Lay summary
Diabetes increases the risk of heart disease and therefore diabetics are commonly prescribed lipid-lowering drugs (statins) to help reduce this risk. The heart requires constant energy to continuously beat throughout life. Energy supply to the heart is impaired in diabetes, meaning the muscle does not beat as effectively. Mitochondria are the main source of energy for heart cells, with coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) an essential component of the mitochondrial energy producing system. CoQ10 is mainly produced within the body through a pathway that is interrupted by statins, yet it is not known if CoQ10 is deficient in diabetic hearts. We will quantify CoQ10 in human heart tissue from patients with and without type-2 diabetes, and the impact of statins. Furthermore, we will establish a system to keep human heart tissue alive and beating, enabling us to test whether prolonged supplementation of CoQ10 can improve mitochondrial energy supply in the diabetic heart.