What it is
Regulatory status: dietary supplement (US); authorised novel food in food supplements (EU); food / Foods with Function Claims ingredient (Japan). Not a medication. Not a device
At a glance
What it is, why people use it, the evidence, and what to know before trying it.
Why people use it
- Stimulates mitochondrial biogenesis / improves mitochondrial function.
- Improves cognition (memory, attention, executive function) in healthy adults.
- Improves cognition in mild cognitive impairment or dementia.
- Reduces fatigue and improves mood / stress.
- Improves sleep quality.
- Lowers inflammation (CRP, IL-6).
- Improves aerobic performance / exercise capacity.
- Lowers LDL cholesterol.
- Improves muscle strength / physical function.
- Safe at 10–20 mg/day.
Evidence at a glance
PQQ is a well-characterised bacterial cofactor sold as a disodium-salt supplement. In cells and PQQ-deprived rodents it clearly moves mitochondrial amount and the CREB/PGC-1α programme. In humans the RCT base is **small, short, and almost entirely manufacturer-funded**. The only trial that measured both a biogenesis marker and a performance outcome (Hwang 2020, n = 23) raised PGC-1α and **did not improve VO2, enzymes, or body composition**. Cognition has the most RCTs — Shiojima 2021, Tamakoshi 2023, Itoh 2016, plus two poorly accessible Japanese combination papers — and they report modest computerised-test gains at 20–21.5 mg for 12 weeks in healthy Japanese adults, not in MCI. Sleep and fatigue rest on one open-label n = 17 Mitsubishi study. Inflammation rests on n = 10, 3 days, no placebo (CRP ~−45%). LDL is one n = 29 Mitsubishi RCT that missed its whole-sample test. Safety at 20 mg for 12 weeks looks clean in those small trials; EU novel-food law caps adults at 20 mg and excludes pregnancy; rodent kidney findings set the NOAEL. The 10 mg + 100 mg CoQ10 stack is **not a studied dose pair**.