CoQ10

Category: terpenoid

Aliases: Ubiquinone, Ubiquinol (reduced form), Coenzyme Q10

Pharmacological Mechanism

Electron-transport-chain mobile carrier between Complex I/II and Complex III. Endogenously synthesised through the mevalonate pathway (the same pathway statins inhibit — rationale for CoQ10 in statin-induced myopathy). Also a lipid-phase antioxidant, regenerated from ubiquinone to ubiquinol by cellular redox enzymes.

Half-Life (t½)

PO: 33h

Dosing Guidelines

PO: Typical 167 mg (Range: 100–300 mg)

Target Organ Systems

cardiovascular

Interactions

Atorvastatin / statins (caution): Statins inhibit mevalonate pathway → reduced endogenous CoQ10. Supplementation rationale for statin-induced myopathy.
Warfarin (caution): Structural similarity to vitamin K — may modestly reduce warfarin effect; monitor INR if initiating high-dose CoQ10. [Holbrook 2005]
PQQ (synergistic): Often paired in 'mitochondrial support' stacks — PQQ biogenesis + CoQ10 function.

Pathways It Modulates

Ferroptosis (inhibitor) — FSP1-axis radical trapping
Oxidative phosphorylation (cofactor) — ETC Complex I/II → III electron carrier (ubiquinone ↔ ubiquinol)
Parkinson disease (cofactor) — mitochondrial complex I support (QE3 trial null; smaller trials showed modest effect)
Reactive oxygen species (ROS) + oxidative stress (activator) — electron transport chain + antioxidant

Chemical Identifiers

PubChem CID: 5281915
Formula: C59H90O4
Molecular weight: 863.34 g/mol
InChIKey: ACTIUHUUMQJHFO-UPTCCGCDSA-N
SMILES: CC1=C(C(=O)C(=C(C1=O)OC)OC)C/C=C(\C)/CC/C=C(\C)/CC/C=C(\C)/CC/C=C(\C)/CC/C=C(\C)/CC/C=C(\C)/CC/C=C(\C)/CC/C=C(\C)/CC/C=C(\C)/CCC=C(C)C