The Effect of acetyl-L-carnitine, Alpha-lipoic Acid, and Coenzyme Q10 Combination in Preventing Anti-tuberculosis Drug-induced Hepatotoxicity: A Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Clinical Trial

Drug-induced liver injury (DILI) is one of the most serious adverse effects of anti-tuberculosis (TB) drugs. A suggested mechanism of this adverse effect is mitochondrial dysfunction (MDF). The purpose of this study was an evaluation of the possible preventive effects of the combination of acetyl-L-carnitine (ALCAR), alpha-lipoic acid (ALA), and coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10), as mitochondrial nutrients (MNs), against anti-TB DILI. In this clinical trial, patients who met the inclusion criteria were randomly assigned to either experimental (n = 44) or placebo (n = 43) groups. The experimental group received capsules containing CoQ10 (200 mg) + ALA (250 mg) + ALCAR (250 mg) orally twice daily for two weeks, and the placebo group received oral placebo capsules with the same interval and duration. The mean serum levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and total bilirubin (TBil) at the end of the first and second weeks as well as the incidence of DILI during the intervention were recorded and compared between the two groups. At the end of the study, the mean serum levels of AST and ALT in the experimental group were significantly lower than the placebo group (36.27 ± 36.43 vs. 86.02 ± 97.23 and 28.41 ± 27.41 vs. 78.80 ± 118.28, respectively, P = 0.003 for both). Also, the incidence of anti-TB DILI was significantly lower in the experimental group than the placebo group (6.8% vs. 25.6%, P = 0.017). In conclusion, using the combination of ALCAR, ALA, and CoQ10 may provide an effective strategy in preventing anti-TB DILI.