What are statins of medication?

Statin drugs are drugs used to reduce lipid and lipoproteins in serum. Also known as statins, statin drugs work by suppressing HMG-CoA reductase, enzyme involved in cholesterol production. Blocking this effect of this enzyme also stimulates certain protein receptors that are located on the cell surface to bind with the circulating lipoproteins with a low density (LDL) so that they can be contained and cleaved in the liver. Because high LDL cholesterol levels are associated with the support of the accumulation of arterial plaque, statin drugs are particularly beneficial for people at risk of heart disease. However, there is evidence that suggests that statin drugs can also help prevent kidney, arthritis, osteoporosis, dementia (such as Alzheimer's disease) and certain cancer.

The drug statins are either synthetically produced or obtained as a fermentation substrate, or by a by -product of organic compound oxidation. Yet one of the statin drugs, compactin, occursNaturally in red yave rice due to the presence of penicillium citrinum , type of mold. However, since it is associated with several undesirable side effects, compactin is not used as a lipid reducing agent itself. Instead, it is used to produce another statin called Pravastatin. In fact, the synthesis of compactin is the only way to get orthopic.

Lovastatin was the first of statin drugs to be approved by US food and drug administration (FDA). Like several other drugs in this class, it is obtained by fermentation, in this case from the fungus Aspergillus terreus . In fact, as well as compactin, it naturally occurs in red yeast rice. Lovastatin is sold under several brands, including Mevacor® and Altocor®.

effects of drugs of statin drugs decreasing cholesterol are observed in a very short time, usually during POwn seven days. However, statin therapy is not necessarily a permanent solution. In fact, unless measurable lifestyle changes have been made, LDL cholesterol levels will increase again if therapy is interrupted. Therefore, most patients undergoing treatment with statin drugs must continue their drug for the rest of their lives.

While the health of donor advantages of statin therapy are obvious to some people, these drugs are risks. For one thing, a combination of statin drugs with other drugs increases the risk of rabdomyolysis, a condition characterized by disintegration of muscle cells. This interaction of the drug may occur in other lipids, such as gemfibrzil, with certain antibiotics (ie erythromycin) or antifungal substances such as cyclosporin. In addition, statin drugs can cause short -term side effects, most commonly nausea, diarrhea and muscle and joint pain. These drugs can sometimes increase the production of enzymes in the liver, which increasesES risk of liver damage and requires regular monitoring of enzyme levels.