Coenzyme Q10 ameliorates hepatoprotective effect of metformin in experimentally induced type 2 diabetes mellitus in rats: A functional and histological study

Management of metabolic dysfunction–associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) remains a significant clinical challenge. This study evaluated the efficacy of Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) as an adjuvant therapy to metformin in the treatment of MASLD using an experimentally induced type 2 diabetes (T2D) rat model. T2D was induced in 18 rats through a high-fat diet combined with a low dose of streptozotocin. The diabetic rats were then randomly allocated into three equal groups: untreated, metformin-treated, and metformin/CoQ10-treated. An additional six rats maintained on a normal chow diet served as the control group. Development of MASLD was confirmed through biochemical assays and histopathological analyses. Liver histology and electron microscopy were performed, along with immunohistochemistry for BAX and CD68 markers. Our results demonstrated that T2D rats exhibited impaired glucose and lipid profiles, elevated liver enzymes, and reduced adiponectin levels. These alterations were accompanied..., Ethical approval statement
The study protocol was reviewed and approved by the Research Ethics Committee of the Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University (IRB approval No. 3/2025 PHYS19). All experimental procedures were conducted in accordance with the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (National Research Council).
Experimental design
Twenty-four adult male Wistar rats (weighing 180–200 g) were housed under standard laboratory conditions with a natural light–dark cycle. They had free access to a normal chow diet and water and were acclimatized to the environment for one week before the start of the experiment.
Six rats were maintained on a normal chow diet and served as the control group. Type 2 diabetes (T2D) was induced in 18 rats using a high-fat diet (HFD) combined with a low-dose streptozotocin (STZ) injection, as described previously (Srinivasan et al., 2005). Sample size was calculated using the resource equation method (Arifin and Zahiruddin, 2017).
After successfu..., # Data from: Coenzyme Q10 ameliorates hepatoprotective effect of metformin in experimentally induced type 2 diabetes mellitus in rats: A functional and histological study

Dataset DOI: [10.5061/dryad.7m0cfxq8r](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.7m0cfxq8r)

## Description of the data and file structure

The data was collected as part of an experimental study aimed at evaluation the efficacy of Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) as an adjuvant therapy to metformin in the treatment of MASLD using an experimentally induced type 2 diabetes (T2D) rat model.

### Files and variables

#### File: raw_data_-dryad.xlsx

**Description:** excel file contain raw data

##### Variables

* Group: T2D, metformin treated or metformin/CoQ10 treated

- FBG: fasting blood glucose (mg/dl)
- HbA1C: glycated hemoglobin level (%)
- insulin (uIU/ml)
- HOMA: Homeostatic Model Assessment for Insulin Resistance (HOMA-IR) index
- cholesterol: serum cholesterol level (mg/dl)
- TG: triglycerides (mg/dl)
- HDL: high density lipoproteins-...,