Coenzyme Q10 supplementation improves the motor function of middle-aged mice by restoring the neuronal activity of the motor cortex

• Published in: Scientific reports 2023-03, Vol.13 (1), p.4323-4323, Article 4323
• Main Authors: Inoue, Ritsuko, Miura, Masami, Yanai, Shuichi, Nishimune, Hiroshi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 631/378/2591/2592; 631/378/2611; 631/378/2632/1663; Brain slice preparation; Coenzyme Q10; Cortex (motor); Drinking water; Electron transport; Glutamic acid receptors (ionotropic); Humanities and Social Sciences; Long-term potentiation; Middle age; Mitochondria; multidisciplinary; Muscle strength; N-Methyl-D-aspartic acid receptors; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Supplements; Synaptic plasticity; Young adults
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-31510-1

Physiological aging causes motor function decline and anatomical and biochemical changes in the motor cortex. We confirmed that middle-aged mice at 15–18 months old show motor function decline, which can be restored to the young adult level by supplementing with mitochondrial electron transporter coenzyme Q 10 (CoQ 10 ) as a water-soluble nanoformula by drinking water for 1 week. CoQ 10 supplementation concurrently improved brain mitochondrial respiration but not muscle strength. Notably, we identified an age-related decline in field excitatory postsynaptic potential (fEPSP) amplitude in the pathway from layers II/III to V of the primary motor area of middle-aged mice, which was restored to the young adult level by supplementing with CoQ 10 for 1 week but not by administering CoQ 10 acutely to brain slices. Interestingly, CoQ 10 with high-frequency stimulation induced NMDA receptor-dependent long-term potentiation (LTP) in layer V of the primary motor cortex of middle-aged mice. Importantly, the fEPSP amplitude showed a larger input‒output relationship after CoQ 10 -dependent LTP expression. These data suggest that CoQ 10 restores the motor function of middle-aged mice by improving brain mitochondrial function and the basal fEPSP level of the motor cortex, potentially by enhancing synaptic plasticity efficacy. Thus, CoQ 10 supplementation may ameliorate the age-related decline in motor function in humans.