Antioxidants - Fighters against free radical damage
GSE
CoQ10 - Super Antioxidant
CoQ10 - "Spark and Dampener"
Coenzyme Q10 is a vitamin-like nutrient performing two roles vital to
our well-being:
(1) A "Spark" In its essential
role in the production of cellular energy .
CoQ10 is a relatively large,
worm-shaped quinone molecule, called UBIQUINONE because it was found to be
ubiquitous (i.e. everywhere)in the body. It was discovered
by Fred Crane, Phd. in 1957 in his quest to find the "Missing link" in the
mitochondrial energy-producing process.
(2)
A "Dampener"
a s a powerful
antioxidant in the mitochondria nd cell
membranes. CoQ10 is the only
fat-soluble antioxidant synthesized by the body, but production diminishes
significantly with age . For some, CoQ10 levels within the
heart and kidneys have dropped more than 25% by age 40.
(1)
Ubiquinone - The OXIDIZED form of CoQ10
Ubiquinone is converted to ubiquinol.
Whether produced in the body, obtained
from wholesome, unprocessed foods or supplemented, the body must then convert
ubiquinone to ubiquinol.
(2)
Ubiquinol - The REDUCED/ACTIVE form of CoQ10
In order to
have electrons to donate to
free radicals,
antioxidants must be in their reduced form . Ubiquinol
(reduced form) is also present in certain foods.
The body's ability to convert ubiquinone
(oxidized form of CoQ10)
into the necessary active ubiquinol (reduced form of
CoQ10) decreases with age and/or with oxidative
stress. Under the age of 25, the body is quite capable of converting
CoQ10 from its oxidized form to its reduced form;
They look different too
If you were to break open capsules of the two
supplement forms, you would see that. Ubiquinone (the oxidized form of
CoQ10) is a bright yellow
crystallized powder, and that the ubiquinol (active form) is a much paler
whitish yellow.
How is CoQ10 distributed in the tissues?
CoQ10 is present in all tissues in our body
In Blood
It is associated with lipoproteins
In circulation, 90% of CoQ10 is present in its
reduced form (as ubiquinol). The ratio of oxidized to the reduced
form in blood may serve as a measure of in vivo oxidative stress. Yamashita S,
Yamamoto Y. Simultaneous detection of ubiquinol and ubiquinone in human plasma
as a marker of oxidative stress. Anal Biochem. 1997
Recent studies have shown that the level of
circulating Ubiquinol (CoQ10-H2)
tends to
decline in certain disease conditions. E.g. diabetes, liver
disease, down syndrome, etc. with the result that the ratio of circulating
Ubiquinol to total CoQ10 goes down.
LIM S.C., et al. Oxidative burden in prediabetic and diabetic individuals:
evidence from plasma coenzyme Q10, Diabetic Medicine 2006;
Hasegawa, et al. Daily profile of plasma % CoQ10 level, a biomarker of oxidative
stress, in patients with diabetes manifesting post prandial hyperglycemia, Acta
Diabetol, 2005;
Yamamoto Y, et al. Plasma Ubiquinone to Ubiquinol ratio in patients with
hepatitis, cirrhosis, and hepatoma, and in patients treated with percutaneous
transluminal coronary reperfusion, BioFactors, 1999
Concentrations vary from tissue to tissue, but CoQ10 is more concentrated in
areas
with high rates of metabolic activity and
high energy demands
In the heart +++
The heart has the highest CoQ10 concentration.
Followed by the liver, kidneys, spleen and
pancreas
The oxidized vs.
reduced forms of CoQ10 (i.e. ubiquinone vs. ubiquinol)
also varies from tissue
to tissue. Those with high
aerobic activity generally contain higher amounts of ubiquinone (the
oxidized form);
Heart muscle is packed
with mitochondria
(~¼ the volume of heart cells). Heart
expands/contracts 100,000 times/day requiring lots of energy and therefore needs
lots of CoQ10.
Refe
http://kenayag.com.pl/dok/Kan.pdf
