CoQ10/UBIQUINONE RECEIVES ORPHAN DRUG STATUS

[olsen]

http://tishcon.com/

"Tishcon obtains Orphan Drug Designation for Ubiquinol from the US FDA. The designation is for the use of Ubiquinol in the treatment of Huntington's disease. "

Above from Tishcon web site. If a drug has obtained FDA orphan drug status, one's physician may order it, even for "off label" use--ie one need not have huntington's in order to receive a prescription for the drug. Maybe some insurance companies would cover the cost of the supplement--even partial coverage would help considering the doses used in PD. Worth a try--will ask husband's MDS at December appointment.

[olsen]

update on coq10/ubiquinone preparation (labeled "Mitoq" in article)

Antioxid Redox Signal. 2007 Nov 13; [Epub ahead of print]

Is Antioxidant Potential of the Mitochondrial Targeted Ubiquinone
Derivative MitoQ Conserved in Cells Lacking mtDNA?


Lu C, Zhang D, Whiteman M, Armstrong JS.


Department of Biochemistry, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National
University of Singapore, Republic of Singapore.


MitoQ has been developed as a mitochondrial targeted antioxidant for
diseases associated with oxidative stress. Here we show that MitoQ
blocks the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and
mitochondrial protein thiol oxidation, and preserves mitochondrial
function and ultrastructure after glutathione (GSH) depletion.
Furthermore, the antioxidant effect of MitoQ is conserved in cells
lacking mitochondrial DNA, indicating that its antioxidant properties
do not depend on a functional electron transport chain (ETC). Our
results elucidate the antioxidant mechanism of MitoQ and suggest that
it may be a useful therapeutic for disorders associated with a
dysfunctional ETC and increased ROS production.


PMID: 17999633 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]