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Sue McAlister Humans have been chasing the elixir of youth for centuries - with very little success. At least, until now. Although there may never be a single, universal remedy for ageing, scientific research is building up knowledge step by step about what causes the ageing process and how to counteract it. Associate Professor Franklin Rosenfeldt of Monash University's Department of Surgery is playing a major role in this process through his research into one of the most crippling and fatal consequences of ageing - heart failure. The clinical trial forming part of this research is a world-first. "Never before has such a large, rigorous trial been conducted on post-surgical recovery of the heart at cellular and sub-cellular levels," Dr Rosenfeldt says. Dr Rosenfeldt heads the Cardiac Surgical Research Unit at the Baker Medical Research Institute and Alfred Hospital. He and a five-member team are investigating what happens in cardiac surgery patients who have been given tablets containing Co Enzyme Q10 (CoQ10), a natural substance found in every living cell of mammals, especially in the heart. What is remarkable about CoQ10 is that, according to Dr Rosenfeldt's research, it promotes the healthy functioning of damaged or stressed organs, and even seems capable of turning back the biological clock. It does this in two ways. Firstly, it sparks the manufacture of ATP, a fuel that electrifies that part of a cell called a mitochondrion. A mitochondrion is effectively the factory that provides energy for the cell. Properly functioning mitochondria are therefore vital to the health of all mammals, including humans: without them, our cells cannot convert oxygen and food into energy. Unfortunately, as mitochondrial problems increase with age, the cells of older organisms become less efficient at producing energy, making vital organs, in particular the heart, weaker. Obviously, the stronger your heartbeat, the better your chances of surviving heart surgery. Secondly, CoQ10 works like an extremely effective, strong anti-oxidant. It prevents the production of harmful oxygen free radicals, which are released by cells at times of stress, including during heart surgery. A patient's chances of recovering from surgery are improved if the production of free radicals is suppressed. However, the amount of CoQ10 produced in our bodies declines after we reach the age of 20, so an older patient's heart will be under more strain from free radicals than that of a young patient. To find out if administering CoQ10 to cardiac patients could improve their heart function, and by how much, Professor Rosenfeldt first tested it in rats and then in human heart tissue discarded during surgery. CoQ10 was given to six month-old and three year-old rats (equivalent to 30 and 80 year-old humans), whose hearts were stressed, then compared. "It showed a powerful effect," says Dr Rosenfeldt. In fact, the heart function of old rats given CoQ10 returned to the level of young rats. He also found a similar beneficial effect of CoQ10, specific to old age, in human heart tissue obtained from surgical patients and tested in the laboratory. The next step was to conduct a two-year clinical trial in heart surgery patients at Melbourne's Alfred Hospital, where 80 out of a proposed total of 200 people have so far been tested. CoQ10 tablets or capsules are given to cardiac patients for two weeks before surgery. Blood samples are taken before surgery to see if the CoQ10 has been absorbed by the blood, then heart tissue samples taken during surgery are tested to see how much has been taken up by the heart. Dr Rosenfeldt claims early results are encouraging, indicating a high uptake into the patients' heart mitochondria and a reduction in heart damage in patients treated with CoQ10. He is also looking for an overall improvement in patients' health because, he says, there is mounting evidence that administering CoQ10 can retard ageing in other organs, most notably the brain. The aim of his research, he says, is nothing less than to "ultimately extend not just the life span, but the health span in humans". Not surprisingly, there has been a lot of interest from around the world in Dr Rosenfeldt's work. He will begin an even larger trial next year. Monash University, Australia http://www-pso.adm.monash.edu.au/news/Story.asp?ID=26&SortType=5
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