To live, our body needs Energy . Most of it is absorbed through food and drink. In each of our cells, mitochondria work like small power plants to convert the nutrients we take in with food into the universal energy source ATP (adenosine triphosphate). The coenzyme Q10 plays a key role in this process, known as oxidative phosphorylation. Q10 is considered a vitaminoid because it is structurally related to vitamin K and vitamin E. The reduced, phenolic form is called ubihydroquinone or ubiquinol (QH 2 for short). and is the most active form of the coenzyme.
If the body does not have enough Q10 available, it cannot produce enough energy in the form of ATP. In addition, a lack of the coenzyme increases the proliferation of free radicals and thus leads to oxidative stress. An important task of our immune system is to protect us from these free radicals, which can be released by environmental influences, stress, medication, cigarettes, alcohol, but also competitive sports. By binding them in the body, antioxidants protect against free radicals.
Coenzymes are low-molecular, non-protein components of enzymes. The word goes back to the Latin cum ( together, with ). The complex organic molecules (vitamins, nucleotides) are usually only loosely or temporarily bound to the protein portion of the enzyme (apoenzyme). Many enzymes are only active in the presence of coenzymes. Coenzyme Q10 was first isolated from cattle hearts in 1957 by Fred L. Crane. One year later, Karl August Folkers was able to decipher the chemical structure of Q10. The health benefits of the coenzyme were soon recognized in Japan in particular. Q10 was manufactured industrially there and approved as a drug for the treatment of heart failure as early as 1974. Today, the Japanese company "Kaneka" is the market leader in the production and distribution of ubiquinol. Ubiquinol is the active form of the coenzyme, also known as ubiquinone or coenzyme Q10.