The College of Science discussed a Ph.D. thesis about the Synthesis, Characterization, and Biochemical Evaluation of Novel Simvastatin Derivatives
by Amaal Hussein Sheaa
The thesis aimed to synthesize six novel simvastatin derivatives by introducing short-chain aliphatic carboxylic acid moieties, structurally confirmed using FTIR, ¹H-NMR, ¹³C-NMR, and Mass spectrometry. Acute oral toxicity (LD50) evaluation revealed high safety with no mortality, while biocompatibility assays on normal human cells showed no significant cytotoxicity.
Four derivatives were selected for in vivo assessment in a hypercholesterolemic rat model. Therapeutic efficacy was evaluated through lipid profile analysis, liver and kidney function tests, and HMG-CoA reductase concentration, complemented by histopathological examinations of liver and kidney tissues.
