PQQhlth™

PQQhlth™ is a Branded product from HD Nutrition Ltd called Pyrroloquinoline quinone or PQQ. 

PQQ (pyrroloquinoline quinone), also called methoxatin, is a vitamin-like compound that exists naturally in soil and a variety of foods, including spinach, kiwi, soybeans, and human breastmilk (1).  PQQ (pyrroloquinoline quinone) is a powerful nutrient with far-reaching effects in humans that was first identified in 1979 in microorganisms. It is found in many common foods and in human milk. PQQ is now thought to be an essential nutrient and has been proposed to be classified as a new B vitamin. PQQ is useful for neuronal health, especially for protect- ing against memory loss, has potent free-radical scavenging properties, and as a dietary constituent in many foods is thought to play an essential role in growth, energy, and reproduction in mammals and humans. Good food sources include kiwi, natto, tofu, green tea, green peppers, whisky, and mother’s milk. PQQ supplementation at levels higher than what is found in food has positive effects on cognitive function, immune status, antioxidant status, cardiovascular health, and neurological function.  

PQQ’s exact function in humans remains somewhat undetermined, but it’s renowned for its potent antioxidant effects. It’s also thought to be involved in a variety of cellular processes, including protecting nerve cells against damage (2Trusted Source, 3Trusted Source).

What’s more, PQQ supports proper mitochondrial function and the cellular development of new mitochondria, though its exact mechanisms are still unclear (2Trusted Source).

Mitochondria are specialized structures inside your cells that are responsible for producing energy from the foods you eat.

Based on the observation that animal diets deficient in PQQ resulted in poor growth, low energy, and unsuccessful reproductive performance, it is thought PQQ has an essential nutrient role in the human body (Stites, 2000). Additional signs of deficiency observed in intentionally depleted diets were friable skin, hemorrhages, diverticulitis, a reduction in general fitness, reduced fertility, and defective immunity (Steinberg, 2003). In animal studies, severely affected mice had functional defects in connective tissues, decreased levels of the collagen-producing enzyme lysyl oxidase, and weakened skin collagen (Kumazawa, 1995). When PQQ is added to an artificial-nutrient-based diet, it improves growth- related variables in young mice. 

The biochemical properties of PQQ are similar to vitamin C in its oxidation- reductive potential, to riboflavin in its redox effects, and to vitamin B6 as a coenzyme for carbonyl group chemistry. PQQ is at least 100 times more efficient than ascorbic acid, vitamin K, isoflavonoids, and polyphenols tested in various assays related to oxidation reduction recycling reactions (Stites, 2006). PQQ can generate redox cycling on a much smaller scale than normal vitamins or well-known antioxidants (Fluckiger, et al., 1993, 1995). 

Energy production may be dependent on adequate levels of PQQ since the number and size of mitochondria are affected by a deficiency. In mice deficient in PQQ, there was a 30–40% reduction in the numbers of mitochondria compared with supplemented mice. The mitochondrial area in the cell was reduced by 30% in deficient mice compared with supplemented mice (Stites, 1996). Increased synthesis of mitochondria by PQQ is caused by the activation of gene response through a pathway that controls mitochondrial biogenesis (Chowanadisai, 2009). 

Research has shown that PQQ facilitates nerve regeneration and enhances nerve growth factor through its function as an ultrapotent antioxidant (Murase, He). By increasing the number and efficiency of mitochondria, PQQ helps brain cells function more efficiently. 

1. Hauge J.G. Glucose dehydrogenase of Bacterium anitratum: An enzyme with a novel prosthetic group. J. Biol. Chem. 1964;239:3630–3639. doi: 10.1016/S0021-9258(18)91183-X. [PubMed] [CrossRef] [Google Scholar]

2. Frank J., Dijkstra M., Duine J.A., Balny C., Jzn J.F. Kinetic and spectral studies on the redox forms of methanol dehydrogenase from Hyphomicrobium X. JBIC J. Biol. Inorg. Chem. 1988;174:331–338. doi: 10.1111/j.1432-1033.1988.tb14102.x. [PubMed] [CrossRef] [Google Scholar]

3. Duine J.A., Jzn J.F., Verwiel P.E.J. Structure and activity of the prosthetic group of methanol dehydrogenase. JBIC J. Biol. Inorg. Chem. 1980;108:187–192. doi: 10.1111/j.1432-1033.1980.tb04711.x. [PubMed] [CrossRef] [Google Scholar]

4. Duine J.A. Quinoproteins: Enzymes containing the quinonoid cofactor pyrroloquinoline quinone, topaquinone or tryptophan-tryptophan quinone. JBIC J. Biol. Inorg. Chem. 1991;200:271–284. doi: 10.1111/j.1432-1033.1991.tb16183.x. [PubMed] [CrossRef] [Google Scholar]

5. Anthony C., Ghosh M. The structure and function of the PQQ-containing quinoprotein dehydrogenases. Prog. Biophys. Mol. Biol. 1998;69:1–21. doi: 10.1016/S0079-6107(97)00020-5. [PubMed] [CrossRef] [Google Scholar]

6. Salisbury S.A., Forrest H.S., Cruse W.B.T., Kennard O. A novel coenzyme from bacterial primary alcohol dehydrogenases. Nat. Cell Biol. 1979;280:843–844. doi: 10.1038/280843a0. [PubMed] [CrossRef] [Google Scholar]

7. Klinman J.P., Mu D. Quinoenzymes in biology. Annu. Rev. Biochem. 1994;63:299–344. doi: 10.1146/annurev.bi.63.070194.001503. [PubMed] [CrossRef] [Google Scholar]

8. Anthony C. Pyrroloquinoline quinone (PQQ) and quinoprotein enzymes. Antioxid. Redox Signal. 2001;3:757–774. doi: 10.1089/15230860152664966. [PubMed] [CrossRef] [Google Scholar]

9. Jonscher K.R., Rucker R.B. Pyrroloquinoline quinone: Its profile. Effects on the liver and implications for health and disease prevention. In: Watson R.M., Preedy V., editors. Dietary Interventions in Liver Disease. Academic Press; Cambridge, MA, USA: 2019. pp. 157–168. [Google Scholar]

10. Zhao L., Gong N., Liu M., Pan X., Sang S., Sun X., Yu Z., Fang Q., Zhao N., Fei G., et al. Beneficial synergistic effects of microdose lithium with pyrroloquinoline quinone in an Alzheimer’s disease mouse model. Neurobiol. Aging. 2014;35:2736–2745. doi: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2014.06.003. [PubMed] [CrossRef] [Google Scholar]