lovastatin
noun
lov·a·stat·in ˈlō-və-ˌsta-tᵊn 
ˈlə-;
ˌlō-və-ˈsta-,
ˌlə- : a drug C24H36O8 that decreases the level of cholesterol in the bloodstream
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web Take, for example, lovastatin (Mevacor), the first statin approved by the FDA in 1987. 
Dennis J. Selkoe, STAT, 23 Oct. 2019 Fungi are the basis for many drugs, including the antibiotic penicillin, the immunosuppressant cyclosporine and the cholesterol buster lovastatin, so Blanchette wondered if these Antarctic species might produce any useful molecules. Peter Andrey Smith, Scientific American, 1 June 2018 Fungi are the basis for many drugs, including the antibiotic penicillin, the immunosuppressant cyclosporine and the cholesterol buster lovastatin, so Blanchette wondered if these Antarctic species might produce any useful molecules. Peter Andrey Smith, Scientific American, 1 June 2018 For example, studies in mice suggested that a drug called lovastatin might help to address the learning and attentional problems that accompany NF-1. Ed Yong, The Atlantic, 13 Dec. 2017 Of the 56 million Americans who are considered candidates for drugs with names like simvastatin, lovastatin, pravastatin and atorvastatin, just about half that number take them. Melissa Healy, latimes.com, 24 July 2017 In 2014, the federal agency warned one red yeast rice producer that its supplement contained too much lovastatin, and so could not be sold as a supplement. Karen Weintraub, USA TODAY, 23 June 2017 See More
Dennis J. Selkoe, STAT, 23 Oct. 2019 Fungi are the basis for many drugs, including the antibiotic penicillin, the immunosuppressant cyclosporine and the cholesterol buster lovastatin, so Blanchette wondered if these Antarctic species might produce any useful molecules. Peter Andrey Smith, Scientific American, 1 June 2018 Fungi are the basis for many drugs, including the antibiotic penicillin, the immunosuppressant cyclosporine and the cholesterol buster lovastatin, so Blanchette wondered if these Antarctic species might produce any useful molecules. Peter Andrey Smith, Scientific American, 1 June 2018 For example, studies in mice suggested that a drug called lovastatin might help to address the learning and attentional problems that accompany NF-1. Ed Yong, The Atlantic, 13 Dec. 2017 Of the 56 million Americans who are considered candidates for drugs with names like simvastatin, lovastatin, pravastatin and atorvastatin, just about half that number take them. Melissa Healy, latimes.com, 24 July 2017 In 2014, the federal agency warned one red yeast rice producer that its supplement contained too much lovastatin, and so could not be sold as a supplement. Karen Weintraub, USA TODAY, 23 June 2017 See More Word History
Etymology
probably from International Scientific Vocabulary mevalonic acid, a carboxylic acid, C6H12O4 (from methyl + valeric + -onic — as in gluconic acid) + mevastatin, a fungal metabolite structurally similar to lovastatin, from mevalonic + -stat + -in entry 1
First Known Use
1987, in the meaning defined above
Medical Definition
lovastatin
noun
lov·a·stat·in
ˈlō-və-ˌstat-ᵊn, ˈləv-ə-
: a statin C24H36O8 that decreases the level of cholesterol in the bloodstream by inhibiting the liver enzyme that controls cholesterol synthesis and is used in the treatment of hypercholesterolemia see mevacor