CoQ10 Biomarker Trial

Assessing the Effect of the Dietary Supplement Coenzyme Q10 on Biomarkers of Oxidative Stress, Systemic Inflammation, and Endothelial Function in Hemodialysis Patients

The investigators believe that relieving the oxidative stress experienced by hemodialysis patients may help improve cardiovascular health.

In this study, the investigators hypothesize that administration of coenzyme Q10, as a targeted antioxidant therapy, will ameliorate the excessive oxidative stress experienced by hemodialysis patients. This will lead to improvements in biomarkers of:

• oxidative stress status
• inflammatory status
• endothelial dysfunction

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Inflammation; Endothelial Dysfunction; Oxidative Stress
• Intervention / Treatment: Dietary supplement: Coenzyme Q10; Dietary supplement: Coenzyme Q10; Dietary supplement: Placebo

Detailed Description

There are more than 400,000 patients receiving dialysis in the United States, and the investigators expect that this number will go up. For those on hemodialysis, cardiovascular disease (CVD) accounts for a large part of the health problems that these patients have. Cardiovascular problems come from damage to the heart or blood vessels.

At present, the investigators have no treatments proven to help prevent CVD in those on dialysis. For the general population, the investigators know about many factors that increase the risk of CVD, such as having a high level of "bad" cholesterol. But for people on dialysis, the investigators believe that there are other risk factors that are just as important in the development of CVD.

People on dialysis often have high blood levels of waste products. This is called "uremia". The investigators believe that uremia can set up chemical reactions in the blood which can lead to hardening of the arteries (atherosclerosis), an important part of CVD. Compounds called antioxidants, which stop the chemical reactions, may help prevent CVD.

Coenzyme Q10 is a naturally occurring compound in blood and tissues. It is also a readily available dietary supplement often used as an alternative to other medicines. It is a strong antioxidant. The investigators already know that blood levels of coenzyme Q10 are lower in hemodialysis patients. Because of this, it is important for us to find out if giving coenzyme Q10 to hemodialysis patients can help prevent CVD.

In addition, many people take medications called "statins" to help reduce risk for cardiovascular disease. The investigators know that statins can lower coenzyme Q10. It is important for us to know if hemodialysis patients taking statins have lower levels of coenzyme Q10. It may be that taking coenzyme Q10 could increase the good effects of statin medication in hemodialysis patients.

This study will not last long enough for us to look at the development of CVD in subjects. But the investigators will be able to look at biomarkers of oxidative stress, systemic inflammation, and endothelial function. The investigators know that these biomarkers tell us about uremia and other harmful chemical reactions in the blood. If coenzyme Q10 improves the biomarkers, then the investigators believe that it will also help prevent CVD in hemodialysis patients. Our goal is for improvements in cardiovascular risk for those on hemodialysis.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 66
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United States
  • Washington
    • Seattle, Washington, United States, 98122
      • Northwest Kidney Centers

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 85 years (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Patients with end-stage renal disease receiving thrice weekly hemodialysis
• Age ≥ 18 or ≤ 85 years
• Life expectancy greater than one year
• Ability to understand and provide informed consent for participation in the study

Exclusion Criteria:

• History of poor adherence to hemodialysis or medical regimen
• Prisoners, patients with significant mental illness, and other vulnerable populations
• AIDS (HIV seropositivity is not an exclusion criteria)
• Active malignancy excluding basal cell carcinoma of the skin
• Gastrointestinal dysfunction requiring parenteral nutrition
• History of functional kidney transplant < 6 months prior to study entry
• Anticipated live donor kidney transplant
• Patients taking vitamin E supplements > 60 IU/day, vitamin C > 150 mg/day or other antioxidant or nutritional supplements
• Incident hemodialysis patients (defined as within 90 days of dialysis initiation)
• Patients hospitalized for more than 5 days within the past 30 days.
• Patients being dialyzed with a tunneled catheter as a temporary vascular access
• Patients with a history of a major atherosclerotic event (defined as combined incidence of myocardial infarction, urgent target-vessel revascularization, coronary bypass surgery, and stroke) within six months
• Pregnancy

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Prevention
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Factorial Assignment
• Masking: Triple

Number of Arms

3

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Placebo Comparator: Placebo	Dietary supplement: Placebo; Wafer taken daily by mouth for duration of study, containing inactive ingredients. Wafer is indistinguishable from those wafers containing CoQ10.
Active Comparator: Coenzyme Q10 600 mg	Dietary supplement: Coenzyme Q10; Wafer taken daily by mouth for duration of study, containing Coenzyme Q10 at 600 mg.; Other Names: CoQ10; Dietary supplement: Coenzyme Q10; Wafer taken daily by mouth for duration of study, containing Coenzyme Q10 at 1200 mg.; Other Names: CoQ10
Active Comparator: Coenzyme Q10 1200 mg	Dietary supplement: Coenzyme Q10; Wafer taken daily by mouth for duration of study, containing Coenzyme Q10 at 600 mg.; Other Names: CoQ10; Dietary supplement: Coenzyme Q10; Wafer taken daily by mouth for duration of study, containing Coenzyme Q10 at 1200 mg.; Other Names: CoQ10

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change from Baseline in Oxidative Stress Status at 1 month	We will examine whether administration of coenzyme Q10 will ameliorate the excessive oxidative stress burden as evidenced by changes in serum biomarkers of oxidative stress at the 1-month visit.	1 month
Change from Baseline in Oxidative Stress Status at 2 months	We will examine whether administration of coenzyme Q10 will ameliorate the excessive oxidative stress burden as evidenced by changes in serum biomarkers of oxidative stress at the 2-month visit.	2 months
Change from Baseline in Oxidative Stress Status at 4 months	We will examine whether administration of coenzyme Q10 will ameliorate the excessive oxidative stress burden as evidenced by changes in serum biomarkers of oxidative stress at the 4-month visit.	4 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change from Baseline in Inflammatory Status at 1 month	We will examine whether administration of coenzyme Q10 will have an effect on inflammation as evidenced by changes in serum biomarkers of inflammatory status at the 1-month visit.	1 month
Change from Baseline in Inflammatory Status at 2 months	We will examine whether administration of coenzyme Q10 will have an effect on inflammation as evidenced by changes in serum biomarkers of inflammatory status at the 2-month visit.	2 months
Change from Baseline in Inflammatory Status at 4 months	We will examine whether administration of coenzyme Q10 will have an effect on inflammation as evidenced by changes in serum biomarkers of inflammatory status at the 4-month visit.	4 months
Change from Baseline in Endothelial Function at 1 month	We will examine whether administration of coenzyme Q10 will have an effect on endothelial function as evidenced by changes in serum biomarkers and Pulse Amplitude Tonometry scores at the 1-month visit.	1 month
Change from Baseline in Endothelial Function at 2 months	We will examine whether administration of coenzyme Q10 will have an effect on endothelial function as evidenced by changes in serum biomarkers and Pulse Amplitude Tonometry scores at the 2-month visit.	2 months
Change from Baseline in Endothelial Function at 4 months	We will examine whether administration of coenzyme Q10 will have an effect on endothelial function as evidenced by changes in serum biomarkers and Pulse Amplitude Tonometry scores at the 4-month visit.	4 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Washington
• Collaborators: National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH)
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Jonathan Himmelfarb, MD, University of Washington, Kidney Research Institute

Publications and helpful links

Helpful Links

• The mission of Northwest Kidney Centers is to promote the optimal health, quality of life and independence of people with kidney disease, through patient care, education and research.
• The Kidney Research Institute is a collaboration between Northwest Kidney Centers and UW Medicine focused on developing early detection, prevention and treatment of kidney disease and its complications.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start: November 1, 2011
• Primary Completion (Actual): October 1, 2013
• Study Completion (Actual): December 1, 2013

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: July 25, 2011
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 1, 2011
• First Posted (Estimate): August 3, 2011

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimate): December 4, 2014
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: December 2, 2014
• Last Verified: December 1, 2014

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Antioxidants; Cardiovascular Disease; Atherosclerosis; Hemodialysis; Coenzyme Q10; End-stage Renal Disease
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Pathologic Processes; Inflammation; Physiological Effects of Drugs; Micronutrients; Vitamins; Coenzyme Q10; Ubiquinone
• Other Study ID Numbers: 40428-A; R21AT004265 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)