A blog by two chemists working in chemistry and chemical biology

Tuesday, 9 July 2013

Blockbuster - Atorvastatin

Most blogs appear to have a generic period of time, where the posts are as frequent as a British person winning Wimbledon.  To get the ball rolling (again) down the mountain of productivity, through the plain of peril to the crown of command, I am posting one of my first ideas for The Stirrer Bar.  I thought some aid memoires for drug molecules/tool compounds would be useful for translating molecular structures to biological functions etc. Queue wikipaste...

Drug
Atorvastatin
Target
HMG Co-A reductase
Effect
Lowers cholesterol in body



Atorvastatin is a member of the drug class known as statins and is able to lower the blood cholesterol levels.  It works by inhibiting HMG-CoA reductase – an enzyme found in the liver which is responsible for the production of cholesterol.
HMG Co-A reductase is the rate controlling enzyme of the mevalonate pathway, the metabolic pathway that produces cholesterol and other isoprenoids.
Structurally, cholesterol is essential to mammalian membranes, as it establishes proper membrane permeability and fluidity. Chemically it is required for the manufacture of bile acids, steroid hormones and vitamin D.

Synthesis – Key Dissconections



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