Can Over-the-counter Vitamin-like Substance -- Coenzyme Q10 -- Slow Progression Of Parkinson's Disease?

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases...0921143147.htm

ScienceDaily (Sep. 21, 2009) — Rush University Medical Center is participating in a large-scale, multi-center clinical trial in the U.S. and Canada to determine whether a vitamin-like substance, in high doses, can slow the progression of Parkinson's disease, a neurodegenerative disorder that affects about one million people in the United States.

"At present, the very best therapies we have for Parkinson's can only mask the symptoms – they do not alter the underlying disease," said neurologist Dr. Katie Kompoliti, a specialist in movement disorders. "Finding a treatment that can slow the degenerative course of Parkinsons's is the holy grail of Parkinson's research."

The substance being tested, called coenzyme Q10, is produced naturally in the body and is an important link in the chain of chemical reactions that produce energy in mitochondria, the "powerhouses" of cells. The enzyme is also a potent antioxidant – a chemical that "mops up" potentially harmful chemicals generated during normal metabolism.