Zymes llc. Ubisol-Aqua™: Coenzyme Q10 May Prevent Toxicity of HIV Drug Therapy

Zymes’ new water-soluble formulation of coenzyme Q10 was shown to increase growth and survival of nerve cells exposed to medications which often cause nerve damage when used to treat patients with HIV.

Hasbrouck Heights, N.J. – Zymes LLC announced that the results from this study are being presented this week at the 2007 Meeting of the International Aids Society in Sydney, Australia.

Dr. Catherine L. Cherry and colleagues of the Burnet Institute, Melbourne, Australia studied the safety and effectiveness of coenzyme Q10 for use in reducing the neurological toxicity of HIV drugs in laboratory models of drug-induced nerve damage.

Nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NRTIs) effectively inhibit replication of HIV and are central to effective HIV therapy. However, this class of drugs is potentially harmful to normal cells and can lead to serious side effects including wasting away of fat tissue and metabolic disturbances in people living with HIV on long-term anti-viral therapy. Two of the NRTIs that are still in clinical use (stavudine and didanosine) can cause nerve damage, leading to long-term pain in the feet (neuropathy). This neuropathy is one of the most common problems suffered by people living with HIV.

Dr. Cherry stated, “The treatment of patients with nutrients such as coenzyme Q₁₀ has shown promise in the prevention and treatment of nerve damage in other neurological diseases and has been suggested as a possible way to reduce the nerve toxicity of these antiviral drugs. Until now, we could not study coenzyme Q10 in the laboratory because it is insoluble in water. Zymes’ Ubisol-Aqua™: Coenzyme Q₁₀, a water-soluble formulation of coenzyme Q₁₀, allows us to study this nutrient in our laboratory model of nerve damage caused by these HIV drugs.”

In Dr. Cherry’s study, nerve cells from rats were first grown in the presence of Ubisol-Aqua™: Coenzyme Q₁₀ alone. They were then grown in the presence of Ubisol-Aqua™: Coenzyme Q₁₀ plus stavudine and Ubisol-Aqua™: Coenzyme Q₁₀ plus didanosine. The subsequent growth and survival of the nerve cells were measured using video image analysis.

In these studies, Ubisol-Aqua™: Coenzyme Q₁₀ alone was associated with significantly increased nerve cell growth and survival. Nerve cells grown with Ubisol-Aqua™: Coenzyme Q₁₀ survived at least one week longer than those grown without this compound. When nerve cells were grown in the presence of the HIV drugs stavudine or didanosine alone, nerve cell growth and survival was significantly impaired. However, when Ubisol-Aqua™: Coenzyme Q₁₀ was added to either stavudine or didanosine, the toxicity of the drugs was greatly reduced. After 19 days, nerve cells grown with Ubisol-Aqua™: Coenzyme Q₁₀ plus the drug stavudine grew and survived like normal nerve cells, whereas cells exposed to stavudine alone were not growing well. After only 6 days, nerve cells grown with didanosine alone were dying, but the nerve cells grown with Ubisol-Aqua™: Coenzyme Q₁₀ and didanosine grew and survived like normal nerve cells.

Dr. Cherry stated, “These data support the possibility that Ubisol-Aqua™: Coenzyme Q₁₀ may be useful for preventing the nerve damage associated with stavudine and didanosine. Controlled trials are needed to confirm this in a clinical setting and to examine the possible role of coenzyme Q₁₀ in treating established nerve damage”.

“Achieving water solubility of coenzyme Q₁₀ with our Ubisol-Aqua™ technology finally makes it possible to deliver coenzyme Q₁₀ in a form that improves its functionality.” said Dr. Randi Fain, Co-founder and Executive Vice President of Zymes LLC, New Jersey, USA “We believe the technology can enhance the health benefits of coenzyme Q₁₀ as well as other vitamins, nutrients and medicines to improve the quality of life for patients.”

To achieve solubilization, Ubisol-Aqua™ uses both complexation and reduced particle size. Through this combined approach, Zymes delivers previously water-insoluble drugs, nutrients, and other compounds as micelles of nanometer size offering many advantages over existing solubilization technologies. Ubisol-Aqua™, a pioneering nanotechnology, therefore makes possible the solubilization and reformulation of water-insoluble biologically active ingredients that would otherwise be commercially and clinically unavailable.

Zymes offers its delivery system technology to industry partners in need of more effective ways of making their ingredients water-soluble and potentially more bioavailable.

About Zymes: Zymes LLC is a bioscience company that combines science, technology and nature to create products that improve the quality of life. It is dedicated to contributing to the well-being of individuals by developing high-quality products that provide significant, clinically-proven health and beauty benefits to consumers. Based in Hasbrouck Heights, NJ, Zymes holds substantial intellectual property ranging from production of synthetic CoQ₁₀ to pharmaceutical drug delivery systems. For more information see www.zymes.com.