Mitoquinone (MitoQ)
Summary
MitoQ is a lab-made antioxidant first tested as a drug. At 20 mg a day for 6 weeks it raised blood-vessel dilation (FMD) by 42% versus placebo in 20 older adults, but it did not slow Parkinson disease in a 12-month trial of 128 patients. Most trials are small and short, so evidence is grade C to D.
Key facts
- Mitoquinol mesylate, a ubiquinone joined to a triphenylphosphonium carrier that accumulates in mitochondria[3][6]
- Blood vessel function in older adults (D), endurance performance (D), Parkinson progression (no effect, C)[1][3][7]
- Drug-like compound developed by Antipodean Pharmaceuticals and tested as a drug in Parkinson disease and hepatitis C trials; now sold as a supplement[6][7][8]
- The 2018 vascular trial had an industry contract with MitoQ Limited; the 2022 training trial was funded by Callaghan Innovation in partnership with MitoQ; MitoQ Limited supplied product for the 2026 kidney trial[1][4][6]
- 5 graded human outcomes on this page
- October 10, 2026
How it works
ProposedMitoQ carries a ubiquinone antioxidant into mitochondria via a lipophilic cation. In older adults it lowered markers linked to mitochondrial reactive oxygen species and oxidized LDL alongside better endothelial function.[1][3][9]
What the human research says
Human trials only, one row per outcome. The form column shows what each trial actually tested. Grades follow our evidence-grading policy.
At a glance: strongest evidence per outcome
| Outcome | Grade | Effect | Strongest evidence | Rows |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Neurology | Grade C | No effect | RCT · n = 128 · 2010 | 1 row |
| Training adaptations | Grade D | No effect | RCT · n = 23 · 2022 | 1 row |
| Vascular function | Grade D | Improved | Crossover RCT · n = 20 · 2018 | 1 row |
| Endurance | Grade D | Improved | Crossover RCT · n = 19 · 2021 | 1 row |
| Aging | Grade D | No effect | Crossover RCT · n = 18 · 2026 | 1 row |
Every graded row
| Outcome | Effect | Grade | Best evidence | PMID |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parkinson disease progression | No effect | Grade C | RCT · n = 128 · 2010 Newly diagnosed, untreated patients with Parkinson disease Form: MitoQ · Dose: Two doses (amounts not given in the abstract) · Duration: 12 months No difference between MitoQ and placebo on any measure of Parkinson progression, including the UPDRS score. | 20568096 (opens PubMed)Source [7] |
| Training gains in fitness and muscle mitochondria | No effect | Grade D | RCT · n = 23 · 2022 Untrained men (mean age 44) Form: MitoQ · Dose: 20 mg per day · Duration: 10 days before exercise, then 3 weeks of interval training Training increased VO2peak and 20 km time-trial performance similarly with MitoQ and placebo; peak power rose more with MitoQ, and exercise-induced PGC1-alpha gene expression was higher. | 35623315 (opens PubMed)Source [4] |
| Blood vessel dilation (flow-mediated dilation) and aortic stiffness | Improved | Grade D | Crossover RCT · n = 20 · 2018 Healthy adults aged 60 to 79 with impaired endothelial function (US) Form: MitoQ (mitoquinol mesylate) · Dose: 20 mg per day · Duration: 6 weeks Brachial artery flow-mediated dilation was 42% higher after MitoQ than placebo, and plasma oxidized LDL was lower; aortic stiffness was lower only in the 11 people with higher baseline values. MitoQ was well tolerated. | 29661838 (opens PubMed)Source [1] |
| 8 km cycling time-trial performance | Improved | Grade D | Crossover RCT · n = 19 · 2021 Middle-aged, recreationally trained male cyclists (mean age 44) Form: MitoQ · Dose: 20 mg per day · Duration: 28 days Time-trial completion was 1.3% faster with MitoQ than placebo (12.91 vs 13.09 minutes; small effect, d = 0.2) with no difference in perceived exertion. | 34419082 (opens PubMed)Source [3] |
| Physical function (strength, power, endurance) in older adults | No effect | Grade D | Crossover RCT · n = 18 · 2026 High-functioning adults aged 60 to 79 Form: MitoQ · Dose: 20 mg per day · Duration: 6 weeks No convincing effect on measures of physical function; exploratory subgroup analyses hinted at better leg power and grip strength in people aged 70 and over. | 41733122 (opens PubMed)Source [2] |
Forms
| Form | Elemental % | Absorption (human data) | GI tolerance | Studied for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mitoquinol mesylate (MitoQ) | Varies[1][3][6] | Plasma MitoQ was higher after 6 weeks of 20 mg/day than after placebo.[1] | Well tolerated at 20 mg/day; 8 weeks did not change kidney function or injury markers.[1][6] | Vascular, exercise, aging and kidney trials at 20 mg/day; drug trials at higher doses |
Studied doses
Doses studied in human trials ranged from 20 mg per day for 4 to 12 weeks in healthy adults to 40 or 80 mg per day for 28 days in a hepatitis C drug trial; a Parkinson trial ran for 12 months.[3][5][8][7]
Interactions
Published interactions only: each row cites a source. No row means none was found in our sources, not that a combination is safe.
Who should be careful
- Pregnancy, breastfeeding and children
- All trials cited here enrolled adults; there is no safety data for these groups.[1][6][7]
- People with liver or kidney disease
- Kidney function was unchanged after 8 weeks in healthy middle-aged and older adults and liver enzymes fell in a 28-day hepatitis C trial, but longer-term safety in organ disease is not established.[6][8]
- People expecting a disease therapy
- MitoQ did not slow Parkinson disease progression over 12 months.[7]
Talk to your pharmacist or clinician before starting a supplement, especially if you take prescription medicines.
Safety first
MitoQ is a synthetic, drug-like compound with short trials; tolerability looks good at 20 mg/day, but long-term data are thin.
- Tolerability
- MitoQ was well tolerated at 20 mg/day for 6 weeks in older adults.[1]
- Kidneys
- Eight weeks at 20 mg/day did not change glomerular filtration or kidney injury biomarkers in 30 middle-aged and older adults.[6]
- Exercise adaptations
- In older adults, 12 weeks lowered muscle mitochondrial H2O2 emission without changing respiration or exercise redox responses.[5]
How to read the label
- Label dose vs clinical doseMost supplement-style trials used 20 mg of MitoQ per day.[1][3][6]
- One branded compoundTrials tested MitoQ (mitoquinol mesylate); ordinary CoQ10 or ubiquinol is a different product.[3][6]
- Higher drug-trial dosesThe 40 and 80 mg doses come from drug trials in patients, not supplement use.[8]
Cost per studied dose, without the sales pitch
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Cost per studied dose
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Frequently asked questions
What is MitoQ?
A synthetic antioxidant: a ubiquinone joined to a carrier molecule that makes it build up inside mitochondria.[3]
Does MitoQ improve blood vessel health?
In 20 older adults, 20 mg a day for 6 weeks raised flow-mediated dilation by 42% versus placebo; the trial had an industry contract with MitoQ Limited.[1]
Does MitoQ improve exercise performance?
One crossover trial in 19 trained cyclists found a 1.3% faster 8 km time trial; another found training gains in VO2peak were the same as placebo.[3][4]
Does MitoQ help with Parkinson disease?
No. A 12-month trial of 128 newly diagnosed patients found no difference from placebo.[7]
Sources
- [1]Chronic Supplementation With a Mitochondrial Antioxidant (MitoQ) Improves Vascular Function in Healthy Older Adults.. Hypertension, 2018. crossover-RCT
- [2]Translational studies of chronic supplementation with a mitochondria-targeted antioxidant to improve physical function with ageing.. J Physiol, 2026. crossover-RCT
- [3]Mitochondria-targeted antioxidant supplementation improves 8 km time trial performance in middle-aged trained male cyclists.. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2021. crossover-RCT
- [4]MitoQ supplementation augments acute exercise-induced increases in muscle PGC1α mRNA and improves training-induced increases in peak power independent of mitochondrial content and function in untrained middle-aged men.. Redox Biol, 2022. RCT
- [5]MitoQ supplementation does not impact redox responses to acute exercise in skeletal muscle of older individuals.. Redox Biol, 2025. RCT
- [6]Eight weeks of MitoQ supplementation does not alter kidney function or urinary kidney injury biomarkers in middle-aged and older adults.. Am J Physiol Renal Physiol, 2026. crossover-RCT
- [7]A double-blind, placebo-controlled study to assess the mitochondria-targeted antioxidant MitoQ as a disease-modifying therapy in Parkinson's disease.. Mov Disord, 2010. RCT
- [8]The mitochondria-targeted anti-oxidant mitoquinone decreases liver damage in a phase II study of hepatitis C patients.. Liver Int, 2010. RCT
- [9]Chronic mitochondria antioxidant treatment in older adults alters the circulating milieu to improve endothelial cell function and mitochondrial oxidative stress.. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol, 2023. crossover-RCT
What changed
- First draft. Every PMID checked against NCBI E-utilities esummary (title and year taken from the record) and abstracts read for the cited rows.
- Adversarial review pass: every evidence row re-read against its whole PubMed abstract. Official sources: no NIH ODS or NCCIH page covers mitoquinone. Queue safety flag (drug-like, sold as supplement) addressed in safetyFocus and keyFacts. Industry ties via coi.py and PMC statements: MitoQ Limited industry contract (29661838, PMC5945293), Callaghan Innovation in partnership with MitoQ (35623315), MitoQ Limited free product, a subsidiary of Antipodean Pharmaceuticals (42420763, PMC13452465); 34419082 Callaghan Innovation grant; 41308251 internal university funding; 20568096, 20492507 and 41733122 have no funding statement in PubMed. Retraction, expression-of-concern, erratum and withdrawn checks on all cited PMIDs: none flagged. Page set indexable.