Statins are prescription drugs designed to decrease LDL, or bad, cholesterol and raise levels of HDL, or good, cholesterol. Doctors prescribe statins for people who have been unable to lower their cholesterol through other means, such as diet and exercise. Statins are derived from both natural and artificial means.

History

Statins were initially made available in the 1980s. The first statin carried the brand-name Mevacor; it was approved by the FDA in 1987. According to the University of Michigan, American pharmaceutical company Merck isolated a natural substance called lovastatin in 1979 that would later lead to statin drugs. Merck got the substance from a type of fungus called Aspergillus terreus.

Function

According to the website Statin Answers, statins work by inhibiting an enzyme called HMG-CoA reductase. By blocking this enzyme, statins slow down the body's production of cholesterol.

Strains

Today, statins are made from the fermentation of bacteria or are synthetically manufactured. Simvastatin and pravastatin are derived from fermentation, whereas fluvastatin, atorvastatin and rosuvastatin are synthetically derived, according to Statin Answers.

Pravastatin

Biolta.com reports that the statin pravastatin is neither completely organic nor completely synthetic. It is the only statin derived from another statin. It is based on compactin, a statin that comes from red rice yeast. Compactin was taken off the market because of its side effects. However, compactin can be synthesized into pravastatin.

Considerations

Statins also include inactive ingredients that give the drugs coloration, act as preservatives and help make taking the drug easier. These inactive ingredients can include ascorbic acid, citric acid, iron oxides, lactose and starch, according to RxList.

Source:

Statin Answers

University of Michigan Business School: Case 10: Merck(A): Mevacor

RxList: Zocor

More Information:

MayoClinic.com: Statins

Biolta: Compactin