Coenzymes & Longevity Actives

What manufacturers buy here

This category covers carnitine and its salts and esters, coenzyme Q10 and ubiquinol, alpha lipoic acid, and newer actives such as PQQ, NMN, citicoline, SAMe and spermidine. Formulators usually approach it in four groups.

• Carnitine and its derivatives. L-carnitine base, the L-tartrate, fumarate and hydrochloride salts, and the esters acetyl-L-carnitine hydrochloride and propionyl-L-carnitine hydrochloride. The carnitine guide compares these forms, and L-carnitine vs acetyl-L-carnitine covers the most common choice.
• Quinones. Coenzyme Q10 as ubiquinone, its reduced form ubiquinol, and pyrroloquinoline quinone as the free acid or disodium salt. See ubiquinol vs ubiquinone.
• Lipoic acid. Racemic alpha lipoic acid, R-alpha-lipoic acid and R-alpha-lipoic acid sodium salt.
• Nucleotides and methyl donors. Citicoline and citicoline sodium, nicotinamide mononucleotide, SAMe as the chloride and disulfate tosylate salts, and spermidine.

Choosing within the category

Salt or ester, and active content. Each carnitine salt, SAMe salt or sodium salt carries a different share of the active moiety. Label-claim arithmetic must use the active content stated on the specification sheet. SoleChem sends the specification sheet and the certificate of analysis with its quote.

Moisture uptake and format. L-carnitine base takes up moisture readily. For tablets and dry powders, formulators often choose L-carnitine L-tartrate instead.

Fat solubility and oxidation. Coenzyme Q10 and ubiquinol are lipophilic and suit softgels and oil-based fills. Ubiquinol oxidises to ubiquinone in air, so packaging and antioxidant protection need attention.

Stereochemistry and heat. The racemate contains the R and S forms of lipoic acid in equal amounts; R-alpha-lipoic acid is the single enantiomer. Free R-alpha-lipoic acid tends to polymerise, which is why the sodium salt is also supplied. Alpha lipoic acid has a low melting point, so compression heat and drying temperatures need control.

Regulatory notes

None of these actives is a vitamin or mineral, so Annexes I and II of Directive 2002/46/EC do not list them. Their use in food supplements falls largely under national rules on other substances, which differ by member state; Article 8 of Regulation (EC) No 1925/2006 allows the EU to restrict such substances. Ubiquinol, PQQ disodium salt, citicoline, NMN, spermidine sources, R-alpha-lipoic acid and SAMe must each be checked against the Union list of novel foods under Regulation (EU) 2015/2283 before use. The novel food status guide explains how to read an entry and its conditions of use.