Mevinolin: A Highly Specific Inhibitor of Microsomal 3-Hydroxy-3-Methylglutaryl-Coenzyme A Reductase of Radish Plants

Abstract

The fungal metabolite mevinolin, known to be a potent hypocholesterolemic agent, excerts in vitro a strong inhibitory effect on microsomal HMG-CoA reductase from etiolated radish seedlings at a concentration of about three magnitudes lower than the K_m towards the natural substrate (S)-HMG-CoA (I₅₀ = 2.5 × 10^-9 ᴍ). Beside this, mevinolin significantly inhibits the root elongation of radish as well as of wheat seedlings already at low concentrations of 10 to 100 ppb (= 2.5 × 10^-8 to 2.5 × 10^-7 ᴍ).