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. 2017 Feb 22;9(2):176.
doi: 10.3390/nu9020176.

Age-Related Loss in Bone Mineral Density of Rats Fed Lifelong on a Fish Oil-Based Diet Is Avoided by Coenzyme Q10 Addition

Alfonso Varela-López  1 , Julio J Ochoa  2 , José M Llamas-Elvira  3 , Magdalena López-Frías  4 , Elena Planells  5 , MCarmen Ramirez-Tortosa  6 , Cesar L Ramirez-Tortosa  7 , Francesca Giampieri  8 , Maurizio Battino  9 , José L Quiles  10
Affiliations

Age-Related Loss in Bone Mineral Density of Rats Fed Lifelong on a Fish Oil-Based Diet Is Avoided by Coenzyme Q10 Addition

Alfonso Varela-López et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

During aging, bone mass declines increasing osteoporosis and fracture risks. Oxidative stress has been related to this bone loss, making dietary compounds with antioxidant properties a promising weapon. Male Wistar rats were maintained for 6 or 24 months on diets with fish oil as unique fat source, supplemented or not with coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), to evaluate the potential of adding this molecule to the n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (n-3 PUFA)-based diet for bone mineral density (BMD) preservation. BMD was evaluated in the femur. Serum osteocalcin, osteopontin, receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand, ostroprotegerin, parathyroid hormone, urinary F₂-isoprostanes, and lymphocytes DNA strand breaks were also measured. BMD was lower in aged rats fed a diet without CoQ10 respect than their younger counterparts, whereas older animals receiving CoQ10 showed the highest BMD. F₂-isoprostanes and DNA strand breaks showed that oxidative stress was higher during aging. Supplementation with CoQ10 prevented oxidative damage to lipid and DNA, in young and old animals, respectively. Reduced oxidative stress associated to CoQ10 supplementation of this n-3 PUFA-rich diet might explain the higher BMD found in aged rats in this group of animals.

Keywords: antioxidants; dietary fat; n-3 PUFA; oxidative stress; ubiquinone.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Effects of supplementation with coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) on plasma total CoQ10 levels in 6- and 24-month-old (m) rats fed fish oil as dietary fat. Results are expressed as mean ± standard error of mean of six animals. * Statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) determined by the Student’s t-test.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Effects of supplementation with coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) on bone mineral density (BMD) in 6- and 24-month-old (m) rats fed fish oil as dietary fat. Results are expressed as mean ± standard error of mean of six animals. * Statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) determined by the Student’s t-test.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Effects of supplementation with coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) on urinary levels of F2-isprostanes and DNA strand breaks in lymphocytes in 6- and 24-month-old (m) rats fed fish oil as dietary fat. Results are expressed as mean ± standard error of mean of six animals. * Statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) determined by the Mann–Whitney U-test.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Effects of supplementation with coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) on serum levels of bone metabolism markers (osteocalcin and osteopontin) in 6- and 24-month-old (m) rats fed fish oil as dietary fat. Results are expressed as mean ± standard error of mean of six animals. * Statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) determined by the Student’s t-test.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Effects of supplementation with coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) on circulating levels of parathyroid hormone and adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) in 6- and 24-month-old (m) rats fed fish oil as dietary fat. Results are expressed as mean ± standard error of mean of six animals. * Statistically significant differences (p < 0.05) determined by the Mann–Whitney U-test.
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