• KSBB Journal
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.36-44
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• 1999

The biosynthesis of Lovastatin, a cholesterol lowering agent formed by the filamentous fungus Aspergillus terreus, was investigated in shaking flask. The effects of essential elements in the experimental medium such as carbon, nitrogen, phosphate sources, and amino acids were examined to increase Lovastatin productivity. Lovastatin production in shaking flasks was 68 mg/L in the used medium. Effect of carbon source on Lovastatin production was performed. As a carbon source in the medium, 45 mL/L of glycerol increased the Lovastatin production up to 256 mg/L, which was found to be improved almost 3.5 times in comparison with that in common medium. The optimum concventration of peptonized milk as nitrogen source was obtained 30g/L on Lovastatin production. The severe inhibition of the cell growth and the Lovastatin production were observed in shaking flasks conducted at the medium contained ammonium carbonate as a nitrogen source. Lovastatin production various concentrations of several phosphate compounds was also examined. The addition of either potassium phosphate diabsic or sodium phosphate dibasic increased the Lovastatin production and the optimal level of potassium phosphate dibasic was 6 g/L. Even though Lovastatin contain methionine-derived methyl group, L-methionine and DL-methionine tend to diminish the Lovastatin production. Among the amino acids, L-histidine and L-tryptophan had a remarkable enhancing effect on the Lovastatin production. The optimal concentration of L-histidine and L-tryptophan was 6g/L.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.163-169
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• 2009

Lovastatin (also known as Mevinolin, Mevacor, and Monacolin K), an inhibitor of the HMG-CoA reductase produced by Aspergillus terreus and other fungi, is used to reduce serum cholesterol levels in human beings. It is derived biosynthetically from two polyketides. One of these is a nonaketide that undergoes cyclization at a hexahydronaphthalene ring system, and the other is a simple diketide, 2-methylbutyrate. Two primer pairs were designed based on the amino acid sequences of lovastatin polyketide synthase and lovastatin diketide synthase for the PCR screening of lovastatin-producing strains. Among the seven selected strains, SJ-2 evidenced the highest level of lovastatin production in both liquid and solid cultures. Soybeans with SJ-2 were treated via 1 hour of heat shock at $30^{\circ}C$ for the mass production of lovastatin. The heat-treated soybeans were inoculated on rice bran and the koji extract was obtained after 15 days of incubation. It yielded the highest level of lovastatin production among the strains, and also evidenced 75% inhibition activity against HMG-CoA reductase. We developed an efficient PCR screening method for lovastatin-producing strains, using lovastatin biosynthesis genes.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.57 no.6
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• pp.388-393
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• 2013

Previously, we have reported that lovastatin, an inhibitor of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase, increased melanin synthesis through intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ release in B16 cells. In this study we investigated the possible involvement of nitric oxide (NO) in the mechanism of lovastatin-induced melanogenesis. Lovastatin elevated NO formation in a dose-dependent manner. Treatment with mevalonate, farnesyl pyrophosphate (FPP) and geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate (GGPP), precursors of cholesterol, did not significantly alter the lovastatin-induced NO production, suggesting that inhibition of cholesterol metabolism may not be involved in the mechanism of this action of lovastatin. Both NO formation and melanogenesis induced by lovastatin was significantly suppressed by treatment with $N^G$-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) and 2-(4-carboxy-2-phenyl)-4,4,5,5-tetramethylinidazoline-1-oxyl-3-oxide (cPTIO), an inhibitor of NO synthase and a NO scavenger, respectively. The lovastatin-induced NO production was significantly affected not by EGTA, an extracellular $Ca^{2+}$ chelator, but by an intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ chelator (BAPTA/AM) and intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ release blockers (dantrolene and TMB-8). Taken together, these results suggest that lovastatin may induce melanogenesis through NO formation mediated by intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ release in B16 cells. These results further suggest that lovastatin may be a good candidate for the therapeutic application of various hypopigmentation disorders.

• KSBB Journal
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.507-513
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• 2000

The biosynthesis of lovastatin, a cholesterol lowering agent formed by the filamentous fungus Aspergillus terreus, was examined in a 2.5 L jar fermenter. In batch bioreactor cultures conducted at various agitation rates, 400 rpm showed the best result in terms of lovastatin production. Notably, the effect of pH on lovastatin biosynthesis was found to be significant: when the pH was controlled at around 5.8 during the whole fermentation period, lovastatin concentration reached 598 mg/L, which is much hihger than the amounts obtained by pH-uncontrolled and pH 7.4-controlled fermentations. In addition, both L-histidine and L-tryptophan were observed to be favorable amino acids for the enhancement of lovastatin production when 6 g/L of the respective amino acids were supplemented at the beginning of the fermentation period. By further optimization of the production media and the physical environment, lovastatin production was increased to 836 mg/L (3.5 mg/L/hr) which is approximately 10 times higher than the productivity of the basic control culture.

• YAKHAK HOEJI
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• v.57 no.1
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• pp.24-31
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• 2013

Although statins, inhibitors of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase, have been shown to increase melanin synthesis, the exact mechanism of this action is not fully understood. In this study we investigated the possible involvement of intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ signal in the mechanism of stimulation of melanin synthesis induced by lovastatin in B16 cells. Lovastatin stimulated the production of melanin in a dose-dependent manner in the cells. Treatment with mevalonate, FPP and GGPP, precursors of cholesterol, did not significantly suppress the lovastatin-induced melanin production, suggesting that inhibition of cholesterol synthesis may not be involved in the mechanism of the action of lovastatin. In addition, lovastatin did not significantly alter the cAMP concentration and the stimulated production of melanin by lovastatin was not significantly changed by treatment with H89, a potent inhibitor of protein kinase A, which demonstrates that cAMP pathway may not be involved. However, lovastatin increased intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ concentration in a dose-related fashion. Treatment with EGTA, an extracellular $Ca^{2+}$ chelator did not significantly alter the lovastatin-induced intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ increase and melanin synthesis, whereas intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ reduction with BAPTA/AM and intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ release blockers (dantrolene and TMB-8) completely blunted these actions of lovastatin. Taken together, these results suggest that the intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ release may play an important role in the lovastatin-induced stimulation of melanin synthesis in B16 cells. These results further suggest that lovastatin may be useful for the treatment of hypopigmentation disorders, such as vitiligo.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Food Science and Nutrition
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.566-570
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• 2004

Cultivation conditions for overproduction of lovastatins were investigated from the lovastatin producing strain N-03 which was obtained with NTG (N-methyl-N'-nitro-nitrosoguanidine) treatment from Aspergiliu ferrous ATCC 20542. Produced lactone and acid form of lovastatin were detected, and analyzed by HPLC method. In liquid culture, medium No. 2 containing soy protein produced higher amounts of the lovastatins than medium No. 1 (contained rapeseed oil). In solid culture, maximum production was obtained at 28$^{\circ}C$ for 15 days cultivation using cooked wheat bran. For the overproduction of lovastatin from this strain, solid culture method using plastic bag is more superior than liquid culture.

• Korean Journal of Food Science and Technology
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• v.35 no.3
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• pp.442-446
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• 2003

Over two hundred fungal strains from Korean soil were tested for the production of cholesterol-lowering agent, lovastatin. Each fungal strain was cultivated in the rapeseedmeal production medium (RPM). After growing for 7 days, the presence of lovastatin in the culture was examined by TLC analysis and HPLC. Nine different fungal strains were determined to produce detectable amounts of lovastatin, among which one fungal strain isolated from barnyard manure of Kanghwa island produced 25.58 mg/L of lovastatin in the production medium. The morphological observation combined with the determination of 18S-rRNA sequence suggested that the selected strain belongs to a member of Aspergillus sp..

• KSBB Journal
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.87-94
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• 2001

The biosynthesis of Lovastatin, a cholesterol lowering agent formed by the filamentous fungus, cerulenin-resistant Aspergillus terreus mutant was studied in shake flasks and bioreactors. The lovastatin production could be improved by fed-batch under the limited condition of carbon source. The relationship between the fungal morphology and the lovastatin production was also examined during the fed-batch cultures. The fed-batch studies in shake flasks were carried out to find the optimum glucose feeding method, and the pulsed feeding of glucose from 3 days onward at 24 hours intervals was found to be optimal to increase the lovastatin production and reduce the average pellet size. When the pH was controlled at around 5.8 during the whole fermentation period, the lovastatin concentration reached 384 mg/L, which is much higher than the values obtained pH-uncontrolled and pH 7.4. The optimal glucose feeding strategies was found that 30 g/L of glucose was added initially in batch mode, and then fed-batch was conducted by continuous addition of glucose solution(180 g/L) from 72 to 240 hr at a rate of 1.2 mL/hr at $28^{\circ}C$, pH 5.8, 400 rpm, and 1.0 vvm. The lovastatin concentration of 547 mg/L was obtained in 168 hr. It was about 1.5 times higher than the value of the batch fermentation.

• Biomolecules & Therapeutics
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.137-144
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• 2007

Although lovastatin, a competitive inhibitor of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-coenzyme A (HMGCoA) reductase, has been shown to have anti-cancer actions, the effect on human hepatoma cells was not investigated. Moreover, the exact mechanism of this action is not fully understood. In this study we investigated the mechanism by which lovastatin induces apoptosis using HepG2 human hepatoblastoma cells. Lovastatin induced apoptotic cell death in a dose-dependent manner in the cells, assessed by the flow cytometric analysis. Treatment with mevalonic acid, a precursor of cholesterol, did not significantly suppress the lovastatin-induced apoptosis. Lovastatin induced a rapid and sustained increase in intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ concentration. Treatment with EGTA, an extracellular $Ca^{2+}$ chelator did not significantly alter the lovastatin-induced intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ increase and apoptosis, whereas intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ reduction with BAPTA/AM and intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ release blockers (dantrolene and TMB-8) completely blocked these actions of lovastatin. In addition, the lovastatin-induced apoptosis was significantly reduced by a calpain inhibitor, a broad spectrum caspase inhibitor z-VAD-fmk and inhibitors specific for caspase-9 and caspase-3 (z-LEHD-fmk and z-DEVD-fmk, respectively), but not by an inhibitor specific for caspase-8 (z-IETD-fmk). Collectively, these results suggest that lovastatin induced apoptosis of HepG2 hepatoma cells through intracellular $Ca^{2+}$ release and calpain activation, leading to triggering mitochondrial apoptotic pathway. These results further suggest that lovastatin may be valuable for the therapeutic management of human hepatoma.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.83-88
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• 2006

This research was performed to determine the production of lovastatin and its HMG-CoA reductase activity produced by fruit bodies and mycelial liquid cultures of domestic edible mushrooms (8 fungal strains). By deter-mining TLC analysis for the confirmation of the presence of lovastatin, all the extracts from fruit bodies and mycelial liquid culture showed same Rf value (0.46), whick was identical to that of the standard lovastatin. In order to extract lovastatin from fruit body, the mixture of water/acetonitrile/methanol was chosen as the most effective solvent. Extracts from fruit body and mycelial liquid culture of pleurotus ostreatus produced the high-est lovastatin 0.98 mg/g based on dry biomass, and 21.90 mg/L, respectively. In the inhibition rate of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA (HMG-CoA) reductase, the highest was obtained in P. ostreatus as 67.8% among fruit bodies, and the rates of mycelial liquid culture extracts from P. ostreatus and Laetiporus sulphureus were 37.2% and 29.1%, respectively. Unusually L. sulphureus showed high inhibition rate with low content of lovastatin due to the contribution of campesterol and gamma-sitosterol with hypocholesterolemic activity as metabolites.