There are two basic explanations for this increasing risk:

• Mitochondrial dysfunctionMitochondrial dysfunction is the loss of efficiency in the process of ATP energy production.  As such, mitochondrial dysfunction is a factor in the ageing process and in virtually all chronic diseases including cancer, cardiovascular diseases, chronic fatigue syndrome and fibromyalgia, diabetes and metabolic syndrome, and neurodegenerative diseases. Coenzyme Q10 is an essential component in the mitochondrial production of ATP energy.... Read more about this term
• Oxidative stress

Mitochondrial dysfunction

The mitochondriaThe mitochondria are the bean-shaped organelles in the cells. They are the key organelles with responsibility for the production of ATP energy molecules.... Read more about this term are the tiny “powerhouses” in our cells.  They are organelles with their own DNA.  They produce almost all the energy that our cells need to live and work.

A slow degeneration of the quality of the mitochondria seems to be a cause of ageing and a cause of many of the degenerative diseases that come with ageing [Know 2018].

It is in the mitochondria that the food we eat is processed together with the oxygen we breath to make cellular energy, ATPATP (adenosine triphosphate) molecules are the high-energy molecules with easily broken phosphate bonds that release energy to the energy-requiring processes in the cells. Coenzyme Q10 is essential to the process of ATP production.... Read more about this term energy.

Coenzyme Q10 adjunctive treatment of chronic heart failure patients significantly improves their symptoms and survival [Mortensen 2014].  A recent survey of the scientific literature shows that Coenzyme Q10 supplementation is safe, well-tolerated, and effective as an adjunctive treatment in various disease conditions that involve high cellular and tissue demands for energy and in diseases involving oxidative stress and inflammationInflammation is an immune system response to an injury to cells or tissues. It is the body’s attempt to defend against invaders such as bacteria andviruses and to mend the damage done by invaders. Typically, inflammation manifests itself in the form of fever and swelling, in the swarming of white blood cells and the release of cytokines to fight against... Read more about this term [Garrido-Maraver 2014].

Coenzyme Q10 is a naturally occurring essential nutrient.  In human cells, it is a vital co-factor in the process of ATP energy generation and one of the most important lipid antioxidants.  In this article, I summarize briefly the results of some of the recent scientific research using Coenzyme Q10 as an active treatment compared to a placebo treatment.

NQO1 is the abbreviated form of the name for both the NAD(P)H dehydrogenase (quinone 1) gene and the NAD(P)H:quinone acceptor oxidoreductase enzymes that the gene codes for.
 
The NQO1 enzymes are of interest to us because they are responsible for the reduction of the ubiquinone form of Coenzyme Q10 to the ubiquinol form [Siegel 2017].  That conversion takes the Coenzyme Q10 molecules from their bio-energeticsBio-energetics is both the process and the study of the flow and transformation of energy in living beings.  Coenzyme Q10 has both a bio-energetics function and an antioxidant function in the body.... Read more about this term form to their antioxidant form.

NQO1 and the conversion of ubiquinone to ubiquinol

The ubiquinone form of Coenzyme Q10 is the essential form needed for the cellular process of ATPATP (adenosine triphosphate) molecules are the high-energy molecules with easily broken phosphate bonds that release energy to the energy-requiring processes in the cells. Coenzyme Q10 is essential to the process of ATP production.... Read more about this term energy production.  The ubiquinol form of Coenzyme Q10 is the fat-soluble antioxidant form that provides protection against oxidative damage.

Oxygen is a strange element in our lives.  We cannot live without it.  We use it to burn nutrients to generate ATPATP (adenosine triphosphate) molecules are the high-energy molecules with easily broken phosphate bonds that release energy to the energy-requiring processes in the cells. Coenzyme Q10 is essential to the process of ATP production.... Read more about this term energy in the cells.  So far, so good.

But, in the process of producing energy from nutrients – the process is called cellular respirationCellular respiration is the technical term for the metabolic reactions and processes in the cells that convert the biochemical energy from nutrients into adenosine triphosphate (ATP) energy and then release waste products.... Read more about this term – some small portion of the oxygen produces a by-product: free radicalsFree radicals are unstable and highly reactive molecules that are produced in the body during normal oxygen metabolism. Free radicals derived from oxygen are known as reactive oxygen species. Free radicals play both helpful and harmful roles in the body. Free radicals steal electrons from other substances in order to become stable. In so doing, the free radicals oxidize those... Read more about this term.  These radicals are atoms or molecules with one or more unpaired electrons in the outer orbit. There are many types of radicals; the radicals derived from oxygen – known as reactive oxygen speciesThe free radicals of most concern in the bio-medical field are the free radicals derived from oxygen, they are called reactive oxygen species.  Specifically, there are the superoxide anions, the peroxides including hydrogen peroxide, and the hydroxyl radicals. Free radicals are unstable and highly reactive molecules that are produced in the body during normal oxygen metabolism. Free radicals play both... Read more about this term – are some of the most toxic radicals.

In moderate quantities, these free radicals have some useful inter-cellular and intra-cellular  signaling functions.  Moreover, the immune system’s phagocytic cells use radicals to kill pathogens.  However, in large quantities, the highly reactive radicals that escape the respiratory chainSee Cellular respiration of the mitochondriaThe mitochondria are the bean-shaped organelles in the cells. They are the key organelles with responsibility for the production of ATP energy molecules.... Read more about this term can be toxic to the cells.  They can damage DNA, RNA, proteins and fatty acids in the blood and tissue.

In fact, the definition of oxidative stress is an imbalance between the quantities of potentially harmful free radicals and the quantities of antioxidants available to neutralize the free radicals before they can set off damaging chain reactions.  The process of lipid peroxidationOxidation is the chemical reaction of a substance with oxygen. Peroxidation is the extreme form of oxidation that results from free radicals’ stealing electrons from lipids, either in the cell membranes or in the lipoproteins. The final product of lipid peroxidation is highly reactive malondialdehyde, a bio-marker for oxidative stress and damage.... Read more about this term is one of the most common examples of toxic activity by oxygen-derived radicals; the radicals target the fatty acids in the phospholipid cellular membranes, i.e. the plasma membranes of the cells and the mitochondrial membranes.  The antioxidantAntioxidants are substances that protect the cells and lipoproteins against the harmful effects of free radicals. They are substances that prevent the oxidation of other molecules and compounds. There are two broad categories of antioxidants: enzymatic and non-enzymatic. Non-enzymatic antioxidants are substances like Coenzyme Q10, vitamin C, vitamin E, glutathione, and various carotenoids. Prominent enzymatic antioxidants include catalase, glutathione peroxidase,... Read more about this term enzymes are important for the prevention of lipid peroxidationOxidation is the chemical reaction of a substance with oxygen. Peroxidation is the extreme form of oxidation that results from free radicals’ stealing electrons from lipids, either in the cell membranes or in the lipoproteins. The final product of lipid peroxidation is highly reactive malondialdehyde, a bio-marker for oxidative stress and damage.... Read more about this term.