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Published on: October 3, 2012
Coenzyme Q10 deficiency in patients with Parkinson's disease
Laurie K Mischley1, Jason Allen, Ryan Bradley
1Bastyr University Research Institute, USA. lmischley@bastyr.edu
Unlabelled:
Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are well known to contribute to the pathophysiology of Parkinson's disease (PD). Clinical trials of antioxidants are currently underway in PD patients, however, antioxidant research has been hindered by a lack of peripheral biomarkers.
Methods:
Twenty-two patients with PD elected to have a novel antioxidant assessment (Functional Intracellular Assay (FIA), SpectraCell Lab, Houston, TX) performed between 2004 and 2008. Each PD case was compared to four age- and gender-matched controls (n=88) in four separate, random iterations using laboratory data submitted during the same time period. Logistic regression was used to determine the odds of functional deficiency in antioxidant nutrients (i.e., glutathione, coenzyme Q10, selenium, vitamin E and alpha-lipoic acid) by case-control status. The proportion of cases with functional deficiency was also compared to that for controls by chi(2) test.
Results:
Compared to cases, PD patients had a significantly greater odds of deficiency in coenzyme Q10 status (OR: 4.7-5.4; 95% CI: 1.5-17.7; P=0.003-0.009) based on FIA results, but not of vitamin E, selenium, lipoic acid, or glutathione (all P>0.05). The proportion of cases with coenzyme Q10 deficiency was also significantly greater in cases than in controls (32-36% vs. 8-9%; P=0.0012-0.006).
Conclusions:
Deficiency of coenzyme Q10 assessed via FIA should be explored as a potential peripheral biomarker of antioxidant status in PD.
Insights
Parkinson's disease (PD) patients show a higher likelihood of coenzyme Q10 deficiency. This finding suggests coenzyme Q10 may serve as a peripheral biomarker for antioxidant status in PD research.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Neuroscience
- Clinical Research
Background:
- Reactive oxygen species (ROS) contribute to Parkinson's disease (PD) pathophysiology.
- Antioxidant research in PD is limited by a lack of peripheral biomarkers.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the potential of antioxidant nutrient deficiencies as peripheral biomarkers in Parkinson's disease.
Main Methods:
- A novel Functional Intracellular Assay (FIA) was used to assess antioxidant status in 22 PD patients and 88 controls.
- Logistic regression and chi-squared tests compared nutrient deficiencies between PD cases and controls.
Main Results:
- PD patients exhibited significantly higher odds of coenzyme Q10 deficiency (OR: 4.7-5.4) compared to controls.
- A greater proportion of PD cases (32-36%) showed coenzyme Q10 deficiency versus controls (8-9%).
- No significant differences were found for glutathione, coenzyme Q10, selenium, vitamin E, or alpha-lipoic acid deficiencies.
Conclusions:
- Coenzyme Q10 deficiency, assessed by FIA, shows promise as a peripheral biomarker for antioxidant status in Parkinson's disease.
- Further exploration of coenzyme Q10 as a PD biomarker is warranted.
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