Study About Safety and Efficacy of Coenzyme Q10 in Progressive Supranuclear Palsy

Mono-center, Prospective, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled, Randomized Clinical Phase IIa Trial to Assess the Safety, Tolerability, and Immediate Biological Effects of Coenzyme Q10 - nanoQuinon® in Progressive Supranuclear Palsy

Study hypothesis:

A 6-week p.o treatment with 5 mg/Kg Coenzyme Q10 is safe and tolerable,increases the brain's metabolism and ameliorates clinical symptoms in patients with PSP.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Progressive Supranuclear Palsy
• Intervention / Treatment: Drug: Coenzyme Q10

Detailed Description

Background and Rationale:

1. Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP, Steele-Richardson-Olszewski Syndrome) is a sporadic neurodegenerative disorder resulting clinically in a Parkinson syndrome (i.e. akinetic-rigid movement disorder) with prominent postural instability, oculomotor deficits, and cognitive decline (for review: Albers and Augood, 2001; Burn and Lees, 2002). With an average annual incidence of 5.3 per 100000 and an age-adjusted prevalence of 6.4 per 100000, PSP is as common as motor-neuron disease (Burn and Lees, 2002). There is no symptomatic treatment, because PSP patients do not respond to any known therapy (Albers and Augood, 2001; Burn and Lees, 2002). The progression of PSP is rapid and the median survival after onset of symptoms is 5-10 years (Albers and Augood, 2001). Presently, there is no known effective symptomatic or neuroprotective therapy for PSP.

2. Evidence suggests an impairment of mitochondrial energy metabolism in PSP (Albers and Beal, 2002):

1. Reduced cerebral glucose and ATP metabolism have been shown in functional imaging studies in PSP patients (Forster et al., 1988; Martinelli et al., 2000).
2. Cybrid cells harboring mitochondrial genes from PSP patients have decreased ATP-levels and complex I activity (Swerdlow et al., 2000; Albers et al., 2001; Chirichigno et al., 2002).
3. A tropical PSP-like tauopathy has been linked clinically and experimentally to the consumption of the fruit and teas of leaves of the tropical plant annona muricata rich in lipophilic complex I inhibitors (Caparros-Lefebvre et al., 1999; 2001). These clinical observations suggest a role for mitochondrial dysfunction in the etiology of PSP.

3.Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) is the physiological electron recipient of complex I. Exogenous CoQ10 (1.) enhances the electron transport by complex I and (2.) powerfully scavenges free radicals. Thus, CoQ10 has been shown to reduce the toxicity of complex I inhibitors in vitro (Menke et al., 2003) and in vivo (Beal et al., 1998

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 20
• Phase: Phase 2

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Germany
  • Hessen
    • Marburg, Hessen, Germany, 35033
      • Neurologische Klinik der Philipps-Universität Marburg

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 38 years to 83 years (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Diagnosis of clinically probable PSP (Litvan et al., 1996).
• Early stage PSP [PSP staging system ≤ III (Golbe, 1997)].
• Capability and willingness to give written informed consent to participate in the study.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Age > 85 years.
• Parkinson syndromes other than PSP (e.g. idiopathic Parkinson's disease, multiple system atrophy, diffuse Lewy body disease, FTDP17, symptomatic parkinsonism)
• Dementia [Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) ≤ 24]
• History of epilepsy, structural brain disease, brain surgery, or electroconvulsive therapy
• History of stroke related to the onset or progression of PSP symptoms
• Arterial hypertension (systolic >180 or diastolic >110mm Hg)
• Thyroid dysfunction requiring thyroxin supplementation (CoQ10 may change its metabolism)
• Presence of other serious illnesses
• Insufficient contraception in male and pre-menopausal female participants. Accepted means of contraception are hormonal contraception, intrauterine devices, vaginal rings, preservatives, and abstinence.
• Pregnancy or lactation period
• Participation in other drug studies within 60 days before baseline visit.
• Use of CoQ10 within 60 days before baseline visit
• Use of any antioxidants (e.g. vitamin E, C) within 60 days before baseline visit
• Use of any drugs modifying mitochondrial activity within 60 days before baseline visit
• Use of statins within 60 days before baseline visit (inhibit endogenous CoQ10 production)
• Use of drugs interfering with catecholamine metabolism (e.g. reserpine, amphetamines, or monaomine oxidase-A inhibitors, methylphenidate, cinnarizine) within 30 days before baseline visit.
• Use of Levodopa within 30 days before baseline visit (CoQ10 may change its metabolism).
• An unstable dosage of CNS-active drugs (e.g. anxiolytics, hypnotics, tranquillizer, and antidepressants) within 30 days before baseline visit or throughout the study.
• An unstable dosage of other antiparkinsonian drugs within 30 days before baseline visit or throughout the study.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: Quadruple

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Placebo Comparator: Placebo	Drug: Coenzyme Q10
Active Comparator: Coenzyme Q10	Drug: Coenzyme Q10

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Brain Energy Metabolites measured by Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Slowdown of clinical progression after 6 weeks, rated with UPDRS III, PSP rating scale, PSP staging system, modified Hoehn and Yahr, FAB, MMSE, Montgomery- Asberg Depression scale, Schwab and England Score and UPDRS II
Safety and tolerability:Vital signs physical examination and safety laboratory with Blood tests and urine status.
Evaluation of occuring adverse events(AE), severe adverse events(SAE) up to 6 Weeks after the beginning of the treatment.

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: German Parkinson Study Group (GPS)
• Collaborators: Philipps University Marburg Medical Center; MSE Pharmazeutika GmbH, Louisenstr.114D-61348 Bad Homburg, Germany; Pitzer Stiftung
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Wolfgang Oertel, Professor, Neurologische Klinik der Philipps Universität Marburg

Publications and helpful links

Helpful Links

• Homepage Coordination Center for Clinical Studies to MEMSA Study, Language: German
• Homepage Competence Network on Parkinson's disease sponsored by the German government, Language German, English

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: May 1, 2006
• Study Completion (Actual): February 1, 2007

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: May 21, 2006
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 22, 2006
• First Posted (Estimate): May 24, 2006

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): January 10, 2020
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: January 7, 2020
• Last Verified: March 1, 2008

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Progressive Supranuclear Palsy; Coenzyme Q10
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Brain Diseases; Central Nervous System Diseases; Nervous System Diseases; Eye Diseases; Neurologic Manifestations; Basal Ganglia Diseases; Movement Disorders; Neurodegenerative Diseases; Tauopathies; Cranial Nerve Diseases; Ocular Motility Disorders; Ophthalmoplegia; Paralysis; Supranuclear Palsy, Progressive; Physiological Effects of Drugs; Micronutrients; Vitamins; Coenzyme Q10; Ubiquinone
• Other Study ID Numbers: EudraCT: 2005-000574-40